Wednesday, August 29, 2012

Indian gaming is a big business for Oklahoma | NewsOK.com

Indian gaming is a big business for Oklahoma | NewsOK.com


By Paula Burkes | Published: August 29, 2012    Comment on this article 6
Q&A with Michael McBride III
Indian gaming is big business
photo - Michael McBride III <strong></strong>
Michael McBride III

MULTIMEDIA

Q: How big of an industry is Indian gaming in Oklahoma?
A: There are about 114 tribal casinos in Oklahoma. In 2011, the Oklahoma Indian gaming industry produced approximately $3.5 billion in revenue. Since Oklahoma and tribal governments began signing modern gaming compacts in 2005, the state has received more than $612 million in Indian gaming compact revenue to be used exclusively for higher education. Indian gaming is the state's second largest industry.
Q: What are the current rules and regulations that govern Indian gaming in Oklahoma?
A: Thirty-three tribal governments in Oklahoma have tribal-state gaming compacts, which govern the play of Class III casino-style gaming and cover the games permitted, exclusivity payments to Oklahoma, monitoring, licensing and more. Tribes and the National Indian Gaming Commission regulate Class II gaming, which includes bingo, pull-tabs and electronic bingo-style games.
Q: What are the national trends in Internet gaming, and how do they apply to our state?

A: It is not a matter of if, but when Internet gaming will be commonplace and legal within the U.S. It's estimated “I-gaming” accounts for 8.7 percent of the approximately $349 billion of global gaming in 2011, and that nearly a third of players are Americans, albeit unlawfully. The Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act of 2006 blocked payment processing. The big game-changer was a U.S. Department of Justice memorandum released in December that determined a 1961 law that prohibits betting using telephones or the Internet only applies to sports betting. This cleared the way for Internet gaming on a much larger scale. Last month, the Senate Committee on Indian Affairs introduced a draft Internet gaming law. Federal legislation could help address the patchwork of regulatory regimes across the United States, respect the policies behind the Indian Gaming Regulatory Act of 1988 and existing Tribal-State Gaming Compacts and help protect the significant investments by tribal governments and non-Indian commercial interests.
PAULA BURKES, BUSINESS WRITER


Read more: http://newsok.com/indian-gaming-is-a-big-business-for-oklahoma/article/3705027#ixzz24wMFS5Rn


Read more: http://newsok.com/indian-gaming-is-a-big-business-for-oklahoma/article/3705027#ixzz24wM15BIa
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1 comment:

  1. Rick S Geiger - Call Me @585-230-5511August 29, 2012 at 9:13 AM

    Just a note on the statement that 8.7% of the $349 billion dollar market for gaming is online. 8.7% is VERY speculative number, frankly as is the $349 billion. The fact is that there are some firms that do market research to come up with these numbers but there has yet to be a sufficient sample size to verify the data...so the real scoop is that while yes, online is growing rapidly, the real numbers...no body knows

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