GPWA Times Magazine - Issue 28 - April 2014

As for tech savvy kids who know way more about the Internet than their par- ents? That's an artifact of previous gen- erations. Gen X, Gen Y and millennials know their way around the Internet. They understand how technologyworks, and how to supervise and regulate their children's usage of the Internet. This is a new generation of parents. Just because Adelsondoesn't knowhow to turna com- puter on doesn't automatically make all kids smarter than their parents when it comes to technology. Unfortunately for the online gaming in- dustry, most legislators come from the generation where their kids knew sig- nificantly more about computers than they did. As a result, those legislators still believe that today's kids knowmore about computers than their parents. Even if it's no longer true, it's still an effect- ive argument. Abboud's fourth contention is that online gambling provides prime money laun- dering opportunities. Actually, any un- regulated casino provides prime money laundering opportunities. That's why there are anti-money laundering regu- lations that each casino has to follow. These regulations try toprevent theuseof casinos as money laundering facilities. And as Mitch Garber notes, the online ecosystem is probably better at fight- ing money laundering than land- based systems. "You don't know where that money is coming from in Macau," Garber argued, taking a shot at theLasVegas Sands' cash cow. Online, operators know where the money is coming from, addedGarber. The ability to track transactions through the ecosystem is simply a tool that land- based casinos don't have right now. But not all legislatorsknow that.Many see the Internet as anopaquemorass that can't be controlled, andAbboud'smoney launder- ing argument appeals to that set. Abboud's final claim, that cheating can't be stopped, reveals just how little he knows about online poker. Over the years, I've hear many people ask me what's to stop two friends from sitting at the same table and sharing their hole cards. The funny thing is, the makers of online poker have thought of this too. Online poker providers use sophisticated software to prevent collusion. Theywork extremelyhard tokeep their games clean. And just like at brick-and-mortar casinos, it's very difficult to cheat in online poker. Especially with a vigilant and robust online poker community keeping an eye out for cheaters aswell. Sowill anyof these arguments stick?Yes. They're designed to elicit fear and take advantage of the fact thatmost legislators don't know a thing about online gaming. The fact that these arguments are illogical onlymatters if youunderstand the issues. Thatmakes the expansion of online gam- ing similar to theexpansionof land-based gaming in the U.S. In the brick-and-mor- tarworld, casino companies kept at it, ex- plaininghow the casino industryworked, how they made sure the games were honest, how they prevented underage gamblers from playing, how they fought money launderingandhow theykeptbad actors out of thebusiness. Fortunately for the brick-and-mortar industry, all of these arguments were happening at the state level where they could keep pressing their case until logic wonout. The online gaming industry doesn't have that luxury. This battle is being fought at the federal level. If online gaming is banned – and bills have already been in- troduced in the House and Senate that would do that – or if only poker is al- lowed, itwill be an enormous setback for the industry. It's much harder to unring that bell. It could take decades to recover from it. Education and facts are the only way to fight fear and ignorance. But if the iGam- ing industry's lobbying efforts don't im- prove quickly, Adelson and Abboud are going towin – even if theymakeno sense at all. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . VinNarayanan is the editor-in-chief of the GPWA TimesMagazine andhas beencovering theonline gambling industry for the last eight years. He’salsoan expert on the legal and regu- latory landscapeof online gaming in theU.S. AndyAbboud (right) didn't have logiconhisside inhisdebatewithMitchGarber (left), moderatedbyStephenLipscomb (PhotobyMichael Corfman) 37 DeconstructingAbboud