Casino
Template:Short description Template:About
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Template:Protection padlock A casino is a facility for gambling. Casinos are often built near or combined with hotels, resorts, restaurants, retail shops, cruise ships, and other tourist attractions. Some casinos also host live entertainment, such as stand-up comedy, concerts, and sports.
Etymology and usage
[edit]Casino is of Italian origin; the root Template:Lang means a house. The term casino may mean a small country villa, summerhouse, or social club.<ref name=casitalian>Template:Cite book</ref> During the 19th century, casino came to include other public buildings where pleasurable activities took place; such edifices were usually built on the grounds of a larger Italian villa or palazzo, and were used to host civic town functions, including dancing, gambling, music listening, and sports. Examples in Italy include Villa Farnese and Villa Giulia, and in the US the Newport Casino in Newport, Rhode Island. In modern-day Italian, a Template:Wikt-lang is a brothel (also called Template:Lang, literally "closed house"), a mess (confusing situation), or a noisy environment; a gaming house is spelt Template:Wikt-lang, with an accent.<ref>Template:Cite OED</ref><ref name=casitalian/><ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
Not all casinos are used for gaming. The Catalina Casino, on Santa Catalina Island, California, has never been used for traditional games of chance, which were already outlawed in California by the time it was built.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> The Copenhagen Casino was a Danish theatre which also held public meetings during the 1848 Revolution, which made Denmark a constitutional monarchy.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
In military and non-military usage, a Template:Wikt-lang (Spanish) or Template:Wikt-lang (German) is an officers' mess.
History of gambling houses
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The precise origin of gambling is unknown. It is generally believed that gambling in some form or another has been seen in almost every society in history. From Ancient Mesopotamia, Greeks and Romans to Napoleon's France and Elizabethan England, much of history is filled with stories of entertainment based on games of chance.
The first known European gambling house, not called a casino although meeting the modern definition, was the Ridotto, established in Venice, Italy, in 1638 by the Great Council of Venice to provide controlled gambling during the carnival season. It was closed in 1774 as the city government felt it was impoverishing the local gentry.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
In American history, early gambling establishments were known as saloons. The creation and importance of saloons was greatly influenced by four major cities: New Orleans, St. Louis, Chicago and San Francisco. It was in the saloons that travelers could find people to talk to, drink with, and often gamble with. During the early 20th century in the US, gambling was outlawed by state legislation. However, in 1931, gambling was legalized throughout the state of Nevada, where the US's first legalized casinos were set up. In 1976 New Jersey allowed gambling in Atlantic City, now the US's second largest gambling city.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Gambling in casinos
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Most jurisdictions worldwide have a minimum gambling age of 18 to 21.<ref>Template:Cite bookTemplate:Dead link</ref>
Customers gamble by playing games of chance, in some cases with an element of skill, such as craps, roulette, baccarat, blackjack, and video poker. Most games have mathematically determined odds that ensure the house has at all times an advantage over the players. This can be expressed more precisely by the notion of expected value, which is uniformly negative (from the player's perspective). This advantage is called the house edge. In games such as poker where players play against each other, the house takes a commission called the rake. Casinos sometimes give out complimentary items or comps to gamblers.
Payout is the percentage of funds ("winnings") returned to players. Video lottery machines (slot machines) have become one of the most popular forms of gambling in casinos. Template:As of investigative reports have started calling into question whether the modern-day slot-machine is addictive.<ref>"Slot Machines: The Big Gamble", (Jan. 10, 2011). CBS 60 Minutes, Retrieved 7/20/2011.</ref> Template:Clear
Design
[edit]Factors influencing gambling tendencies include sound, odour and lighting. Natasha Dow Schüll, an anthropologist at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, highlights the decision of the audio directors at Silicon Gaming to make its slot machines resonate in "the universally pleasant tone of C, sampling existing casino soundscapes to create a sound that would please but not clash".<ref>S Template:Webarchive l Slot machines: a lose-lose situation (June 8, 2013). The Guardian, Retrieved 2/9/2013.</ref>
Alan Hirsch, founder of the Smell & Taste Treatment and Research Foundation in Chicago, studied the impact of certain scents on gamblers, discerning that a pleasant albeit unidentifiable odor released by Las Vegas slot machines generated about 50% more in daily revenue. He suggested that the scent acted as an aphrodisiac, causing a more aggressive form of gambling.<ref>"The psychology behind casino design Template:Webarchive", (August 24, 2011). Time Out Chicago Template:Cite web, Retrieved February 9, 2013.</ref>
Markets
[edit]The following lists major casino markets in the world with casino revenue of over US$1 billion as published in PricewaterhouseCoopers's report on the outlook for the global casino market:<ref>"Playing to Win: The Outlook for the Global Casino and Online Gaming Market to 2014" (2010). Template:Webarchive. PwC. Retrieved May 15, 2022.</ref>
By region
[edit]| Rank | Region | Revenue (US$M)Template:Fix | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | 2010 Projected |
2011 Projected | ||
| 1 | United States | 57,240 | 56,500 | 58,030 |
| 2 | Asia Pacific | 21,845 | 32,305 | 41,259 |
| 3 | Europe, Middle East, Africa | 17,259 | 16,186 | 16,452 |
| 4 | Canada | 3,712 | 3,835 | 4,045 |
| 5 | Latin America | 425 | 528 | 594 |
| Total | 100,481 | 109,354 | 120,380 | |
By market
[edit]| Rank | Location | No. of casinos |
Revenue (US$billion)Template:Fix | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | 2010 projected |
2011 projected |
2019 | 2020 | 2021 | ||||
| 1 | Template:Flagicon Macau | 33 | 14.95 | 22.44 | 28.38 | 29 | 7.57 <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 10.86 | |
| 2 | Template:Flagicon Las Vegas, Nevada | 122 | 10.25 | 9.95 | 10.30 | 11.96 | 7.8 | 13.4 <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | |
| 3 | Template:Flagicon Singapore | 2 | 2.12 | 2.75 | 5.48 | - | - | 1.67 | |
| 4 | Template:Flagicon France | 189 | 3.96 | 3.91 | 3.96 | 11.46 | 10.36 | 11.48 <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | |
| 5 | Template:Flagicon Atlantic City, New Jersey | 12 | 3.94 | 3.55 | 3.33 | 3.29 | 2.65 | 4.73 | |
| 6 | Template:Flagicon Australia | 11 | 2.70 | 2.77 | 2.85 | 6.6 <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | - | - | |
| 7 | Template:Flagicon South Korea | 17<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 2.40 | 2.43 | 2.51 | 8.2 | - | - | |
| 8 | Template:Flagicon Germany | 76 | 2.07 | 2.05 | 2.08 | 11.52 | 10.52 | 6.51 <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | |
| 9 | Template:Flagicon South Africa | 36<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 1.84 <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 1.78 | 2.01 | 1.78 | 1.89 | 1.34 | |
| 10 | Template:Flagicon United Kingdom | 141 | 1.21 | 1.19 | 1.21 | 17.22 | 15.4 | 17.09 <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | |
| 11 | Template:Flagicon Poland | 36<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | 1.09 | 1.09 | 1.13 | - | - | - | |
| 12 | Template:Flagicon Niagara Falls, Ontario | 2 | 1.10 | 1.11 | 1.20 | 4.8 | 4.27 | 2.18 <ref>Template:Cite web</ref> | |
By company
[edit]According to Bloomberg, accumulated revenue of the biggest casino operator companies worldwide amounted to almost US$55 billion in 2011. SJM Holdings Ltd. was the leading company in this field, earning $9.7 bn in 2011, followed by Las Vegas Sands Corp. at $7.4 bn. The third-biggest casino operator company (based on revenue) was Caesars Entertainment, with revenue of US$6.2 bn.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Significant sites
[edit]While there are casinos in many places, a few places have become well known specifically for gambling. Perhaps the place almost defined by its casino is Monte Carlo, but other places are known as gambling centers.
Monte Carlo, Monaco
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Template:Main Opened in 1865, Monte Carlo Casino, located in Monte Carlo city, in Monaco, is a casino and a tourist attraction.
Monte Carlo Casino has been depicted in books, songs and films. It features prominently in the James Bond films Never Say Never Again (1983) and GoldenEye (1995). Casinos feature throughout the Bond series, with the character introducing himself to the world at Les Ambassadeurs Club in Mayfair, London with the line "Bond, James Bond" in Dr. No (1962).<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
The Monte Carlo Casino is mentioned in the 1891 British music hall song "The Man Who Broke the Bank at Monte Carlo" as well as the 1935 film of the same name.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The song was inspired by the exploits of English trickster Charles Wells, who in 1891 "broke the bank" on many occasions on the first two of his three trips to the casino.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref>
The Monte Carlo Casino features in Ben Mezrich's 2005 book Busting Vegas, where a group of students beat the casino out of nearly $1 million. This book is based on real people and events; however, many of those events are contested by main character Semyon Dukach.<ref>Template:Cite web.</ref>
Campione d'Italia
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Template:Main Casinò di Campione is located in the tiny Italian enclave of Campione d'Italia, within Ticino, Switzerland. The casino was founded in 1917 as a site to gather information from foreign diplomats during the First World War. Today it is owned by the Italian government, and operated by the municipality. With gambling laws being less strict than in Italy and Switzerland, it is among the most popular gambling destination besides Monte Carlo. The income from the casino is sufficient for the operation of Campione without the imposition of taxes, or obtaining of other revenue.<ref name=nytehs>Template:Cite news</ref> In 2007, the casino moved into new premises of more than Template:Convert, making it the largest casino in Europe.<ref name="economist.com">Template:Cite news</ref> The new casino was built alongside the old one, which dated from 1933 and has since been demolished.<ref name= nytehs/><ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
Malta
[edit]The archipelago of Malta is a particularly famous place for casinos, standing out mainly with the historic casino located at the princely residence of Dragonara. Dragonara Palace was built in 1870. Its name comes from the Dragonara Point, the peninsula where it is built. On 15 July 1964, the palace opened as a casino.
Macau
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The former Portuguese colony of Macau, a special administrative region of the People's Republic of China since 1999, is a popular destination for visitors who wish to gamble.<ref name=cnn>Template:Cite news</ref> This started in Portuguese times, when Macau was popular with visitors from nearby Hong Kong, where gambling was more closely regulated. The Venetian Macao is currently the largest casino in the world. Macau also surpassed Las Vegas as the largest gambling market in the world.<ref name=cnn/>
Germany
[edit]Machine-based gaming is only permitted in land-based casinos, restaurants, bars and gaming halls, and only subject to a licence. Online slots are, at the moment, only permitted if they are operated under a Schleswig-Holstein licence. AWPs are governed by federal law – the Trade Regulation Act and the Gaming Ordinance.
Portugal
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The Casino Estoril, located in the municipality of Cascais, on the Portuguese Riviera, near Lisbon, is the largest casino in Europe by capacity.
During the World War II, it was reputed to be a gathering point for spies, dispossessed royals, and wartime adventurers; it became an inspiration for Ian Fleming's James Bond 007 novel Casino Royale.
Russia
[edit]Template:Main There are four legal gaming zones in Russia: "Siberian Coin" (Altay), "Yantarnaya" (Kaliningrad region), "Azov-city" (Rostov region) and "Primorie" (Primorie region).
Singapore
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Template:Main Singapore is an up-and-coming destination for visitors wanting to gamble, although there are currently only two casinos (both foreign owned), in Singapore. The Marina Bay Sands is the second most expensive standalone casino in the world, at a price of US$6.8 billion, and is among the world's ten most expensive buildings.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
United States
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With currently over 1,000 casinos, the United States has the largest number of casinos in the world. The number continues to grow steadily as more states seek to legalize casinos. 40 states nowTemplate:When have some form of casino gambling. Interstate competition, such as gaining tourism, has been a driving factor to continuous legalization.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref> Relatively small places such as Las Vegas are best known for gambling; larger cities such as Chicago are not defined by their casinos in spite of the large turnover.
The Las Vegas Valley has the largest concentration of casinos in the United States. Based on revenue, Atlantic City, New Jersey, ranks second, and the Chicago region third.
Top American casino markets by revenue (2022 annual revenues):<ref>Template:Cite web</ref>
- Las Vegas Strip $7.05 billion
- Atlantic City $2.57 billion
- Chicago region $2.01 billion
- Baltimore–Washington Metropolitan Area $2.00 billion
- Mississippi Gulf Coast $1.61 billion
- New York City $1.46 billion
- Philadelphia $1.40 billion
- Detroit $1.29 billion
- St. Louis $1.03 billion
- Boulder Strip $967 million
- Reno/Sparks $889 million
- Kansas City $861 million
- The Poconos $849 million
- Lake Charles, Louisiana $843 million
- Black Hawk/Central City $812 million
- Downtown Las Vegas $731 million
- Tunica/Lula $696 million
- Cincinnati $655 million
- Shreveport/Bossier City $646 million
- Pittsburgh/Meadowlands $630 million
The Nevada Gaming Control Board divides Clark County, which is coextensive with the Las Vegas metropolitan area, into seven market regions for reporting purposes.
Native American gaming has been responsible for a rise in the number of casinos outside of Las Vegas and Atlantic City.
Vietnam
[edit]In Vietnam, the term "casinos" encompasses gambling activities within the country. Unofficially defined, a "casino" typically denotes a well-established and professional gambling establishment that is generally lawful but exclusively caters to foreign players. On the other hand, "gambling houses" or "gambling dens" are smaller, illicit gambling venues.<ref name="asiatimes">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name=forbes>Template:Cite news</ref>
As of 2022, Vietnam has 9 operating casinos,<ref name="tuoitre.vn13">Template:Cite web</ref> including: Đồ Sơn casino (Hải Phòng), Lợi Lai casino, Hoàng Gia casino (Quảng Ninh), Hồng Vận casino (Quảng Ninh), Lào Cai casino (Lào Cai), Silver Shores casino (Đà Nẵng), Hồ Tràm casino (Bà Rịa – Vũng Tàu), Nam Hội An casino (Quảng Nam), Phú Quốc casino in Kien Giang.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref name="construction">Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="nld.com.vn">Template:Cite web</ref>
In a survey conducted by the Vietnamese Institute for Sustainable Regional Development and released on September 30, 2015, it was found that 71% of the respondents held the belief that allowing Vietnamese individuals to access casinos would result in an increase in the number of players. Furthermore, 47.4% of the participants expressed the view that engaging in rewarding recreational activities has a positive impact on job opportunities for residents. Additionally, 46.2% of the respondents believed that such activities contribute positively to Vietnam's ability to attract investments.<ref>'Burning' 1,379 billion VND to relieve in Vietnamese casinos, vietnamnet, 30/09/2015</ref>
Security
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Given the large amounts of currency handled within a casino, both patrons and staff may be tempted to cheat and steal, in collusion or independently; most casinos have security measures to prevent this. Security cameras located throughout the casino are the most basic measure.
Modern casino security is usually divided between a physical security force and a specialized surveillance department. The physical security force usually patrols the casino and responds to calls for assistance and reports of suspicious or definite criminal activity. A specialized surveillance department operates the casino's closed-circuit-television system, known in the industry as the eye in the sky. Both of these specialized casino security departments work very closely with each other to ensure the safety of both guests and the casino's assets, and have been quite successful in preventing crime.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> Some casinos also have catwalks in the ceiling above the casino floor, which allow surveillance personnel to look directly down, through one way glass, on the activities at the tables and slot machines.
When it opened in 1989, The Mirage was the first casino to use cameras full-time on all table games.<ref>Template:Cite journal</ref>
In addition to cameras and other technological measures, casinos also enforce security through rules of conduct and behavior; for example, players at card games are required to keep the cards they are holding in their hands visible at all times.
Business practices
[edit]Over the past few decades, casinos have developed many different marketing techniques for attracting and maintaining loyal patrons. Many casinos use a loyalty rewards program used to track players' spending habits and target their patrons more effectively, by sending mailings with free slot play and other promotions.<ref>"Tribes to pay Conn. $25m in slot accord", (August 27, 2009). The Boston Globe, Retrieved July 20, 2011.</ref> Casino Helsinki in Helsinki, Finland, for example, donates all of its profits to charity.<ref>Veikkaus casinos still strong despite fierce online competition Template:Webarchive - Helsinki Times</ref><ref>How Finland's state-led gambling sector is unintentionally creating a global model Template:Webarchive - Helsinki Times</ref>
Crime
[edit]Casinos have been linked to organised crime, with early casinos in Las Vegas originally dominated by the American Mafia<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref> and in Macau by Triad syndicates.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref>
According to some police reports, local incidence of reported crime often doubles or triples within three years of a casino's opening.<ref>"Gambling addiction leads many down criminal road" Template:Webarchive, Jeremy Boren, (June 19, 2011). The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, Retrieved 7/20/2011.</ref> In a 2004 report by the US Department of Justice, researchers interviewed people who had been arrested in Las Vegas and Des Moines and found that the percentage of problem or pathological gamblers among the arrestees was three to five times higher than in the general population.<ref>McCorkle, Richard C., "Gambling and Crime Among Arrestees: Exploring the Link" (July 2004). U.S. Department of Justice. Retrieved 7/20/2011.</ref>
It has been said that economic studies showing a positive relationship between casinos and crime usually fail to consider the visiting population: they count crimes committed by visitors but do not count visitors in the population measure, which overstates the crime rate. Part of the reason this methodology is used, despite the overstatement, is that reliable data on tourist count are often not available.<ref>Walker, Douglas M. "Do Casinos Really Cause Crime?" (Jan 2008). Econ Journal Watch [1] Template:Webarchive</ref>
Occupational health and safety
[edit]Casinos are subject to specific regulations for worker safety, as casino employees are both at greater risk for cancers resulting from exposure to second-hand tobacco smoke<ref>Template:Cite web</ref><ref>Template:Cite web</ref> and musculoskeletal injuries from repetitive motions while running table games over many hours.<ref>Template:Cite web</ref> These are not the extent of the hazards casino workers may be exposed to, but every location is different. Most casinos do not meet the requirements for certain protective measures, such as protection against airborne metal dusts from coins or hearing protection against high noise levels, though these measures are still implemented when evaluated and determined necessary.<ref>Template:Cite report</ref>
Gallery
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Entrance to the casino at Resorts World Sentosa, Singapore
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The Galaxy Macau at night in Cotai, Macau
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Wynn Las Vegas in Paradise, Nevada, United States
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The Casino Helsinki at night in Helsinki, Finland
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The Parisian Macao is a casino resort on the Cotai Strip in Cotai, Macau, which features a half-scale Eiffel Tower as one of its landmarks
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MGM Cotai owned by MGM Resorts International, located in Cotai, Macau
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Slot machines at the Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa in Atlantic City, New Jersey, United States
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See also
[edit]- American Gaming Association
- Black Book (gaming)
- Casino chip
- Casino hotel
- Casinos in Goa
- EUROMAT (European Gaming & Amusement Federation)
- Gambling
- Gambling in Macau
- Gambling in Metro Manila
- Gambling in Mexico
- Gambling in the United States
- Gaming control board
- Gaming law
- Global Gaming Expo
- List of casinos
- Locals casino
- Native American gaming
- Online casino
- Online gambling
- Online poker
- Sports betting
References
[edit]Further reading
[edit]- Poley, Jared (2023). Luck, Leisure, and the Casino in Nineteenth-Century Europe: A Cultural History of Gambling. Cambridge University Press.