Inside Asian Gaming

December 2016 inside asian gaming 29 Gambling and the law Changes in technology in one part of society lead to unexpected changes in other parts. Did anyone think that the invention of the cell phone and internet would lead to the demise of much of the photography industry? Commercial photographers used to get commissions from magazines. Now the mags, if they even still exist, search the web and buy from brokers selling great shots from amateurs. Facebook alone has 250 million images uploaded every day – and most of those shots are from phones. Small camera stores near tourist sites have almost all disappeared. The law of unintended consequences kicks in whenever there are major technological developments. Newspapers are being killed by the internet, but not because people can now get their news instantly online. Someone still has to write that content. And reporters and editors have been trained and have the resources. The internet has no editor, which means that straight fiction is often reported as fact. But newspapers need advertising to survive. Most of them depended upon classified ads for their revenue, so the birth of online rating services and eBay meant the death of daily papers. Legal gaming has a special problem. As the most heavily regulated consumer industry, it is one of the slowest to change. Technology is playing havoc with the law of gambling. It is not even clear who should do the regulating. Different forms of gambling have traditionally been viewed as creating different problems. Lotteries have been considered dangerous because tickets can become too easily available. In 1849 and again in 1903, the US Supreme Court declared, “The widespread pestilence of lotteries ... infests the whole community; it enters every dwelling; it reaches every class; it preys upon the hard earnings of the poor; and it plunders the ignorant and simple.” Throughout most of its history, casino gaming was considered dangerous because it took working men away from factories and farms and because wealthy, but foolish, individuals would sometimes, overnight, lose everything they owned. Betting at a track on horse races has often been legal, while betting on college and professional sports events is almost always prohibited. The anti-bookmaking laws were designed to limit where and when wagers were made and to fight organized crime. Charity bingo has been considered a low- stakes, social game. Laws were enacted that basically left the game alone, while ensuring that profits went to the sponsoring worthy cause. But gambling is being transformed by technology in ways that make these distinctions meaningless. Even worse for lawmakers, the changes are unpredictable. Daniel J. Boorstin, Director Emeritus of the Library of Congress, wrote a book in 1994 entitled Cleopatra’s Nose: Essays on the Unexpected , about how the accidental and unexpected can alter the course of history. The title is from a statement by French mathematician Blaise Pascal (1623-1662), who wrote, “Cleopatra’s nose, had it been shorter, the whole face of the world would have been changed.” Today we might call this chaos theory: small changes can lead to enormous, unpredictable results. If Cleopatra had had a smaller nose, Julius Caesar and Mark Antony might not have fallen for her, thus transforming the history of the Roman Empire. Boorstin believes we have a new “Machine Kingdom” with different laws and rules from the traditional designations of “Animal, Vegetable and Mineral Kingdoms.” In the Animal Kingdom, for example, species evolve through natural selection and survival of the fittest by adapting to their environment. Machines, on the other hand, create their own environment, particularly by creating demand. Boorstin’s observations about the ways in which new inventions affect human experience help explain how technology is changing the way people make bets. Technology creates its own demand. Printed books created widespread literacy and the need for more printed books. Does the same work for legal gaming? One of the most popular forms of gambling today is the video poker machine. Did anyone want to play video poker before video poker was invented? The most potent machines invade all environments. “You know your industry is in trouble if the most current product you offer your 21st century patrons is bingo.” Social games like Angry Birds have been among the most popular among Millennials