Nolan Bushnell Concept Launches Customer Interactive Gaming Software

Restaurant concept company uWink, Inc. launches a proprietary video game solution for customer use in its uWink Bistro concept restaurants. The game platform is the brainchild of Nolan Bushnell, uWink CEO and founder of more than twenty companies including Atari and Chuck E. Cheese. Customers can access the real-time, multiplayer game platform directly from touchscreen terminals located at their tables -- the same terminals that customers use to place food and beverage orders. The gaming system allows for restaurant-wide, head-to-head and team game play, greatly enhancing customer interaction.

"We are very excited about the successful launch of our real-time, multiplayer game platform," says Bushnell. "Not only does it increase face-to-face social interactivity and fun, it also sets the stage for restaurant-to-restaurant game play, and we look forward to extending the platform to online game play as well."

The game platform is currently featured at uWink's first Bistro location in Woodland Hills, Calif. and will be implemented in the company's Los Angeles and Hollywood locations in early 2008.

The first game to be featured on uWink's new game platform is uWink Trivia Live. The game scoring and results are projected on the walls of the restaurant in real time, making the game a truly immersive experience. Future games to be featured on the platform include uWink Scene Investigation, Xingo and Picture Perfect. uWink plans to open its platform to 3rd party developers in the near future.

Bushnell will deliver the closing keynote speech at Hospitality Technology's 2008 Multi-Unit Restaurant Technology Conference (MURTEC). In his speech, Bushnell will discuss insights into uWink's successes, challenges and potential, as well as his perspective on emerging technologies that are expected to take hold in the coming decade. For more information and a complete agenda of the event, please visit: www.htmagazine.com/MURTEC08.