Las Vegas Casino Companies Align with Internet Companies
The Las Vegas casino industry led by Caesars Entertainment has been granted permission to begin laying the groundwork for Internet gambling in the United States. Thursday the Nevada Gaming Commission approved a relationship between Caesars and United Kingdom company 888 Holdings PLC in their March 24 session.
The agreement was also approved on the day when the Nevada Gaming Commission listened to testimony of legalizing online gaming in Nevada. The Commission made it clear as to how their approval of the alliance of the two companies is to be understood.
Board member A.G. Burnett made the ruling clear by his statement to the Las Vegas Review Journal regarding the ruling, “What we’re doing today is looking at the suitability of a business relationship. We’re not granting (888 Holdings PLC) a Nevada gaming license and we’re not making a ruling on U.S. gaming law.”
What made it easy for 888 to have their agreement with Caesars Entertainment approved is they are one of the Internet gaming sites that is perceived as clean in the United States. The company blocked United States residents from placing bets on their site.
The Wynn Resorts agreement with PokerStars may be more dicey. PokerStars has continued to accept wagers from the United States. It remains to be seen if the alliance between Wynn and PokerStars realizes its full potential and is ultimately approved.
With tax revenue down and billions of dollars leaving the United States through illegal online sites, it appears the ground work is now being laid for the legalization of online gaming. Caesars Entertainment and Wynn Resorts are jockeying for position to be the first United States based Internet gaming companies.
The gaming giants of Nevada, once opposed to Internet gaming have learned the new competition will not go away. They have realized: when you can’t beat them, join them. This week has the potential to be a watershed moment in the gaming industry and the next six months to a year could determine the possible resurgence of these two gaming giants.
It does make sense to stop the flow of money from leaving the United States and everyone must wonder why politicians enacted the law in the first place. There is a major push by state governments to push through Internet gaming law but Caesars Entertainment and MGM Resorts are on the verge of pushing legislation through the U.S. Congress and pass a federal law regulating Internet gaming.
Sen. Harry Reid has received backlash with the introduction of his bill to legalize and regulate online gaming sites in the United States but it has received positive feedback from both sides of the aisle in the U.S. Senate and the U.S. House of Representatives.
Some Republicans have blamed Reid’s renewed interest in an Internet gaming bill as payback to his political backers, Caesars Entertainment and MGM Resorts. It may be one of the contributing factors for Reid but the end result will be millions of dollars in tax revenue in the long run.
