IP Video Brings Greek Casinos Fully Digital Surveillance System

  • May 30, 2008

An integrated IP video solution has been used to upgrade two Greek casinos to fully-digital CCTV surveillance, in full compliance with the demanding Greek gaming laws. The Casino Rio, located north of the Western port city of Patras and Casino Xanthi, which is situated in the Northeast city of the same name, are now both benefiting from vastly improved CCTV systems.

The two projects, totaling nearly 300 cameras, were installed by IndigoVision’s local partner ILKA S.A., who worked closely with IndigoVision and the Gaming Authority to gain the necessary licenses. As with many Gaming Boards worldwide, the Greek Gaming Authority demands 24/7 monitoring and recording of all gaming tables, slot machines and money counting areas at 25 fps, with recordings kept for 20 days. If the CCTV system is unable to monitor and record a specific gaming table, then that table must be shutdown. To ensure compliance, an employee of the Gaming Authority is permanently on-site using the CCTV system to monitor the casino operation.

Like many casinos the Rio and Xanthi were using outdated analog VCR-based CCTV systems, that were becoming difficult to service and support. It was extremely time-consuming to search and analyze recorded footage, particularly if synchronized viewing was required from 2 or more cameras. IndigoVision’s IP video solution overcame these problems by providing tools which allow fast access to recorded footage, from multiple cameras, enabling gaming disputes to be quickly resolved.

“We invested a considerable amount of time analyzing CCTV systems from some of the best known suppliers in the industry,” said Dimitris Megas, Casino Rio’s surveillance manager. “We focused on the three main areas of quality, stability and versatility in an effort to choose a solution that met our requirements. We came to the conclusion that the IndigoVision system was the best solution, both technically and commercially, for our casinos. The transition from the old system to the new digital system was very smooth ensuring our casino operation was not disrupted.”

Each casino has their own security control room, where operators use ‘Control Center‘, IndigoVision's video and alarm management software to view live and recorded video from any of the cameras in the casino. Thirteen ‘Control Center’ workstations were installed between the two casinos, all with multi-screen support. ‘Control Center’ provides the operators with an easy to use interface and advanced features to help them manage camera viewing, such as maps which depict each camera and its field of view overlaid on a schematic of the casino. Simply clicking the camera icon on the map displays that particular cameras’ feed, allowing the operator to quickly view an area of interest.

The ageing VCRs have been replaced with IndigoVision's NVRs. IndigoVision’s complete end-to-end IP video solution allows users to implement advanced redundancy strategies for CCTV recording, which was an important requirement for the casinos. As part of the overall recording strategy back-up NVRs have been installed in both casinos. These will automatically start recording if any of the primary NVRs fail or require maintenance. PCs running IndigoVision’s Windows NVR software were installed in each casino connected to several Raid-5 storage arrays providing total disk storage in excess of 100TB. In addition to video from the cameras, Casino Rio is recording 60 channels of high-quality audio and Casino Xanthi 38 channels, each from camera mounted microphones.

The majority of the original CCTV cameras were re-used by connecting them to IndigoVision 8000 transmitter/receiver modules which convert the analog feed to high-quality, 25f ps digital video for transmission over the IP network. This is achieved without any frames being dropped, whatever the level of motion and activity in the camera scene. Any dropped frames within a video clip could hide fraudulent or criminal activity and make any customer disputes more difficult to resolve. Each camera also benefits from Actively Controlled Framerate (ACF), a unique feature built into the 8000 module, which reduces the amount of video that is transmitted and recorded. When a scene is inactive the video can be streamed at a much lower frame rate. As soon as motion is detected the video is instantly streamed at full frame rate.

The combination of ‘Control Center’ and the IP network creates a ‘virtual matrix’, which unlike its analog matrix equivalent provides a totally flexible and scalable solution. Any camera can be viewed on any ‘Control Center’ workstation and additional cameras can easily be added to any point on the network when the system is expanded. The flexibility of IndigoVision's IP video technology meant that the migration to digital was phased so the casinos remained open and any downtime was kept to a minimum. The final equipment footprint of the new system was also considerably less than the original system, freeing up valuable space.

Featured

  • Cloud Security Alliance Brings AI-Assisted Auditing to Cloud Computing

    The Cloud Security Alliance (CSA), the world’s leading organization dedicated to defining standards, certifications, and best practices to help ensure a secure cloud computing environment, today introduced an innovative addition to its suite of Security, Trust, Assurance and Risk (STAR) Registry assessments with the launch of Valid-AI-ted, an AI-powered, automated validation system. The new tool provides an automated quality check of assurance information of STAR Level 1 self-assessments using state-of-the-art LLM technology. Read Now

  • Report: Nearly 1 in 5 Healthcare Leaders Say Cyberattacks Have Impacted Patient Care

    Omega Systems, a provider of managed IT and security services, today released new research that reveals the growing impact of cybersecurity challenges on leading healthcare organizations and patient safety. According to the 2025 Healthcare IT Landscape Report, 19% of healthcare leaders say a cyberattack has already disrupted patient care, and more than half (52%) believe a fatal cyber-related incident is inevitable within the next five years. Read Now

  • AI Is Now the Leading Cybersecurity Concern for Security, IT Leaders

    Arctic Wolf recently published findings from its State of Cybersecurity: 2025 Trends Report, offering insights from a global survey of more than 1,200 senior IT and cybersecurity decision-makers across 15 countries. Conducted by Sapio Research, the report captures the realities, risks, and readiness strategies shaping the modern security landscape. Read Now

  • Analysis of AI Tools Shows 85 Percent Have Been Breached

    AI tools are becoming essential to modern work, but their fast, unmonitored adoption is creating a new kind of security risk. Recent surveys reveal a clear trend – employees are rapidly adopting consumer-facing AI tools without employer approval, IT oversight, or any clear security policies. According to Cybernews Business Digital Index, nearly 90% of analyzed AI tools have been exposed to data breaches, putting businesses at severe risk. Read Now

  • Software Vulnerabilities Surged 61 Percent in 2024, According to New Report

    Action1, a provider of autonomous endpoint management (AEM) solutions, today released its 2025 Software Vulnerability Ratings Report, revealing a 61% year-over-year surge in discovered software vulnerabilities and a 96% spike in exploited vulnerabilities throughout 2024, amid an increasingly aggressive threat landscape. Read Now

Most   Popular

New Products

  • Mobile Safe Shield

    Mobile Safe Shield

    SafeWood Designs, Inc., a manufacturer of patented bullet resistant products, is excited to announce the launch of the Mobile Safe Shield. The Mobile Safe Shield is a moveable bullet resistant shield that provides protection in the event of an assailant and supplies cover in the event of an active shooter. With a heavy-duty steel frame, quality castor wheels, and bullet resistant core, the Mobile Safe Shield is a perfect addition to any guard station, security desks, courthouses, police stations, schools, office spaces and more. The Mobile Safe Shield is incredibly customizable. Bullet resistant materials are available in UL 752 Levels 1 through 8 and include glass, white board, tack board, veneer, and plastic laminate. Flexibility in bullet resistant materials allows for the Mobile Safe Shield to blend more with current interior décor for a seamless design aesthetic. Optional custom paint colors are also available for the steel frame.

  • HD2055 Modular Barricade

    Delta Scientific’s electric HD2055 modular shallow foundation barricade is tested to ASTM M50/P1 with negative penetration from the vehicle upon impact. With a shallow foundation of only 24 inches, the HD2055 can be installed without worrying about buried power lines and other below grade obstructions. The modular make-up of the barrier also allows you to cover wider roadways by adding additional modules to the system. The HD2055 boasts an Emergency Fast Operation of 1.5 seconds giving the guard ample time to deploy under a high threat situation.

  • Luma x20

    Luma x20

    Snap One has announced its popular Luma x20 family of surveillance products now offers even greater security and privacy for home and business owners across the globe by giving them full control over integrators’ system access to view live and recorded video. According to Snap One Product Manager Derek Webb, the new “customer handoff” feature provides enhanced user control after initial installation, allowing the owners to have total privacy while also making it easy to reinstate integrator access when maintenance or assistance is required. This new feature is now available to all Luma x20 users globally. “The Luma x20 family of surveillance solutions provides excellent image and audio capture, and with the new customer handoff feature, it now offers absolute privacy for camera feeds and recordings,” Webb said. “With notifications and integrator access controlled through the powerful OvrC remote system management platform, it’s easy for integrators to give their clients full control of their footage and then to get temporary access from the client for any troubleshooting needs.”