Gaming Law Commons^™

Gravity Models And Casino Gaming: A Review, Critique, And Modification, Clyde W. Barrow, David R. Borges

UNLV Gaming Research & Review Journal

Gravity models have been widely used in expanded gaming debates to persuade investors that proposed casinos will be financially successful and to persuade state and local government officials, as well as a skeptical public, of the economic and fiscal benefits of casino gaming. However, most people involved in the decision-making process understand very little about the internal mechanics of these models and how they generate financial forecasts, estimates of customer visits, and projections of new job creation. In fact, the gravity models used in market feasibility studies for the casino industry are proprietary models that remain closely guarded secrets of …

Diffusion And Learning: Twenty Years Of Sports Betting Culture In Finland, Matias Karekallas, Pauliina Raento, Taina Renkonen

UNLV Gaming Research & Review Journal

How did people learn to bet on sports and how did a sports betting culture develop in Finland? How has this setting evolved over space and time? The answers contribute to the growing understanding of learning, socialization, and contextualization in the study of gambling and may inspire service providers, regulators, and harm preventers alike. We argue that broad structural patterns and micro-cultural processes should be investigated jointly and qualitative information should complement quantitative monitoring of human behavior. We approach the spread of sports betting to, and within Finland, from the perspective of innovation diffusion. We rely on this theory’s space- …

How The Mob (Museum) Was Won: Building A History Of Organized Crime In The U.S., Michael Green

UNLV Gaming Research & Review Journal

No abstract provided.

Report On The 15th International Conference On Gambling & Risk Taking, Dean M. Macomber

UNLV Gaming Research & Review Journal

No abstract provided.

Building The First Gaming Master’S Program: An Industry Perspective, Toni Repetti, Soyeon Jung

UNLV Gaming Research & Review Journal

The gaming industry has dramatically expanded not only domestically and internationally, but further to the online market. This growth has caused the industry to be more complicated than ever, and face massive challenges, competition, and opportunity. Consequently, there is a need for more qualified candidates in the gaming industry. Few gaming degrees are offered at a university level and more importantly, there is currently no master’s program in gaming management in the United States. Results of this survey of 201 industry professionals show that the majority would be interested in a master’s in gaming with most preferring an online of …

Casino Games And The Central Limit Theorem, Ashok Singh, Anthony F. Lucas, Rohan J. Dalpatadu, Dennis J. Murphy

UNLV Gaming Research & Review Journal

The central limit theorem, in simple terms, states that the probability distribution of the mean of a random sample, for most probability distributions, can be approximated by a normal distribution when the number of observations in the sample is 'sufficiently' large. Most applied statistics books recommend using the normal approximation for the probability distribution of the sample mean when the number of observations exceeds 30. It is commonly known in the discipline of statistics that larger samples will be needed when the underlying probability distribution is heavily skewed. However, the minimum number of samples needed for the CLT to yield …

Mapping The Online Gambling E-Servicescape: A Conceptual Model, Brett L. Abarbanel

UNLV Gaming Research & Review Journal

A conceptual model is proposed that examines the potential influence of an online casino’s atmospheric cues and functional qualities on consumer behavioral response. A stimulus-organism-response (S-O-R) model, often used to frame other servicescape research, is adapted as the basis of the theory that the online casino environment will influence the organismic effects of cognitive and affective states, which in turn influence gamblers’ approach or avoidance behavioral intentions. Theorized elements of the virtual stimulus include high and low task-relevant cues, financial trust, and gambling value. Personal and situational factors, as well as demographic characteristics, are proposed to moderate the relationship between …

Impact Of The 2003 Illinois Gaming Tax Rate Increase On Marketing Spending, Mikael B. Ahlgren, Sarah Tanford, Ashok Singh

UNLV Gaming Research & Review Journal

The purpose of this research is to investigate a potential consequence related to the 2003 Illinois Gaming Tax rate restructuring. Specifically, did the assessment of a higher gaming tax rate in the state of Illinois negatively impact promotional spending by an Illinois riverboat operator in an attempt to limit revenues and avoid incurring a higher tax rate? Data were contributed by a major Illinois riverboat operator and the researchers utilized an Autoregressive Integrated Moving Average (ARIMA) method for analysis of the data. The findings demonstrate that this particular operator reduced promotional spending when confronted with increases in gaming tax rates. …

Session 4-2-E: The Effects Of Gaming Tax/Retention Rate On Casino Performance, Will E. Cummings

International Conference on Gambling & Risk Taking

Overview

Gaming Taxes affect investors in and operators of casinos

... and therefore casino performance

Gravity Models in general High variance from classical ideal

Variance tells us something about the impact of gaming tax rates

Session 4-1-B: Casino Legalization As An Evolutionary Game -- Who Will Be The Next?, Miao He

International Conference on Gambling & Risk Taking

Introduction

For the community/governor who has a strong preposition to casino gaming (e.g., gambler, religious group), his/her motivation to participate/accept casino legalization is

∆P_AE_A+t_A>c_î and ∆P_B(R_B+E_B)+t_B>c_Ĵ

What’s the motivation for the other community/governors who are neutral to casino gaming?

How the casino legalization process evolved and finally reached the equilibrium state?

Session 3-4-B: Impacts Of The Structure Of The Casino Industry, William N. Thompson, Catherine Prentice

International Conference on Gambling & Risk Taking

This paper looks at impacts of the structures of casino industries in 13 American states venues. The legalization of casinos has been a major policy issue in scores of national and sub-national venues over the past 60 years. Among the critical issues in the legalization process has been the subject of whether casino establishments should be authorized as singular, that is, monopoly, entities in a specific location (city, state, or nation) much as public utilities, or they should be licensed in an open market free competitive manner. A middle ground approach find venues allowing a limited number of licenses, ergo, …

Session 3-3-B: The Interplay Between Law, Development And Spillover Effects Of Casino Gaming: Theory And The Asian Evidences, Ricardo Chi Sen Siu

International Conference on Gambling & Risk Taking

Taking into consideration of the unique features and practice of casino gaming, the significance of law in the development of this industry, and the onging interactions between law, the industry’s succeeding performance and its spillover effects are generalized and illustrated in this paper. Based on the rationales of law and economics, and the institutional approach to economic analysis, a functional model is constructed to depict the related interplaying forces and the development of casino gaming. In principle, it is shown that business scope and scale of casino gaming is largely defined by law on one hand, and the revisions of …

Session 3-2-B: What Changing Public Policies Toward Gambling Mean For Gaming Law, I. Nelson Rose

International Conference on Gambling & Risk Taking

The Three Waves Of Legal Gambling

First Wave - Colonial period to mid-19th century: Legal Debris: “Lotteries” prohibited in state constitutions and Canada (except Quebec)

Second Wave - Wild West; South after the Civil War , new inventions. Crash - Victorian morality Legal Debris: Statutes prohibit bookmaking, slot machines; U.S. federal and Quebec anti-lottery laws

Third Wave - Depression to present: Legal Debris: Piecemeal legalization by states, provinces

Session 3-2-B: Paspa: An Unconstitutional Patent, Kevin P. Braig

International Conference on Gambling & Risk Taking

The Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (“PASPA”) is a patent monopoly because the statute (A) imitates the Crown’s practice of allocating markets by patent; (B) functions like a patent issued under the United States Patent Code; and (C) imposes monopoly-like costs upon the public. The Constitution’s Patent Clause is a brilliant public financing scheme and unique in that it is the only grant of power to Congress in the Constitution that begins with a specific prescription of proper legislative purpose. Congress cannot grant just any person a patent monopoly for any purpose. Rather, Congress can grant a patent monopoly …

Understanding & Crafting Development Agreements In Massachusetts, Edward J. Collins, Jr. Center For Public Management, University Of Massachusetts Boston

Edward J. Collins Center for Public Management Publications

The report first briefly explains the real estate development business from the developer’s perspective. It then identifies the components of a typical development agreement. Following this, it describes how agreements change and grow over time and offers an outline of the negotiation process. The appendices provide an overview of five development agreements and highlights interesting provisions that may be food for thought during negotiations on future development agreements. Two of these agreements are for gaming-related projects and three do not include gaming as a potential land use. Copies of the actual agreements can be accessed via links found within the …

How Bill Eadington Changed Our Lives, David G. Schwartz

UNLV Gaming Research & Review Journal

Since Bill Eadington’s death in February, we’ve come to appreciate just how influential a figure he is in today’s gaming studies world. Hundreds of academics, regulators, and gaming industry professionals have shared their stories of “How Bill Eadington changed my life.”

Examining The Link Between Poker Room Business Volume And Gaming Activity In Slot And Table Games: A Closer Look At A Key Assumption In The Full Service Theory, Anthony F. Lucas

UNLV Gaming Research & Review Journal

Results from three different Nevada hotel-casinos failed to support the popular notion that poker rooms drive business to the slot and table game areas of the casino floor. This result not only questions the validity of a key and somewhat bold operating assumption, it casts a shadow of doubt on the broader Full Service Theory, as applied to the casino floor. Additionally, this work extends Ollstein (2006) by empirically examining the relationships between the daily business volumes of poker rooms and both critical gaming centers (i.e., slots and table games). Five of six key results question the wisdom of offering …

A Diagnosis Of Inherent Problems In Enhancing Service Quality Through Internal Marketing And Organizational Identification In Macau And Singapore Casinos, Sudhir H. Kale, Sangita De

UNLV Gaming Research & Review Journal

With spectacular growth in demand since opening the market to foreign competition, executives within the Macau casino industry have focused their attention on enhancing capacity and opening new casino properties. Meanwhile, the Singapore casino market, barely two years old, has already produced revenues comparable to the Las Vegas Strip. Despite stellar past successes, the long-term scenario for the casino industry in both Macau and Singapore could spell trouble. Specifically, service quality stands to suffer because operators have not devoted adequate thought to their service culture and internal marketing strategy. With overall capacity in Asia slated to increase significantly in the …

Economic Evidence On The Effects Of The Indian Gaming Regulatory Act On Indians And Non-Indians, Katherine Spilde Ph.D., Jonathan B. Taylor

UNLV Gaming Research & Review Journal

When Congress passed the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act (IGRA) in 1988, some tribal leaders perceived the state compacting provision required for casino-style gaming on tribal lands as an erosion of tribal sovereignty that could undermine their early economic development successes and disrupt a precariously successful federal-tribal relationship with regard to tribal self-determination.

In hindsight, however, the substantial growth and myriad positive impacts of the first twenty years of tribal gaming under IGRA reveal the ways that the federal regulatory framework laid out in the law resolved numerous legal dilemmas that had plagued tribal gaming expansion. It is now clear that …

The Finance And Marketing Dilemma: Do Promotional Allowances Actually Increase Revenue And Profits For Atlantic City Casinos?, Toni Repetti

UNLV Gaming Research & Review Journal

Casinos offer free items to attract new guests or to reward their loyal customers. Casino management and marketing personnel believe these promotional allowances are necessary to maintain customers and to increase revenue. Three regression models are run to determine if promotional allowances increase gross revenue, net revenue, and gross operating profit for Atlantic City casinos. Results show that with a $1 increase in promotional allowances there is a significant increase of $4.53 in gross revenue, $3.53 in net revenue, and $1.29 in gross operating profit. These results will help management better understand the effect of offering complimentaries to their customers.

Composite Ordinal Forecasting In Horse Racing - An Optimization Approach, Alan Tse, Chan-Ieong Chan

UNLV Gaming Research & Review Journal

Using horse racing data in Hong Kong as an example, this paper looks into the properties of an optimization model for making composite ordinal forecasts based on minimization of the absolute error of the joint distribution of the errors of twelve forecasters of race outcomes. It was found that the optimization model is not only sound theoretically, but it is also robust, and can handle situations when data are sparse.

A Typology Of Technology Applications To Expedite Gaming Productivity, Leslie E. Cummings

UNLV Gaming Research & Review Journal

No abstract provided.

Competing Forces In Sustainable Gambling: Towards A Balanced Approach, Nerilee Hing

UNLV Gaming Research & Review Journal

Social responsibility in gambling is increasingly becoming both a policy issue for governments and industries, and a management issue for gambling operators. While many legalized commercial gambling operators adopt a purely economic orientation to their business, non-profit, charity gambling operators tend to focus on the social benefits of their activities. This paper argues that neither a purely economic nor social orientation to gambling is sustainable in the long-term, but that a balance between the two is needed. A well accepted model of corporate social responsibility is adapted to illuminate the competing forces at work in achieving sustainable gambling, and to …

Commercial Casino Gaming In The United States: A Jurisdictional Analysis Of Gaming Taxes, Licenses, And Fees, Darren A. Prum, Shannon Bybee

UNLV Gaming Research & Review Journal

No abstract provided.

A Market Analysis Of The Family Market In Las Vegas, Lawrence Dandurand

UNLV Gaming Research & Review Journal

The family market in Las Vegas is controversial. However, it already exists. It represents 8 percent of the total Las Vegas visitor market. Empirical data, based on a random sample of2,400 visitors to Las Vegas, are analyzed to provide information relevant to business strategy and public policy development. Research findings indicate significant differences between the family market and other markets.

A Bit Of History: Nevada Gambling Legalized

UNLV Gaming Research & Review Journal

We are referring to the original legislation not the current status of the law.

Research Note: Forecasting Macau's Gaming Revenue And Its Seasonality, Ipkin Anthony Wong

UNLV Gaming Research & Review Journal

The gaming literature has identified a number of factors that have driven the growth of Macau's casino industry. At the same time, however, questions remain as to future prospects for the growth of the enclave's gaming revenue- and specifically, whether this type of growth can be sustained. A forecast of Macau gaming revenue and an examination of its seasonality can assist scholars and practitioners alike in developing a better understanding of seasonal variation (a significant consideration in the volatile world of gaming) and the future outlook of the world gambling capital. The objective of this article is to investigate these …

Prohibitions And Policy In The Global Gaming Industry: A Genealogy And Media Content Analysis Of Gaming Restrictions In Contemporary Russia, Pavel V. Vasiliev, Bo Bernhard

UNLV Gaming Research & Review Journal

In an era of widespread gaming expansion, Russia's recent decision to contract its gaming industry stands out as a global anomaly. This article explores factors informing the 2009 restriction of gambling venues in Russia to four remote zones. After a brief discussion of gambling prohibition history across cultures, a genealogical analysis of the origins and development of gaming laws in Russia follows. The authors then use a qualitative content analysis technique to examine the rationales for this contraction that were expressed in Russian news outlets between 2003 and 2010 - the period when the new restrictions were debated, voted on, …

Increasing Chinese Tourist Gamblers In Macao: Crucial Player Characteristics To Identify And Exploit, Penny Yim King Wan

UNLV Gaming Research & Review Journal

Casinos are today considered major tourist attractions and are a strategic component in the development of a tourism destination. Tourist gamblers are an important market segment providing a reliable source of revenue for casinos. It is necessary to understand the characteristics of these gamblers and to design services and products that cater for their needs. In this study a survey of 402 Chinese tourist gamblers indicated that they have distinctive characteristics, gambling motivations, behaviors and preferences that must be considered and catered to for depth of understanding and devising ways to attract, keep and increase these important customers. Management and …

Analyzing The Trends In Gaming-Based Tourism For The State Of Nevada: Implications For Public Policy And Economic Development, William R. Eadington

UNLV Gaming Research & Review Journal

Gaming revenue trends for Nevada's three major gaming markets- Las Vegas Strip, Reno-Sparks, and South Lake Tahoe-are examined over the past two decades. The Las Vegas Strip had been characterized by cyclical growth from 1990 until 2007, but the Great Recession had dramatic adverse impacts on revenues and employment. Apparent recovery in 2010 was driven largely by baccarat revenues, but they are not likely to be sustainable in the long term. For South Lake Tahoe, deterioration of its core tourism business has been taking place since 1990, but has accelerated since the beginning of the Great Recession and the opening …