US casinos take aim at ‘illegal’ slot machinesVending Times
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The U.S. casino industry has launched a legal war against videogame machines which they claim are gambling machines that are evading gambling laws and avoiding taxes, according to a report in The Wall Street Journal. The machines' screens feature a grid of spinning squares and players must get a match of icons by tapping the screen to win a prize.
The developers of these games, which have been deployed in bars, social clubs and convenience stores, say the games require skill unlike slot machines.
The American Gaming Association, which represents casinos, claims Americans play $109 billion on unregulated gaming machines annually, and the operators make close to $27 billion in revenue. The association has asked the U.S. Justice Department to require the machines to be registered as gambling devices.
The Justice Department forwarded the matter to the Federal Bureau of Investigation.
The Parx casino outside Philadelphia filed a complaint this year against Pace-O-Matic, a video game software maker, and Miele Manufacturing, which builds Pace-O-Matic games. Parx claimed the companies create unfair competition for licensed gambling operators while the casino paid $50 million for a slot-machine license and pays about 54 cents of every dollar from slots in taxes.
Virginia lawmakers in 2020 approved legislation that made many skill-based games that pay out cash illegal.
