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Posts Tagged ‘debate’

Danish Government Puts Gaming on Hold

Wednesday, December 15th, 2010

The Danish government is not having an easy time with creating adequate online gambling laws. So far the legislators have put the decisions on hold for more time to debate out the issues. So far it will be at the earliest summer of 2011 when a decision is being made. Originally legislators decided that they were going to allow Denmark online casinos to open their doors to offshore players. This would have allowed the country to take advantage of how lucrative the market is right now and come up with new ways of bringing in revenue. The decision was to happen on the first day of the new year. Companies were being asked to contribute an annual fee and a portion of their total gross numbers. The average fee would have been between €7,000 to €200,000 per year in taxation. This could have been a highly lucrative move if it had gone through. Still the country opted for a postponement of the issue until later in the coming year.

This is just one example of how the gambling market is still changing. Legislators are working to create workable laws, but some are finding hang ups and are unable to move forward. Whether or not things are going to change quickly has yet to be seen. Right now the Danish government is asking the EU to step in and help to sort through the taxation laws. The EU is pushing for gambling to be allowed, but under its own laws of free trade and good business. This is coming into question because a lot of countries are writing their own laws in terms of gaming. They know how much money is at stake and are trying to create their own monopolies within their borders. Whether or not this will continue to go unnoticed by the EU has yet to be seen. They have brought their concerns up to member countries, but a lot of them are putting the issues on hold. They need more research and more time to sort through all the changes. The market is moving quickly and this is not making it easy for legislators to create adequate laws to sustain it.

Debate over Legalizing Gambling Continues

Wednesday, December 1st, 2010

If the US is to implement a new gambling law then its legislators have to be ready to come down on illegal operations. It is no secret that most anti-gambling activists believe that the legalization of gambling would inevitably bring in more instances of crime, corruption and addiction, along with money laundering, theft and overall a rise in criminal activity. They may have a point, but no one can say for sure what is going to happen. One thing that legislators are aware of though is the push for legalization. They are warning that without the proper regulation though, there could be more problems to deal with. Already countries around the world have had to create special task forces to monitor casino gambling activities alone—they are funded by the states involved and put a specific list of policing agents on finding and eliminating illegal activities regarding gambling. Criminals know how lucrative gambling is—and always has been throughout the years. They know how to bring in illegal games. For example, recently in Denton, Texas an illegal slots ring was broken up. The owner was running the “slot parlor” out of a side room off of his garage. Patrons reported the illegal activity anonymously and police moved in to break it up, but not before realizing that hundreds of people had been duped. The owner set up the machines to never pay out. That is the main problem with unregulated and illegal locations—there is no way of protecting the gambling public that participates and supports them.

In the future expect more legislators to continue dialogues on how to form task forces that are going to monitor, uncover and disband illegal activities regarding illegal gambling. Now that it is a hot topic in the market, you can expect that more and more gamblers are going to be coming together to be taken advantage of. They think they are getting a deal, but don’t realize that these are unregulated and the owners of these illegal casinos can do whatever they want with the games to dupe players out of hundreds of dollars over time.

The Debate Over Gambling Rages On

Monday, November 8th, 2010

Many states in the US are pushing for legalized gambling. They know how much of a financial benefit legalized gambling provides to their legislations. Consider that recently the opening of Hollywood Casino in Perryville Maryland brought in $2 million—and it was open for just the last four days of October. This is the kind of money generating activity that doesn’t come along often in the market—or any market for that matter. This is why so many legislators are pushing so hard for gambling companies to set up in their jurisdictions. The want to benefit from the huge tax revenue dollars that could potentially come in from the games, and they are willing to do whatever it takes to make it happen. The biggest detriment is the social aspect and the various repercussions that gambling could potentially bring. Sure there are millions of dollars to be had, but there also are problems that occur as a result.

One of the main problems is that happens with gambling is that it opens the door for addictions. Remember that the online world of gambling is dependent on having an internet connection. It is hard for people with addictions to stay away from the internet altogether to fight their addiction. For example, an alcoholic can stay out of bars and places that serve alcohol. What is a gambling addict to do to avoid internet access? In today’s world there is internet access almost everywhere—coffee shops, restaurants, cafés, libraries and even some retail outlets. It is one of the biggest ways that they promote their customer base—they offer free wifi connections. It is difficult for gambling addicts to remove the activity from their world completely. So the point of anti-gambling activists is that legalizing gambling could bring in a long list of problems for addicts. And the government would then have to find solutions with recovery support and groups to help them—that all would cost communities extra dollars to manage. Though they would be bringing in millions of dollars as a result of gambling initiatives, they could be portioning out a huge amount of that for creating help centers for addicts. In the end, the debate looms on. People are worried about gambling and worried about the repercussions of legalizing it. Who will win out? No one knows just yet.

The Debate Over Gambling Continues

Friday, November 5th, 2010

The world of gambling is highly lucrative. It is a billion dollar business and that is scheduled to double in the coming years. The US is a country that is still debating legalizing and regulating gambling. On one hand, some legislators believe that without those billions of dollars, the US has few other options for revival. The recession was difficult on every market and recovery is proving to be a much more difficult thing than earlier anticipated. On the other hand though, there are also legislators who believe that legalizing gambling would bring more problems than good. They agree that millions of dollars would be brought in but their argument is that gambling would create problems that would need a lot more money to fix. They believe that gambling would create more addictions, more foreclosures, more repossessions and more crime. Communities would benefit from added gambling revenue, but a huge portion of those funds would have to go directly to fixing the problems it created in the first place. No one knows which the actual outcome is, but both sides are fighting it out harshly to be heard.

In the end, it could be that gambling’s legalization wins out. The money most likely is going to be too much for legislators and voters to put off. Not only do increases in gambling facilities bring in money for economies, but they also call for more employees to manage the various casino’s positions. This is great news and right now any mention of more jobs receives a lot of praise from voters. Millions of people were out of work as a result of the recession and now they are still looking. Some had to take jobs they were over-qualified for to get by and the promise of a new job market is highly attractive to them. In the future expect legislators to continue to fight it out over the issue but likely some form of legalized online gambling will enter the US market within the next year. When it does, a lot of entities stand to benefit: companies have access to millions of new customers, communities have access to gambling tax dollars, people have new job potential. Overall it is going to change the market, and hopefully for the good.

South Africa Still Debating Advertising Laws for Casinos

Thursday, October 28th, 2010

One of the biggest problems in today’s market of gambling is regulation. Though some countries are supportive of gambling and its advertisements, there are still some that are stepping in to deny various promotion. South Africa is one of these countries. It is no secret that the country has long been pushing for changes in gambling but legislators are not open. In fact, they have stood staunchly against gambling and its legalization. So far the government is undecided on the issue as a whole and that is coming to a head now that the government is stepping in the way of advertisers. Advertisers want to push their products to the market. Gambling companies know that there are potentially millions of dollars to be had with their customer bases. They are pushing for changes in the market that can help them to realize those millions on a consistent basis. The South African government however is making things difficult for companies as the country debates gambling as a whole.

The Department of Trade and Industry of Africa is so far following the lead of British regulations on gambling company advertising. The country is making regulations for gambling advertisers somewhat similar to the hefty regulations that liquor distributors have to work under. There is one shortfall though—they aren’t dictating what companies should expect in terms of print advertising from gambling companies. This window is leaving a clear door open for gambling giants to write their own rules. This window may not be open for long though. Thus far casino companies and industry insiders have been given just one month to debate out any suggestions they have regarding promotions and advertising. So far advertisers on television have to limit their gambling ads to what is defined as the “nighttime” hours. Restrictions could grow tougher as the market moves on. It doesn’t seem like the gambling world in South Africa is going to be sorted out any time soon and it could have more restrictions on it before arguments are finished. Only time will tell what happens, but South Africa is shaping up to be a country not enamored by the millions of potential tax revenue dollars gambling has to offer.

Portland Debating Slots Parlor- Part 2

Wednesday, October 13th, 2010

With the huge cost of bringing slots gaming to the Portland, Oregon market, there are a few options. First of all the police department is suggesting the race track cut back on the 3,500-slot machine initiative. They believe that it would be much easier to start off slower. They want a more tiered introduction of slots gambling to the race track. This way they could slowly grow with the market and as it becomes more popular, it will allow the police department to expand slowly. This could considerably cut back on the stress coming along with gambling.

For months now race tracks have looked to slots gambling to bring in the revenue they need. Race tracks for the most part have had a very difficult time managing through the recession. Though gamblers cut back on gambling, even more cut back on wagering at race tracks. They had little desire to spend discretionary funds on race tracks. More than a few had to shut down, and the other market had to cut back on expenses by laying off workers, cutting down on race schedules and increasing prices. It didn’t work for everyone though. A lot had no choice but to close down. Now, race tracks are still trying to regroup and that for the most part means bringing a slots parlor to their gaming floor. They know how lucrative slots can be and want to capitalize on that via the games. If they can draw people in with them, they can not only sell races, but also earn significant extra funds via the slot machines.

This is exactly where Portland Oregon officials are right now. They want to use slots gambling to bring in customers to their race track at Wood Village. Whether or not it will work though has yet to be seen. The cost of bringing the huge amount of slots they want to the state is already proving to be a formidable obstacle in the market. It will take a lot for them to overcome that, bring in the 3,500 slots, find ways to afford their monitoring and then reap the benefits.

Portland Debating Slots Parlor- Part 1

Wednesday, October 13th, 2010

The question of bringing gambling into the world is one being debated by legislators everywhere. States throughout the US are all intrigued by the million-dollar payouts available from gambling and want a piece of the pie if possible. They also want to protect gamers and provide the safest methods of gaming possible. It is a tall order and legislators everywhere are in the midst of hefty debates over what to do and what rules to focus on in gaming. They know that if they get it right, they could be setting themselves up for billions of tax revenue dollars over the next few years. It is estimated that gambling is a $3 billion business and that is expected to rise to $7 billion by 2014. It’s no wonder why gambling is one of the highest priorities in the government today.

Portland, Oregon is a city that has long been pining for gambling regulation. It is the Multnomah Kennel Club dog racing track that is the center of the debates. The facility wants the approval by the city to bring in 3,500 slot machines, which is more than any casino currently open in Las Vegas. There is a problem though. Regulating such a big addition to the gaming world poses a huge issue though. The Oregon State Police Department stated that they believe regulating gambling at this level would cost a considerable amount of money. They estimate it between $3.4 to $3.8 million a year. Right now the state allows for just $2 million a year for monitoring and regulating gambling. It isn’t just the police department though estimating the hefty charges for gambling. In addition, analysts are pointing to a similar slot parlor located in New Jersey. It is the same in scale as the facility in Oregon and it has an annual expense of $5 million. The cost could be too much for Portland to manage, but that doesn’t mean regulators aren’t going to push forward nonetheless. They want to come up with the proper gambling regulatory laws that manage it, but also create ways to defray the huge expected cost coming along with legalization and regulation of slot gaming in the city of Portland.

Part two coming next.

The Gambling Debates Continue Throughout the US

Sunday, October 10th, 2010

The market of online gambling is growing quickly. Almost every US state is in the midst of some type of debate over the games. On one hand you have legislators who are swayed by the money. No one can debate that gambling is a billion-dollar business. In fact, few other industries are showing the growth that gambling is in the online and land based markets. Legislators know that if they approve casinos in the market they can shore up rules that benefit them financially. Tax revenue dollars and licensing fees can be created to capitalize on the market and its overwhelming growth. For example, one good casino can see revenues of $20 million in any given month. That can mean an added tax bonus of $2 to $4 million per month. This is why legislators see the huge benefit of gaming and want to get it legalized and regulated for their states. On the other hand though, there still is a strong opposition to legalizing gambling. Some people feel that the monetary benefit is there, but legalizing gambling will create an inevitable rise in crime, corruption and addiction. The rise will create its own cost to the economy and that cost isn’t just monetary. It may spill over into an indefinable cost. For example, they believe that the rise in gambling may create more gambling addicts. The cost of counseling for them is real, but so is the cost of other issues like a rise in foreclosures for them, a loss of assets and a loss of family. Though these aren’t direct financial costs, how can the market make up for them?

In the end, part of the real problem seems to be finding a way to properly regulate gambling. No one is debating how lucrative games are or how much legalizing gambling could financially benefit the market. Especially now when gambling companies are the sole hope a lot of legislations have due to depressed finances, legalizing gaming looks like a great option. Is there an added underlying cost though? Yes—but legislators are going to have to find regulations and laws that manage to allow gambling but still protect those involved in it. This may be a tall order and may take some time to formulate.

Romania Debating Gambling Laws

Saturday, October 9th, 2010

The world is still making changes in the world of gambling. Some are coming together to push for gambling laws and others are still lagging behind and denying gambling a place in their markets. Romania is one country that has been trying hard though to come up with a law that holds and would make gambling possible. Part of their big draw of course is the huge tax revenue dollars that are available thanks to the million-dollar nature of gambling as a market. As part of the European Commission though Romania has to present all its gambling initiatives to the group and hope for approval. Unfortunately it didn’t make it this time. The law made up by Romanian legislators is far from compatible with EU law. In fact the EU denied specific provisions stating that they were not built enough to pass their rigorous scrutiny. There is a ban on advertising and marketing for EU-member countries that are not licensed by Romania. This is a major point of contention for the EU review because they deemed it to be “discriminatory” and “unacceptable.” Part of the EU’s main laws are those of free trade and that means all borders are open. Unfortunately a lot of states are trying to slip by while still maintaining their own monopoly over the gambling arena. Monopolies are not allowed though and the EU is denying many states trying to maintain them.

As it stands now the Romanian government will have to make considerable changes to its rules for them to be passed by the EC. The country’s officials did admit that the proposal was merely a draft form so they expected some revisions and criticisms to be in the mix. Many states are putting forth their best efforts when it comes to creating their own gambling laws and regulations. If they are in Europe, they of course have to be vetted by the EC. Without their approval they have to go back to the drawing board for rewrites. The EC is trying to create a uniform gambling law for all member states that follow current rules of trade and commerce that have already been accepted as law.

Canada In the Midst of Gambling Debates

Thursday, August 26th, 2010

The world of gambling and its legalization is up in arms. It seems that Canada has had the same issues that the US is going through for regulation. The US you remember has been going through a huge shift in legalization and regulation of online gambling and now other countries are joining in. The reason is because legislators realize the potential of online gambling and the billions of dollars available. Since the recession of 2008/2009, financial planning has been difficult for every economy around the world. Now gambling is showing a light at the end of the tunnel for legislators in need of solutions to their budgetary problems and deficits. The huge dollars that can be had are too much of an attraction for legislators to deny online gambling’s popularity.

In Canada changes may be coming more quickly than anticipated because Ontario has already made significant changes in its laws regarding online gambling. In fact, it was the first province to commit to finding safe solutions to online gambling once its first casino is open. The province is verifying that it will without a doubt open an online casino and use online gambling as its way of generating the millions of tax revenue dollars needed to handle the huge budgets and deficits. Now that Ontario is moving into the world of online gambling, that is going to bring the rest of the country that much closer to looking to do the same. In the same way that if one state within the US makes a significant change in law, other states follow, so is it with Canadian law. It may take some time to regulate online gambling and come to the place where it all runs effectively, but it is a matter of time for other provinces. Expect changes to come upon Canadian law that are going to bring in some of the best gaming available online today. Casino companies are highly competitive and just waiting to move in on the market. they know how many people in Canada want to start gambling and if they can provide a safe and secure option, legislators are going to welcome them into the country.