The first social network? (It's all in how you label yourself.)

As of today, I am heavily involved in FriendFeed, Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn, and other social networks.

In the past, I have been heavily involved in Yahoo, various bulletin board systems, and the network news system accessible via Reed College (precursor to Usenet).

Now most of the systems that I named above didn't even exist in the late 1980s, but there is one social network from the late 1980s that I didn't list.

Since you're reading this in the Empoprise-NTN blog, you can probably guess which network I'm talking about.

Here's how the Buzztime blog puts it:

Buzztime is a network of people from all over North America – competing, interacting… socializing, Sound familiar? Ends up we were onto something waaaay back in 1986… we just hadn’t labeled it “social network.”

An oft-used quote during a typical Buzztime product meeting goes something like this: ”We were a social network before people knew what a social network was.” We think that’s pretty spot-on.

Of course, the one difference between the Buzztime trivia network and, say, FriendFeed is that you don't have to go through extra hoops to hold a meetup.

[We] give our network of players a product by which to socially interact… in person… away from the computer and out in the world, and you’ve got a perfectly functioning network of networks. Let us illustrate:

Create game network –> players play games on network –> meet other players –> form social network –> social network facilitates players gathering to play game network –> repeat.

And there you have it – traditional in-your-face social networking, with all of the bells and whistles that actually come from physically being with actual people… socially. Brilliant.

So, what we’re trying to say is “We Win,” and we’re calling shotgun on the whole “First Social Network” thing.

Of course, once you state that the "computer" in a social network can be a Playmaker, you can extend the concept and say that the computer could be a quill pen. Then you can go back well before 1986...

On stability, and the end of the Bateman Blip

I am cursed with being a Washington Redskins fan, and I remember reading an observation that because of the myriad changes in the Redskins' coaching staff over the years, the players have to learn a new offensive strategy fairly frequently - sometimes every year or so. So just when you have mastered the instructions of the current offensive coordinator or head coach, they get shipped out and the new offensive coordinator or head coach implements a brand new strategy that you have to learn.

But this doesn't just happen with the Redskins. Far from it:

CARLSBAD, Calif., Jan. 15 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- NTN Buzztime, Inc. (NYSE Amex: NTN) today announced that Terry Bateman, Chief Executive Officer, has announced his intention to resign. Mr. Bateman will remain active on the Board of Directors and be involved in finding his replacement. The Board of Directors...expects this process to be completed in the second quarter of 2010....

"We have made considerable progress towards achieving our operating objectives, and I continue to believe in the fundamental strength of the business," said Terry Bateman. "I am stepping down for personal reasons, but will remain on the Board of Directors to help oversee the strategic initiatives put in place over the last year, and I will also participate in the search for my successor, in order to ensure a smooth transition. I remain confident in the Company's continued success."

"Terry has been instrumental in the turnaround of NTN Buzztime's business and has been a tremendous leader," noted Chairman Jeff Berg. "The positive effects that Terry has had on the business are substantial, as underscored by our performance in the fourth quarter of 2009, which is expected to show EBITDA higher than any recorded in the past six quarters, as well as positive cash flow. While we are disappointed to see him leave, we understand and respect his decision, and look forward to his participation as an active, non-executive member of the Board, where his advice and judgment, informed by his tenure as CEO, will be tremendously valuable."

Thus ends the Bateman era - or, more accurately, the Bateman blip. This blog has covered the entire Bateman blip, beginning with his October 2008 appointment to the Board of Directors, the November 2008 appointment of Bateman to participate in a strategic analysis (at the same time that Jeff Berg became Chairman of the Board after Michael Fleming's departure), Bateman's February 2009 appointment as CEO, the beginnings of a new strategy in March 2009, the acquisitions in April and May, and - most importantly - the strategic reduction in pricing that decreased revenue, but upped the site count.

So now they're going to bring in a new CEO. It's only been about 11 months since they brought in the last CEO. Heck, Lane Kiffin stayed at Tennessee for 14 months.

Now perhaps Bateman's departure was unavoidable. We'll probably never know, because whenever someone cites "personal reasons," the implication is that you can't ask what those reasons were.

But while Berg, Bateman, and the rest may be hoping that they can get a CEO who carries out the old strategy to the letter, CEOs don't work that way. Any CEO worth his or her salt is going to want to implement his or her own personal strategy. And for all we know, that strategy may be the exact opposite of the Bateman strategy.

So we'll wait and see...

(empo-tuulwey) NTN Buzztime as part of an overall strategy

I don't think I've ever written an "empo-tuulwey" post in my Empoprise-NTN blog (I do them all the time in my Empoprise-BI business blog), but this is as good a time as any to start.

With the possible exception of strip clubs, there is no one single element that can necessarily make or break your restaurant or bar. Even a steak restaurant is not entirely dependent upon steak; one time my wife and I had a problem at a steak restaurant because chocolate sprinkles somehow ended up in one of our salads.

So if you're running a restaurant or bar, including NTN Buzztime will not automatically make it the best place around, and pulling NTN Buzztime will not automatically confine it to the dregs.

RoadDog recently blogged about the Kross Inn in Fox Lake, Illinois, which just introduced NTN Buzztime. But RoadDog noted that the Kross Inn has a history that predates their introduction of trivia.

This place has been there for many years and at one time was owned by Al and Marge who we know very well from the American Legion. This is not one of your BW3s, Friday's or that type of place.

I'd describe it as more of a Cheers place.

While the rest of this post concentrated on the NTN aspect (and provides a prime example of why it's valuable to drink your own Kool-Aid), a follow-up post notes some other things offered by the Kross Inn.

A mug of beer is $1.50. Pints are $2. There are also daily drinks specials.

Tuesdays they have Italian beef and fries for $4.25.

Thursday are two burgers for the price of one. Mondays is the best with $3 burgers and $1 brats (both with fries).

Great. Now I'm hungry for brats, and the Kross Inn is far away.


View Larger Map

The Inn's NTN Buzztime page is at http://www.buzztime.com/players/bt_site.php?sid=35481.

Nothing new on the Trinad Capital front

I was checking my analytics, and I noticed a huge Stumbleupon-related spike for my July 3 post about Trinad Capital's allegations of mismanagement, fraud, et al at NTN Buzztime. So I thought I'd see what was happening.

In my July post, I noted that Trinad Capital had bought NTN Buzztime shares as recently as May. I checked Yahoo, and they have not made any purchases since.

And NTN Buzztime's most recently quarterly report makes no reference to Trinad Capital, in the "Legal Proceedings" section or anywhere else.

NTN Buzztime's third quarter results are out

The good news is that NTN Buzztime now has 305 more sites than they had a year ago.

The bad news is that this is how NTN Buzztime led off its announcement of third quarter results. And when you don't lead your press release with financial results, prepare for a loss.

First off, revenues were lower than the year ago numbers.

Revenues for the third quarter of 2009 were $6.7 million, compared to revenues of $6.8 million for the same period of 2008. The slight decline in revenue was largely due to a slight decrease in average revenue generated per site related to a strategic reduction in pricing, which was partially offset by a higher site count and an increase in advertising revenue.

Price decreases to raise revenue are always a balancing act, and it looks like NTN Buzztime was slightly off balance.

But did they make money? Well, no, but the loss has decreased:

Loss from continuing operations for the third quarter of 2009 was $768,000, or one cent per share, compared to a loss from continuing operations of $1,032,000, or two cents per share, for the same period a year ago.

To be fair, all busineses are struggling with a weakened economy, so perhaps this slightly negative performance was as good as could be expected.

And if NTN Buzztime is profitable in the long term, all will be forgiven.

Of course, it's not available for Windows Mobile 5

You know the routine. You go to your favorite bar or restaurant, grab a chair, and then ask for a Playmaker so that you can participate in the NTN Buzztime trivia competition.

Well, certain people can cut out the third step above, as Paul Ryburn notes:

There’s a Mobile Playmaker app available for free. Just search for “Buzztime, Inc.” in the app store. It will turn your iPhone into a little blue crack box, and you can play at any location that offers both Buzztime and Wi-Fi....

Read the rest here.

It's been a while...

Wow. This is my first post in this blog in over a month. Let's do some catching up:

• No, I ended up NOT heading out to Haight-Asbury to play NTN Buzztime trivia during Oracle OpenWorld. I was running across so much in the SOMA area that I never left.


• I was going to play trivia the next week, during our own company user conference, and took the opportunity to do so one afternoon when I had to leave the hotel to go to work. I consulted the NTN Buzztime web site and found that there was a Buffalo Wild Wings on my route back to work, but when I drove there, I couldn't find the Buffalo Wild Wings.

I'll make it into trivia-land at some point.

In the meantime, NTN Buzztime still goes on, still getting revenue even when I don't show up, and still accruing costs. If you want to know more about these kinds of things, you can find out in a few days:

NTN Buzztime, Inc. (NYSE
Amex: NTN), today announced it will conduct a conference call to discuss its
financial results for the third quarter of 2009 at 4:30 p.m. ET on Thursday,
November 12, 2009....

Hosting the call will be CEO, Terry Bateman and CFO, Kendra Berger.

To access the conference call, please dial (866) 360-7027, if calling from the
United States or Canada, or (706) 643-3291, if calling internationally, and
use passcode 40060420.

A replay will be available on November 12, 2009 at 5:30 p.m. ET until November
19, 2009, which can be accessed by dialing (800) 642-1687, if calling from the
United States or Canada, or (706) 645-9291, if calling internationally. Please
use passcode 40060420 to access the replay.

The call will also be accompanied live by webcast over the Internet and
accessible at the Company's Web site at http://www.buzztime.com.

A trivia-less Oracle OpenWorld this year?

I likes to play me the NTN Buzztime trivia when I travel, and last year I lucked out, because I discovered a place to play trivia during Oracle OpenWorld 2008 - namely, the Beale St. Bar & Grill.

Sadly, I won't be able to repeat the experience. The Beale St. Bar & Grill has apparently dropped NTN Buzztime trivia.

As of now, there are only two places in the city that offer the game, and both are over a mile away from the Oracle festivities - the Kezar Pub on 770 Stanyan, and Mad Dog in the Fog on 530 Haight. I could conceivably take the N Judah line to the Haight, but if I'm going to do that, I'm going to head out to the Sunset District. (Personal thing.)

So, unless something changes, the only trivia that I'll be considering during the week of Oracle OpenWorld will be the true TPC numbers for the Exadata 2.

TouchTunes didn't touch this Cedar Rapids BWW visitor

I had assumed that every single Buffalo Wild Wings in the entire universe - well, at least in the U.S. and Canada - offered NTN Buzztime. It initially appeared that this was not the case at a Buffalo Wild Wings in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, according to LaDawn Edwards:

My husband and I wanted to do a little cell phone comparison shopping and get some dinner before catching a movie on a recent Tuesday, so we headed to BWW at 1100 Blairs Ferry Rd. NE in Cedar Rapids shortly after 5 p.m. We hadn’t eaten there in several months, so we were interested to note that they’d replaced the portable game system that we’d always enjoyed doing trivia quizzes on while we waited for our food.

We grabbed a TouchTunes unit to figure out what it offered and realized it wasn’t working. The problem? “No signal from base” the screen reported. Our waiter commented that the units stacked on the base had the same message, so it was malfunctioning somehow. Apparently, it’s supposed to let you use your credit card to pay for the overhead music jukebox-style or the more popular games, although many of them are free. The gadget failed to entertain us, but on the other hand didn’t cost anything since it wasn’t working. Oh well.

The sadder part? According to Buzztime's web site, the Blairs Ferry BWW continues to be an active NTN Buzztime site. So Edwards apparently got the wrong information about the availability of NTN Buzztime trivia.

In the meantime, I did find information about TouchTunes' PlayPorTT product. Here's some details:

Hip, Cool And Totally Portable

* Create a buzz with the PlayPorTT’s revolutionary sleek, portable design
* Play individually, multi-player, in groups, or even head-to-head
* The best classic and new games keep patrons entertained and coming back for more

Easy To Manage

* Proven durability and bar-friendly design
* Use in its recharging dock or go portable
* Operator configurable. Release from dock with credit card, cash or without any payment, as you prefer
* Built in multi-level security features
* Regular, automatic online game updates keep games fresh and engaging
* Ability to edit content for each location

A New Way To Grow Your Business

* Multiple, portable screens from one base means more patrons playing more music and games from more places
* Automatic link to a TouchTunes® jukebox drives more music plays
* Fun, portable, and engaging – creates excitement at your locations
* Help your customers retain and attract patrons in their locations

Raising The Bar In Out-Of-Home Entertainment
Captivating patrons. Redefining entertainment. Growing your business. We’re TouchTunes, the largest out-of-home interactive entertainment network, providing music, games and new revenue opportunities to over 35,000 bars, restaurants and retail locations in North America.

So, while it doesn't appear that you can compete against a multi-nation network of players, the system does offer some potential revenue opportunities for bar and restaurant owners. Imaging if you needed a credit card to get an NTN Buzztime Playmaker.

And TouchTunes is in a larger number of locations than NTN Buzztime - 35,000 locations is nothing to sneeze at. So what's the nearest location in my area? I don't know - I couldn't find a "SiteFinder" equivalent on TouchTunes.

And compare @playportt's Twitter presence with @buzztimegirl's. At least in the social media area, NTN Buzztime has the greater presence.

Bush gets buzzed in a combine - or, this blogger writes an entirely misleading NTN Buzztime post title

The truth of the matter is that NTN Buzztime has made a change in the composition of its Board of Directors.

On September 4, 2009 our Board of Directors (the "Board"), upon recommendation of the Nomination, Corporate Governance and Compensation Committee of the Board, elected Michael J. Bush to the Board, effective as of September 8, 2009. The Board determined that Mr. Bush is independent under applicable regulations of the Securities and Exchange Commission and rules of the NYSE Amex. The Board also appointed Mr. Bush to the Nomination, Corporate Governance and Compensation Committee and the Audit Committee.

Perhaps more significant is a streamlining effort that the Board of Directors has made. Any corporate Board of Directors has a number of committees that attend to certain Board matters. The NTN Buzztime Board of Directors has combined some of its committees:

The Nomination and Corporate Governance Committee was combined with the Compensation Committee to form the Nomination, Corporate Governance and Compensation Committee (the "Combined Committee");

I found a Western Australia company (Anvil Mining) that also has a combined committee.

Another perspective on NTN Buzztime's social capabilities

In a symbolic way, I drink a lot of Kool Aid. I hang out online with a bunch of FriendFeed types who relish the conversation and community of "friends," and I love to play NTN Buzztime games in which I compete against my "friends" from all over the United States and Canada. In my view, these virtual tools enhance the experience that I have with others.

But not everyone sees it that way. I was reading my feeds and ran across a post in the blog "Here is a Thing." Here's part of the thing:

I play trivia every Thursday night at Max’s, which is the best bar in Baltimore (check out the massive tap list at maxs.com). It’s a live trivia game with moderators and teams and stuff, not one of those cheap computer things they have at places like Buffalo Wild Wings.

Now I can think of a number of adjectives to apply to the NTN Buzztime trivia experience, but I never would have thought of the adjective "cheap." (In fact, some establishments that have dropped NTN Buzztime service have claimed that it is too expensive.)

Why does the writer consider NTN Buzztime "cheap"? Because of the lack of human interaction? Because of drawbacks in the graphical interface?

Now I'm curious.

Fighting for Playmakers in Dublin's future?

http://www.flickr.com/photos/theilr/ / CC BY-SA 2.0

Urbanspoon reviewed the Buffalo Wild Wings in Dublin, California. The page included commentary from BWW themselves, part of which read as follows:

It's got everything sports fans - and wing fans - dream of. Wall-to-wall big screens featuring all the games, a fantastic beer selection, award-winning chicken wings along with 14 delicious signature sauces, like Honey BBQ, Spicy Garlic and Blazin'. There's even Buzztime Trivia for all you trivia buffs out there.

Reviewer ScottySauce started his review as follows:

very few bw3 locations on the west coast and the first bay area location is in dublin? WEIRD!

this new dublin location just brought me back to the days i had nightmares working as a server.

However, Sauce's concern was about the perceived popularity of the place:

this place is so small and packed and with just the right big crowd the servers and customers are gonna be screwed. with so much entertainment and interactive entertainment they really should expand fast to avoid HELL. this place is like a hooters without the hot girls and an espn zone without the espn and the zone.

Sauce eventually got to some convoluted economic reasoning:

i really don't feel we all need a place like this right now in our economic situation. the price of food and drink is pretty over the top for your typical run of the mill average bar food.

So in essence Sauce is worried that people will SPEND MONEY at the BWW in Dublin. And obviously we can't allow that to happen.

NTN Buzztime at Tequila Hoppers is educational

It's probably a good idea for someone who blogs on a topic to actually engage in the topic in question. And I hadn't played NTN Buzztime trivia in months. I tried to on August 12, but my local bar (Tequila Hoppers, Upland, California) was closed due to an emergency.

Well, I had an opportunity to play tonight, and Tequila Hoppers was open. I stayed for an hour and got three games in - one 1/2 hour 15-question Countdown game, and two 1/4 hour 10-question Buzztime trivia games. By far I did best on the Countdown game, scoring 11,583 points (out of 15,000) and ranking #47 on the network. My performance on the Buzztime games was less than stellar, however - I didn't even make the 6,000 point (out of 10,000) minimum in the first game.

It looks like NTN Buzztime has made some significant improvements in their presentation since I last played. For example, when I got three perfect 1,000 scores in a row in my Countdown game, the screen announced this to the local crowd. (Not that they noticed, for reasons that will become apparent.) A similar announcement was made when I extended my streak to five perfect 1,000 scores. I've never seen anything like that before.

But if you think that playing NTN Buzztime at a bar is frivolous fun, I have to assure you that it's educational. For example, I learned that the cooking product PAM was not named after a person named Pam, but actually stands for "Product of Arthur Meyerhoff," the inventor of PAM. (See this post in my Empoprise-BI business blog for more details.)

And I also learned that three bikini-clad waitresses can fit on a mechanical bull, but that was more of a function of Tequila Hoppers than NTN Buzztime.

http://www.flickr.com/photos/tkkate/ / CC BY-SA 2.0

The picture above was NOT taken at Tequila Hoppers this evening. After all, there was only one woman on this bull. But you get the idea.

I'll share a little bit more about Tequila Hoppers in a post on my Empoprise-IE Inland Empire blog.

Fantasy in a bar - no, it's an NTN Buzztime Sports Network

Just saw this press release. NTN Buzztime, in an effort to drive people into the bars and restaurants that include their programming, has created a Sports Network with a "draft every week" fantasy football game. Basically, participants come into the restaurant (and buy food and drink) twice a week - once on Wednesday night to draft, and once on Sunday to play.

And the network doesn't have any additional costs for bars and restaurants. Let's see how this works.

NTN Buzztime, Inc. Launches New Sports Network in Time for Football Season
Tue Sep 1, 2009 12:00pm EDT

Weekly fantasy football league leads programming

CARLSBAD, Calif., Sept. 1 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- NTN Buzztime, Inc. (NYSE
Amex: NTN) is reinventing the fantasy football world with the launch of its
new Sports Network. The new network features four popular interactive games
geared towards driving a younger demographic into Buzztime's more than 4,000
bar and restaurant locations. Starting September 9, sports fans will have a
new, social way to enjoy the 2009 football season and many of their favorite
sporting events.

(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20080331/CLM183LOGO)

Fantasy Football leads the programming on Buzztime's Sports Network. This game
offers a one-of-a-kind fantasy football league and is aimed at avid game
watchers and the more casual sports fan. Fantasy Football is based on
professional football and will feature a weekly draft night. By allowing
players to select a new team each week, Buzztime hopes to draw a more
inclusive set of participants, who will ultimately visit their favorite
Buzztime venue twice a week - once to make their selections and then again to
watch the game.

The network launch also includes the start of a new game, Pick 'Em, which lets
users predict the outcome of all of the upcoming week's football match-ups.
Buzztime will rank Pick 'Em players locally and nationally and highlight those
that are the best game predictors.

Both Fantasy Football and Pick 'Em will be a part of Buzztime's Wednesday
Night Football Promotion, which aims to drive mid-week business at its
restaurant and bar locations. During September and October, those who try out
the new games will be entered to win one of 500 weekly prizes.

Buzztime's Sports Network also includes the continuation of two Buzztime
favorites: QB1, a time-honored game on which Buzztime built its legacy, and
Sports Trivia, a popular general sports trivia game.

-- The popular QB1 game will move from the general trivia network to the
new Sports Network. Played on nationally televised NFL game-days, this
one tests players' skills on predicting the quarterback's
every move. Buzztime players will have until the snap of the ball to
enter their best guess and will be ranked nationally based on the
number
of correct predictions.

-- Sports Trivia is moving from Buzztime's Trivia Network so that
players can enjoy trivia during draft night and while watching the
games. Just for the pigskin season, Buzztime will infuse this
long-time
favorite with football-specific trivia.



The new Sports Network will be offered to Buzztime's over 4,000 bar and
restaurants at no additional charge in the ongoing effort to help boost its
partners' business. By reaching a younger market and driving traffic on
traditionally slow days, Buzztime hopes to help its partners gain new regulars
and keep patrons in their venues for longer periods of time.

About NTN Buzztime, Inc

NTN Buzztime, Inc., a leader in interactive entertainment for 25 years, is
based in Carlsbad, Calif. Buzztime is distributed in-home and out-of-home
across broadband platforms including online, mobile, satellite TV and in more
than 4,000 restaurants, sports bars and pubs throughout North America. For
more information, please visit www.buzztime.com.

Buzztime is a proud member of the OVAB |Out-of-home Video Advertising Bureau.

Buzztime is a registered trademark of Buzztime Entertainment, Inc. and
Playmaker is a registered trademark of NTN Buzztime, Inc.

Forward-looking Statements
This release contains forward-looking statements which reflect management's
current views of future events and operations including but not limited to
expectations regarding our products, product innovations, and product
popularity, subscriber and participant preferences, demographics, frequency
and duration of visits, player participation and engagement and resulting
business impact or results of marketing strategies. These statements are based
on current expectations and assumptions that are subject to risks and
uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from
historical results or those expressed or implied by such forward-looking
statements. For example, there can be no assurance that our products or
product innovations will be widely accepted or drive the expected level of
participation or business, or appeal to any particular demographic. Other
risks and uncertainties include risks associated with our recent management
transition, our significant losses, our ability to grow our out-of-home
Buzztime iTV network and implement our other business strategies, the risk of
changing economic conditions, failure of product demand or market acceptance
of both existing and new products and services and the impact of competitive
products and pricing. Please see NTN Buzztime, Inc.'s recent filings with the
Securities and Exchange Commission for information about these and other risks
that may affect the Company. All forward-looking statements included in this
release are based on information available to us on the date hereof. These
statements speak only as of the date hereof, and NTN Buzztime, Inc. does not
undertake to publicly update or revise any of its forward-looking statements,
even if experience or future changes show that the indicated results or events
will not be realized.


MEDIA CONTACT:
Katy Harrison, Bailey Gardiner
619-295-8232 x103
katy@baileygardiner.com



SOURCE NTN Buzztime, Inc.

Katy Harrison of Bailey Gardiner, +1-619-295-8232, ext. 103,
katy@baileygardiner.com, for NTN Buzztime, Inc.

NTN Buzztime is on Facebook

I should have thought to search for this before, because Facebook has everything. But I happened to run across NTN Buzztime's Facebook page recently.

It appears that the wall content is different from the contents of the @buzztimegirl Twitter account. And there are also extensive Notes.

On a personal level, it turns out that this Empoprise-NTN blog is the only one of my blogs for which I HAVEN'T created a Facebook fan page. Once I create this fan page, I'll let you know.

Triviacs of Madison County

I've never been to Madison County, Kentucky, but I've learned all about it:

Richmond, home of Eastern Kentucky University, is a part of Madison County which has a population of approximately 57,000....

Richmond is also home to the 10th largest planetarium in the United States and the second largest on a college campus in the world, the Arnim D. Hummel Planetarium and Space Theater. Located on Easterns campus, the 164-seat theater provides students and the community with a view of the sky as it would appear from any known planet or moon in our solar system....

Richmond is also about an hour and a half from Louisville to the west and about an hour and a half from Cincinnati to the north....

Madison County is surrounded by Fayette, Clark, Estill, Rockcastle, Garrard and Jessamine counties.

But whether you're in Richmond, Kentucky or Richmond, Virginia, you pretty much find the same stores everywhere. Look at the list of the new stores that are coming to the Richmond Centre:

New eateries for students to try include Logan's Roadhouse and Culver's, a burger joint comparable to Steak-n-Shake or Dairy Queen....

This month, Chick-fil-A and Koto Japanese Bistro each opened their doors....

Panera Bread will offer free Wi-Fi for customers, in addition to its pastries and breads baked daily, and Olive Garden's unlimited soup and salad will tempt students with big appetites and small wallets....

Oh, and there's one other restaurant that's coming:

Buffalo Wild Wings will challenge Hooters and Madison Garden, two of the most successful sports bars in Richmond. With a plethora of widescreen TVs and its signature in-house trivia system, "B-Dubs" will be equipped for success in a college town.

I don't know if NTN Buzztime has ever conducted any demographic studies of their players, so I don't know if college students form a large part of the NTN Buzztime player empire, or whether they're just a small part (since significant numbers of college students are below the legal drinking age in the United States).

But in this town, Buffalo Wild Wings will have to duke it out with Galaxy Center and Gillums Sports Lounge for Richmond bragging rights.

Teams and prizes in the non-NTN Buzztime experience

When I play NTN Buzztime trivia, I play by myself and compete for the fun of it. But other experiences vary, especially if NTN Buzztime is not used. Some people play in teams:

For those who don't know, trivia nights are held in every city, usually in a restaurant or bar. It's free to play, and you can have an unlimited number of people on your team, although it's wise not to have too many or you'll have to divide the spoils (we play with 6-8). Much like a sports competition, the night is broken into two halves, each half asking 9 trivia questions. After each question is asked all the teams have one song to turn in their answers and must decide on how many points you will wager for that question. They throw in a bonus question at "half time" and at the end as well as some "double point" questions during each half. The top three teams win some sort of prize.

And some people play for prizes:

Because we play at Buffalo Wild Wings, the 3rd place team wins 12 wings, the 2nd place team wins 24 wings, and the 1st place team wins $50--enough to pay the tab for all the beer and margaritas you drink.

From the description, these games are not NTN Buzztime games, and are restricted to the specific location, but they sound fun nevertheless.

Farricielli leaves

On August 24, NTN Buzztime filed the following with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission:

Form 8-K for NTN BUZZTIME INC

24-Aug-2009

Change in Directors or Principal Officers

Item 5.02. Departure of Directors or Certain Officers; Election of Directors;
Appointment of Certain Officers; Compensatory Arrangements of Certain Officers.

(b) Effective August 18, 2009, Joseph J. Farricielli, Jr. resigned from our board of directors. At the time of his resignation, Mr. Farricielli was a member of the audit committee of our board and the chairperson of the nominating and corporate governance committee of our board. Our board appointed Jeff Berg as a member of the audit committee and as chairperson of the nominating and corporate governance committee. Mr. Berg is a current member of our board. Our board determined that Mr. Berg is "independent" under applicable Securities Exchange Act of 1934 rules and NYSE Amex rules, and that Mr. Berg met the financial literacy requirements of the NYSE Amex. Mr. Berg was a member of the nominating and corporate governance committee immediately before his appointment as chairperson of that committee.

Atlantis is approaching (September 14-17)

I recently blogged about NTN Buzztime's past quarter, but now it's time to look toward the company's future. All summer NTN Buzztime has been building up for a big event, an event that transcends the company itself. It's almost time:

Atlantis, Paradise Island, Bahamas is preparing to welcome 25 of the greatest legends in sports history and 25 world famous Poker Pros for the first-ever Poker News Sports Legends Challenge presented by AbsolutePoker.net, a four-day sports fantasy and gaming experience that will take place Sept. 14 - 17, 2009.

And NTN Buzztime isn't the only sponsor:

Corporate partners for the Sports Legends Challenge include PokerNews, AbsolutePoker.net, Rovia, WorldVentures, Atlantis, Paradise Island, Bahamas, FOX Sports Radio, NTN Buzztime, Inc., VegasInsider, World Championship of Fantasy Football, The World Poker Store, Legendary Auctions, Golf Now powered by The Golf Channel, JetBlue Airways, World Series of Poker Academy, Magellan Jet, Alchemy3, Bluff Media, World Poker Association, Playboy Golf, and Imperial Jets.

This blog has chronicled some of the ways in which NTN Buzztime has been building up toward the challenge. See my posts from June 9 and July 15.

Better late than never, in all respects

I blogged about the pending release of NTN Buzztime financial results, but never got around to blogging about the results themselves, released back on August 13. The company is still losing money (though their quarterly losses are no longer measured in the millions), but the team is exuding confidence that they're on the right path. Excerpts:

Revenues for the second quarter of 2009 were $6.3 million, compared to revenues of $7.0 million for the same period of 2008, primarily as a result of a decrease in average revenue generated per site related to a strategic reduction in pricing.

Pricing is a tricky issue for any company. If you price too high, you won't get customers, but if you price too low, you won't get revenue. NTN Buzztime took a chance with a price cut, which did adversely impact their quarterly revenues, but did have the desired result regarding the number of customers.

The Company ended the second quarter of 2009 with 3,871 subscribing venues, compared to 3,746 at June 30, 2008, and 3,777 at March 31, 2009. During the second quarter of 2009, installations were up approximately 48% while terminations were down 19% compared with the second quarter of 2008. Customer churn improved to 4.9% for the quarter from 6.1% in the prior year period.

But NTN Buzztime worked on the cost end also:

Selling, general and administrative expenses declined by $2.1 million, or 31%, to $4.9 million from $7.0 million a year ago. The improvement was attributable to several factors including a $0.5 million decline in salary expenses due to staffing reductions; a $0.5 million decline in severance expense due to the resignation of the CEO in the prior year; a $0.5 million decline in marketing expense related to a change in the Company's marketing strategy; and a $0.4 million decline in consulting services.

Will the momentum from these changes result in profitability in future quarters? Time will tell.