Casinos positioned in Atlantic City will have a way to utilize for a license to offer online gambling. Only the twelve official Atlantic City casinos is likely to be qualified to receive the license. No other organizations can provide internet gambling, and face stiff fines if they do. All facilities useful for the operation of internet gambling must be located within city limits; only bets which are received by a server in Atlantic City is likely to be legal.
– Players must be “physically present” in New Jersey to put wagers. In the foreseeable future, New Jersey may develop agreements with other states where internet gambling is legal to permit out-of-state gambling. The casino’s equipment must verify players’ locations before accepting wagers.
– Any games open to play in the casinos may be played online. (For comparison, Nevada only allows poker.) Currently, sports betting will not be protected by this bill, although the state of New Jersey is trying to fight the federal statute barring the legalization of sports betting.
– The bill has a myriad of provisions to keep gambling addiction at bay, such as for instance requiring the prominent display of the 1-800-GAMBLER hotline number, a way to set maximum bets and losses over a specific period of time, and tracking player losses to recognize and limit users who may demonstrate addictive gambling behavior.
– Revenue from online gambling will carry a 15% tax. agen sbobet The Christie administration states that about $180 million in revenue for the state is likely to be generated using this tax, but some analysts think this number is seriously overestimated.
The official regulations, which the bill required the Division of Gaming Enforcement to make, were released on June 3, and are subject to a “public comment period” until August 2 before being finalized. These rules include details such as for instance how a casino acquires the correct licenses and procedures for maintaining network security on gambling sites.
So, will online gambling actually benefit the state?
The Good
Revenues from Atlantic City casinos have been on the decline for yesteryear seven years, and online gambling could be what saves the failing casinos. Since 2006, casino revenue has dropped from $5.2 billion to around $3 billion. Online gambling could be a $500 million to $1 billion industry in New Jersey, which might be enough to keep struggling casinos afloat and save jobs in Atlantic City. Further, even though estimates of tax revenue are all over the map, there is potential for online gambling to become a considerably valuable supply of money for the state. The casinos will also have to pay a tax to the Casino Reinvestment Development Authority, that’ll provide further assist with struggling casinos in Atlantic City.
For the gamer, low overhead costs mean better prizes and more opportunities to play. Casinos can incent players with free “chips” that have minimal costs for them but give players more opportunities to play and win. The ease of gambling online allows players to play more with less travel.
BAD:
One of the goals of the bill is supposedly to attract more individuals to see the brick-and-mortar casinos, but it is hard to state if online gambling will in truth lead to the outcome. One could speculate it might even cause people to visit the casinos less (However, this seems unlikely; the social element and the free drinks are lost in online gambling. Also, research suggests that, at least with poker, internet gaming doesn’t reduce casino gaming.) Advertising for the host casino is likely to be allowed on the web gambling sites, which might encourage people to see the casino but is also annoying for players.
Online gambling could be seriously devastating for people who have gambling addictions, as well as cause people to produce them, raising financial and moral concerns. Even with all the current preventative steps the bill requires, it will definitely be much harder to take off compulsive gamblers if they can place bets anywhere with a web connection.
Regardless, it will be considered a while before the casinos can actually kick off their online gambling offerings. The regulations need to be finalized and casinos need to utilize for licensure and develop their gambling websites. This means the casinos will not be enjoying this new supply of revenue through the 2013 summer season, which could be Atlantic City’s toughest season ever following recovery from Hurricane Sandy.
