Page 76 - Public Gaming International September/October 2017

The concern with the common misunder- in 2015. The industry has a global June because they failed to cover vendor
standing of handle/revenue is that it creates in-person or online audience of 150 million fees. Caesars said it remained commit-
unrealistic expectations for states seeking people annually. ted to exploring the concept of skill-based
to regulate sports betting or DFS. There gambling, despite the growing pains of this
can be significant opportunities for states Newzoo, a company following the esports initiative.
that legalize sports gambling, but unreal- market, predicts that esports will generate
istic estimates caused by the conflation of nearly $700 million this year, including Casinos are not alone in trying to deter-
handle and revenue may set everyone up for media rights, ticket and merchandise sales, mine how to monetize competitive gaming.
disappointment. brand partnerships, and game maker invest- A report by HIS Markit concluded that the
ments. The firm thinks that figure will esports industry was still years away from
IGT FORMS JOINT exceed $1.5 billion by 2019. fulfilling its revenue potential. Esports matu-
VENTURE WITH TELLING rity will come, the report said, through the
TELECOMMUNICATIONS GREAT CANADIAN GAMING sale of media rights to mainstream broad-
TO PROVIDE INNOVATIVE STOCK TRADES AT AN casters and brands. The report suggested
LOTTERY PRODUCTS IN RECORD HIGH ON OLG there were three to four times more millen-
CHINA CASINO DEAL nials watching esports than any of the big
four U.S. sports (football, basketball, base-
CASINOS AND E-SPORTS: AN Shares of Great Canadian Gaming Corp. ball, hockey).
EVOLVING RELATIONSHIP (TSX: GC) are trading at an all-time high
Casinos have begun to stage competitive on Tuesday following news that the Ontario NEW JERSEY TAKES STEPS TO
video game tournaments (esports) to improve Lottery and Gaming Corp. named the PERMIT SKILL-BASED GAMES
their bottom lines, but revenue from these company, along with Brookfield Business
events is coming from hotel room rentals and Partners (TSX: BBU.UN)(NYSE: BBU) The New Jersey Division of Gaming
food and beverage sales, not from converting and other institutional partners as the new Enforcement is taking steps to permit the
esports players into gamblers. operators of select casinos around Toronto types of skill-based games that have begun
to appear in Atlantic City casinos.
Esports are a burgeoning industry glob- ESPORTS TOURNAMENTS Existing regulations need to be amended to
ally. The fast pace and frequently violent STILL NOT CONVERTING remove the return to player (RTP) minimum
on-screen action is attractive to millennial MILLENNIALS INTO CASINO demanded in current legislation (83 percent).
players, the demographic that casinos are GAMBLERS
trying to reach as their core slot machine The division’s proposed amendment states:
gamblers grow older. But it has been prob- Casinos are staging esports tournaments “Skill based games mean any approved
lematic to persuade e-sports players to engage in an effort to expose Millennial genera- casino or online game where the theoretical
in traditional gambling activities. tion players to traditional forms of gaming, return to player (RTP) cannot be determined
but to date sales of hotel rooms, food, and by a precise mathematical model based on
In March, Caesar’s Entertainment hosted beverages have outpaced any gains in slot chance, but is instead determined by play-
an esports tournament that drew 900 machines or table games among younger er’s physical dexterity and/or mental ability.
competitors and spectators. The result was players. Such games are not required to achieve a
encouraging, but not overwhelmingly posi- minimum theoretical RTP. Skill based
tive. Caesars’ believes that developing ways Casinos that host esports tournaments are games are distinct from slot machine games
to attract millennials is a necessity for the making their returns from selling players that are expected to achieve a theoretical
casino industry. Esports players need to be rooms and refreshments rather than convert- RTP of 83 percent.”
enticed to embrace casinos for video game ing them to casino gaming.
competitions in the same way their parents In March, Caesars Atlantic City staged the Existing regulations require skill-based
and grandparents went to casinos to play slot Gears Pro Circuit Atlantic City Open; that machines to “theoretically pay out a math-
machines. tournament attracted 900 competitors and ematically demonstrable percentage of all
spectators, but did little to drive traditional amounts wagered, which shall not be less
Gambling requires discretionary income gaming. As one gamer put it, “We’re just here than 83 percent for each wager available for
and free time, things that people starting to shoot our guns.” play on the device,” and state that “games
their careers or families may not possess. To which rely entirely on skill or do not utilize
date, the real money for casinos in esports In November 2016, Caesars’ Atlantic City an RNG are not required to achieve a mini-
tournaments comes from spending on food, casino properties were the first in the world mum theoretical hold percentage.”
drinks, and hotel rooms. Wall Street sees to place skill-based video gaming machines
growth potential in esports. Deloitte Global on the floor. But that experiment to capture The proposed amendment reads: “Skill based
estimated the worldwide esports market at the attention of the millennial genera- games approved pursuant to this section
$500 million in 2016, up from $400 million tion failed. The machines were removed in shall be clearly identified through the use

76 // PUBLIC GAMING INTERNATIONAL // SEPTEMBER /OCTOBER 2017