Foxwoods Resort Casino Hits the Data Connectivity Jackpot with DataDirect Technologies
BEDFORD, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jun. 22, 2009--
DataDirect
Technologies, the unparalleled leader in
data
connectivity and
mainframe
integration and an operating company of
Progress Software
Corporation (NASDAQ:PRGS), today announced that the
Foxwoods Resort
Casino is using DataDirect Connect
®for ODBC database
drivers within its Hospitality Systems’ applications to connect business
analytics data on UNIX to Windows-based data sources. With secure,
reliable and stable access to heterogeneous data sources Foxwoods has
gained immediate visibility into the non-gaming activity of its guests
to aid with marketing efforts, special events and promotions.
Like all casinos, Foxwoods had long been collecting data on the gaming
interests of its patrons. However, the resort lacked information about
the non-gaming activity of its more than 40,000 daily guests. With
nearly 30 retail outlets, more than 20 restaurants, 25 conference rooms
and two golf courses, Foxwoods was looking to improve its understanding
of how to serve the needs and desires of patrons by capturing data on
the leisurely pursuits of its guest. Hotel stays, shows and
entertainment, dining, visits to the spa and salon, etc., would be
collected and analyzed to determine how or whether that data correlated
with gaming behavior. With a UNIX platform using SAS business analytics
software and a Netezza data warehouse platform, the Hospitality Systems
Department at Foxwoods realized a future need for accessing data in
Microsoft SQL Server where retail sales, food and beverage and other
valuable, non-gaming data is stored.
“The SAS platform provided connectivity to Netezza and other UNIX
databases but we lacked an ODBC driver to connect from SAS to the
Window-based data sources,” said Bonnie Laudig, Senior Database
Administration for the Hospitality Systems Group at Foxwoods. “Our
research showed DataDirect Technologies had an outstanding reputation
for connectivity software, proven technologies and was SAS certified. On
the strength of these merits and the recommendation of SAS, we decided
to implement the DataDirect Connect for ODBC driver immediately
with no evaluation. In no time, the DataDirect driver was in production
and we were able to access new data sources with ease.”
DataDirect Connect for ODBC is a comprehensive suite of ODBC
drivers for all major databases. Using a unique wire protocol design,
DataDirect Connect for ODBC drivers eliminate the need for
database client-library software. By removing the client layer, time
consuming and complicated deployment issues related to installing and
maintaining different versions of the client software for different
databases, database versions and operating systems are eliminated. Only
one DataDirect driver is needed to support multiple database versions.
“We were very concerned that different flavors of SQL Server or
different service packs on the machines would cause connectivity and
performance issues,” said Mike Kutia, Director of Hospitality Systems at
Foxwoods Resort Casino. “It was a pleasant surprise to ask for a
connection to a given SQL Server data source, and in a very short time
I’m up and running looking at the database.”
The Hospitality Systems team at Foxwoods is so pleased with the results
of the UNIX to SQL Server connectivity achieved by using the DataDirect
Connect for ODBC driver they plan to extend SQL Server-based data
warehousing and BI capabilities into areas not previously envisioned
including ticketing data and slot-machine usage.
“DataDirect Connect for ODBC drivers are some of the most widely
used third-party ODBC drivers on the market,” said John Goodson, vice
president and general manager, DataDirect Technologies. “Foxwoods Resort
Casino joins a who’s who of Fortune 1,000 companies and more than 300
independent software vendors (ISVs) who use the DataDirect Connect
family of drivers to boost product performance and help customers
realize advanced functionality out-of-the-box.”
About Foxwoods Resort Casino
North America’s largest casino, Foxwoods Resort Casino® is
located in the rolling hills of southeastern Connecticut and is easily
accessible from Boston, New York, Hartford and Providence. Owned by the
Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation, Foxwoods features six casinos with
7,200 slots, 380 table games, the only WPT World Poker Room™ in New
England, High Stakes Bingo and Ultimate Race Book. There are 1,416 guest
rooms and suites in three hotels, more than 30 restaurants, a luxurious
spa, more than 50,000 square feet of premium meeting and event space, 24
retail shops and five entertainment venues, including the 1,400-seat Fox
Theatre. Conveniently located adjacent to Foxwoods is Lake of Isles™,
featuring two, 18-hole championship golf courses designed by Rees Jones
and a state-of-the-art Golf Academy. In spring 2008, the highly
anticipated MGM Grand at Foxwoods® opened, adding 825
luxurious guest rooms, 115,000 square feet of meeting space, a
4,000-seat Performing Arts Theater, 21,000-square-foot spa as well as
more dining, retail and gaming facilities, bolstering Foxwoods'
preeminence as the East Coast's ultimate casino resort destination.
Foxwoods supports responsible gaming, and plays a leadership role in the
Connecticut Council of Problem Gambling, of which it was a founding
entity. For more information, call 1-800-FOXWOODS or visit www.foxwoods.com.
About DataDirect Technologies
DataDirect Technologies is the software industry’s only comprehensive
provider of software for connecting the world’s most critical business
applications to data and services, running on any platform, using proven
and emerging standards. Developers worldwide depend on DataDirect®
products to connect their applications to an unparalleled range of data
sources using standards-based interfaces such as ODBC, JDBC™ and
ADO.NET, XQuery and SOAP. More than 300 leading independent software
vendors and thousands of enterprises rely on DataDirect Technologies to
simplify and streamline data connectivity for distributed systems and to
reduce the complexity of mainframe integration. DataDirect Technologies
is an operating company of Progress Software Corporation (Nasdaq:PRGS).
For more information, visit www.datadirect.com.
DataDirect and DataDirect Connect are trademarks or registered
trademarks of Progress Software Corporation or one of its subsidiaries
or affiliates in the U.S. and other countries. Java and all Java based
marks are trademarks or registered trademarks of Sun Microsystems, Inc.
in the U.S. and other countries. Any other trademarks contained herein
are the property of their respective owners.
Source: DataDirect Technologies
Press
DataDirect
Technologies
April Harned, 646-246-0484
april.harned@datadirect.com
