Initially the bill was vetoed by the Governor due to issues surrounding transparency and taxes. Lawmakers adjusted the text and the amended bill passed by an overwhelming majority in the legislature and earned Christie’s seal of approval.
Casinos positioned in Atlantic City will have a way to apply for a license to supply online gambling. Only the twelve official Atlantic City casinos will soon be entitled to the license. No other organizations can offer internet gambling, and face stiff fines should they do. All facilities used for the operation of internet gambling must certanly be located within city limits; only bets which are received by way of a server in Atlantic City will soon be legal.
Players must certanly be “physically present” in New Jersey to place wagers. As time goes by, 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 available to play in the casinos could be played online. (For comparison, Nevada only allows poker.) As of now, sports betting will not be protected by this bill, although the state of New Jersey is wanting to fight the federal statute barring the legalization of sports betting.
The bill has a myriad of provisions to help keep gambling addiction at bay, such as for example requiring the prominent display of the 1-800-GAMBLER hotline number, เว็บบอล ways to set maximum bets and losses over a specific time period, and tracking player losses to recognize and limit users who may demonstrate addictive gambling behavior.
Revenue from online gambling will carry a 15% tax. The Christie administration states that about $180 million in revenue for the state will soon be generated out of this tax, but some analysts think this number is seriously overestimated.
The official regulations, that the bill required the Division of Gaming Enforcement to create, were released on June 3, and are at the mercy of a “public comment period” until August 2 before being finalized. These rules include details such as for example how a casino acquires the correct licenses and procedures for maintaining network security on gambling sites.
Revenues from Atlantic City casinos have been on the decline for days gone by 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 might be a $500 million to $1 billion industry in New Jersey, which may be enough to help keep struggling casinos afloat and save jobs in Atlantic City. Further, even though estimates of tax revenue are all over the map, there’s potential for online gambling to be a considerably valuable source of money for the state. The casinos will also have to pay a tax to the Casino Reinvestment Development Authority, that may provide further help struggling casinos in Atlantic City.
For the ball player, low overhead costs mean better prizes and more opportunities to play. Casinos can incent players with free “chips” which have minimal costs for them but give players more opportunities to play and win. The convenience of gambling online allows players to play more with less travel.
Among the goals of the bill is supposedly to attract more individuals to go to the brick-and-mortar casinos, but it’s hard to express if online gambling will actually lead to this outcome. You can speculate it may even cause people to go to the casinos less (However, this seems unlikely; the social element and the free drinks are lost in online gambling. Also, research indicates that, at the very least with poker, internet gaming does not reduce casino gaming.) Advertising for the host casino will soon be allowed on the internet gambling sites, which could possibly encourage people to go to the casino but is also annoying for players.
Online gambling could be seriously devastating for those 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 cut off compulsive gamblers if they could place bets anywhere with an internet connection.
Regardless, it will be described as a while before the casinos can start up their online gambling offerings. The regulations must be finalized and casinos need to apply for licensure and develop their gambling websites. This means the casinos will not be enjoying this new source of revenue throughout the 2013 summer season, which could be Atlantic City’s toughest season ever following recovery from Hurricane Sandy.
