New Craps Bet

Hi Everyone,

I'm an amateur craps tournament player, and enthusiast of craps in general. Over the past few years, I have "invented" several craps side bets, but they've remained only in my head. About a year ago, I contacted Perry Stasi and picked his brain a bit about what he did to get the fire bet installed. Life happened, and I didn't really start thinking about it again until recently. Most of my bets are probably mediocre, but there's one that really stands out and I'd like to turn it into a real bet.

I've been reading several threads on this subforum; a lot of you have great experience and I'd enjoy hearing any advice you have for me. My questions are:

1. Uniqueness: I've been unable to find my bet described online, either through a patent or in laymen's terms. However, I'm familiar enough with the USPTO to know it's extremely difficult to search effectively for your idea. Do you have recommendations on how to search effectively for craps side bets? Is it worth the time... would a patent attorney be a person to help determine if your idea is unique?

2. Patent: I have no current patent. After reading through, it seems like a provisional patent is the way go. I have all the calculations derived (it's a fairly simple side bet) and have created mock patents before for a prior class. Given this isn't a new game, rather a side bet, what is the best route to go? Several people have recommended Rich Newman on here; what would be a ballpark for a provisional patent on a craps side bet?

3. Distribution: After reading through everyone's stories, it seems going through a distributor is the way to go. Previous posts have mentioned several. Can someone give me advice on how the sequence of events would go? Do you contact them with your idea, and then meet, and then negotiate? Would anyone be willing to introduce me to a contact(provided I showed you my idea, after the provisional patent was in place, and you liked it)?

4. Selling your bet: What statistics are best to offer? What selling points make or a break a craps bet? It's all about revenue for the casino, but the bet has to be easy to train too. How likely are casinos to re-felt their tables for a new bet? What technical metrics could I include in my research and presentation to increase my legitimacy?

Thanks again for your advice and thoughts. Ultimately, I love the game of craps, and I'm fascinated by the complexity of the game, and what causes people to bet in certain fashions. My bet plays on that; it has a high hit frequency and hopefully high reloading rates.

Regards,

-Mark

It's not any fun if you don't tell us what the bet is!!!

I like to try to come up with new games/bets myself. I came up with an idea for a new Scrabble slot, which I think is pretty good, but Lightning Gaming has the Scrabble license from Hasbro with exclusivity.

I came up with a new Video Poker game that totally sucked because it was bizarre.

I am currently working on a new side bet for Blackjack, in fact, I would appreciate you looking at the thread and possibly commenting if you are so inclined. I think it could be a fantastic sidebet, but no details here, because that would effectively be a double-post.

If anyone wants to develop my idea, they can have it for free! It'd be awesome to see a side-bet available and be able to say, "I came up with that." I suppose I would want recognition for it in the website credits, manuals and video as, "Creator," but they wouldn't have to pay me.

Moving on...

1.) The attorney would probably know. He would be the one to do the patent researchy (before patenting your game) to make sure it was unique enough. JB has told me that they may not do side bet patents anymore, though.

2.) The attorney would know the best thing to do. Give his office a call and see if you can get a free (but probably brief) telephone consultation. JB says the entire process from beginning to end can range up to $50,000.

If JB says something, my friend, you can take it right to the bank. That's my personal opinion, anyway.

3.) I'm afraid I have no idea. If you plan to sell it, make sure there is a patent before you show anyone.

4.) You simply have to demonstrate that the Math makes the casino money, the bet is easy to understand and is attractive to players...I would think. In terms of the felt, you'd probably have to design your own cover (or the distributor) into which the side bet is incorporated.

-I am interested in the details of the game. Perhaps you will share the specifics after the patent is secure?