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Timezone (video arcades)
Encyclopedia
Timezone is a chain of amusement arcade
Amusement arcade
An amusement arcade or video arcade is a venue where people play arcade games such as video games, pinball machines, electro-mechanical games, redemption games, merchandisers , or coin-operated billiards or air hockey tables...
centres owned by Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n company Leisure and Allied Industries
Leisure and Allied Industries
Leisure and Allied Industries is a leading group of companies within the interactive entertainment industry. The Group was founded in 1958 by Malcolm Steinberg and is based in Perth, Western Australia...
, with stores in Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, New Zealand
New Zealand
New Zealand is an island country in the south-western Pacific Ocean comprising two main landmasses and numerous smaller islands. The country is situated some east of Australia across the Tasman Sea, and roughly south of the Pacific island nations of New Caledonia, Fiji, and Tonga...
, Vietnam, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
, Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
, Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
and the Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
.
Powercard
Timezone family entertainment centres, like most current arcades, previously had coin-operated arcade machines. However, Timezone had many special deals which caused many problems and much inconvenience for staff. For example, a flat fee could be paid to have a party at Timezone, where a group of people could play an unlimited amount of games for a certain period of time. This meant that, generally, a member of a group having a party would have to call a staff member over to a machine, where he or she had to open the game's cabinet and 'trick' the desired game into playing for free.In response to this, and presumably to maximise profits, the entire Timezone arcade system moved to a magnetic swipecard system known as the Timezone Powercard. This meant that customers, rather than having to carry many coins around, could simply deposit a larger amount of money (for example, $10) onto their Powercard account. In order to use a machine, they simply had to swipe their card through a detector located on the machine, and the credit would be deducted from the card account. This system was supplied by Australian company Embed International
Embed International
Embed International is a supplier and manufacturer of debit card systems and managementapplications for the amusement, leisure and entertainment industries.Embed systems are now used throughout the world at over 1000 operating locations...
.
In 2004, bonus paper tickets issued by some (higher-priced) arcade machines which could be redeemed for prizes were replaced by a ticket count kept on the card.
, Timezone Powerclub credit in Australia lasts one year from the date of credit. Cards can be used at venues other than the one where it was issued, but only with credit put on at that venue.
As of 2008 after many Timezone stores closed, balances can be used at any venue regardless of where the credit was put on. However, in order to progress to the higher Powerclub levels, customers can only put credit on at the venue which issued the card. The exception to this is where the issuing venue has subsequently closed down and a new 'home venue' has been selected.
Powerclub
As an incentive to add credit to a Powercard, Timezone created five different types of Powercard:- Powercard
Powercard is the basic type. As well as being issued with starting accounts, it is also issued as part of time-limited party deals. It is made of paper. This card offers no benefits.
- Powerclub
Powerclub is the second type, issued when an account's balance reaches $30. This card offers VIP prices, as well as eligibility to participate in Powerclub events. A holder is given the opportunity to create a personalised greeting given by the card terminal's LCD whenever the card is swiped on an arcade terminal.
- Powerclub Gold
Powerclub Gold is the third type, issued when an account's balance reaches $250 (previously $500, $100 before that). Like the regular Powerclub card, this card offers VIP prices and eligibility to participate in Powerclub events, however it offers additional benefits like regular free games. As well as having a personalised arcade swipecard terminal greeting, the Gold card also has the cardholder's name printed on the front.
- Powercard Sapphire
Powerclub Sapphire is the fourth type, issued when you recharge up to $750. This type offers VIP pricing and two free Yellow Swiper games everyday (as long as you recharge at least $10 every 30 days). The Sapphire card is not available in Singapore
- Powercard Platinum
Powercard Platinum is issued when you spend $2000.
Pricing
In AustraliaAustralia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, regular pricing for games varies between A$1.00 and $6.00.(Some games like 'Giant Claw' can cost up to $6.00) Powerclub and Powerclub Gold cardholders receive VIP pricing, which is 10-30% cheaper, depending on the machine. (Generally, ticket-issuing machines have a minimal VIP discount because tickets have to be redeemed for prizes). Gold card members also receive one free non-prize game per day.
In Singapore, regular gaming for games vary between SG
SG
SG or sg may stand for:In computing and internet:* Sega Genesis, a game console* .sg, the top-level domain of Singapore* SuicideGirls, a softcore pornographic website* Security Group, a group in Active Directory used for security purposes....
$1.00 and $3.00. Powercards and Powercard Gold cardholders receive VIP pricing, similar to Australia. There is also a Gold Platinum card, which entitles the holder to get two free games a year.