90 / 100
90
// PUBLIC GAMING INTERNATIONAL // September/October 2016
will attract younger and more dynamic
crowds that are indifferent to tradi-
tional gambling games. Creators from
other industries, such as video games,
board games, and sports, probably will
enter this new market with innovative
solutions of their own.
Traditional legislation authorizing li-
censed gambling allows a state gaming
board to oversee gambling games, or
those involving the elements of prize,
consideration, and chance. Gaming
authorities, in partnership with law
enforcement agencies, are authorized
to prevent such games from being
conducted outside a casino or other
licensed gaming establishment. The
regulations are clear—games per-
mitted in a casino cannot be played
outside of a casino for money, with the
exception of special cases like licensed
charity games.
Skill-based games, however, can be
played outside of a casino for money
without a gaming license. The new
regulations in Nevada and New Jersey
may allow these activities to be consid-
ered “gambling games” if they occur
within a casino and have been ap-
proved by gaming authorities. In this
context, whether an activity is consid-
ered “gambling” is not determined by
the characteristics of the game itself,
but by the approval of the game by
state authorities.
This creates ambiguity around tradi-
tional gaming enforcement; casinos
now may be permitted to oper-
ate games for money that are also
permitted to be played for money
outside a casino. This raises addi-
tional questions:
• If a casino operates a skills-based
game outside its complex without
the approval of authorities, can it ar-
gue that the game is not a “gambling
game” and is therefore beyond the
jurisdiction of the gaming officials?
• Does approval of a skill game for
play in a casino as a “gambling
game” prevent its play for money
outside a licensed environment?
Despite these grey areas, the clear
intent of legislation has been that casi-
nos should be allowed to operate skill
games within their establishments.
Similar activities involving skill games
outside a casino may well be beyond
the jurisdiction of regulators.
Other states that may seek to expand
gaming opportunities beyond tra-
ditional gambling games should be
aware of potential language conflicts
with standard enforcement laws and
policies. Although intent may be clear,
legal issues may arise because of the
wording of future skill-based regula-
tions as they are incorporated into
existing policies.
smartphones fuel gaming
among millennials
Millennials—the tech-savvy genera-
tion of young adults who are coveted
by marketers across industries—are us-
ing mobile smartphone technology to
fuel unprecedented interest in gaming.
In a recent report by the UK Gaming
Commission, the percentage of 18- to
34-year-olds gambling on their smart-
phones has increased from 10% in
2008 to 17.5% in 2014. This age co-
hort is the first truly “on-line” genera-
tion, and their use of mobile phones
demonstrates their familiarity and
proficiency with technology—they
spend 3.2 hours per day on average on
their smartphones, or nearly a full day
each week.
The heavy use of smartphones is great
news for gambling companies, who
have moved their services online.
Advancements in smartphone tech-
nology have enabled the placing of
bets for sport, playing online poker,
and accessing online casinos, which
means there is more opportunity for
gambling providers to engage play-
ers. Millennials can now gamble via
social networking sites and play games
through apps, while providers can cap-
ture behavioral tracking data to inform
game design in the future.
Mobile gambling, however, is only
one segment of the overall gaming
industry, an estimated $36 billion
behemoth worldwide. It is an indus-
try enjoying dramatic growth and
equally dramatic shifts in thinking
about game development and how to
engage players.
Game developers traditionally focused
on achieving such metrics as DAU
(daily active users) and MAU (month-
ly active users). New thinking centers
on “regulars,” those who play a certain
game every day (in many instances, 90
minutes or more per day). Developers
try to create a gaming environment
that will continue to engage such
frequent users. Frequently, this can
be achieved through social gameplay
within a game … the player-to-player
interactions, sharing, and competing.
To emphasize the strategic importance
of regulars, Kabam, a company that
has created six game titles that gener-
ated $100 million in revenue, is think-
ing about how to develop games that
may last for as long as a decade.
While developers scramble to compete
in the U.S., UK, and Japanese gaming
markets, China has, somewhat quietly,
become the largest mobile gaming
market in the world. The Chinese
market represents new complica-
tions from technical, regulatory, and
marketing perspectives. In fact, Asian
companies are expected to be very ag-
gressive in acquiring western compa-
nies to help fuel the Chinese market.
So the industry faces a challenging
admixture of dynamics: Millennials’
attitudes toward gaming, the rise of
the Chinese market, and the growing
presence of VR (virtual reality) hard-
ware. The stage is set for unprecedent-
ed innovation and industry growth.