Spin Cycle: ‘Rigged’ Slots, ‘Illegally Imposed’ Fees Highlight Week In Gambling

Welcome to “Spin Cycle,” Casino Reports’ weekly Friday roundup of all things impactful, intriguing, impressive, or idiotic in the gambling industry. Pull up a chair, grab a stack of chips and a glass of your beverage of choice, and take a spin with us through this week’s news cycle …

Wheel … of … possibly frivolous lawsuits!

Is a digital spin of a wheel, one whose outcome is determined by an RNG (random number generator), “rigged”? That’s what a recent class-action lawsuit in Nevada purports. And while the suit appears awfully flimsy, it bears watching because if the suit were to succeed, it could rock the casino industry and shake up how both land-based and online slot machines work.

Reno attorney David O’Mara filed the suit on behalf of four slot players who allege that IGT and five casino companies are defrauding players on Wheel of Fortune slots. In the bonus round of the game, the spin of the wheel is virtual. (Duh.) And the lawsuit says it’s deceptive because it resembles an actual physical wheel (like on the game show or in brick-and-mortar roulette) but the outcomes are determined via computer program, not physics and gravity.

The plaintiffs are seeking unspecified damages. The Las Vegas Review-Journal reached out to defendants IGT, MGM, Station, Boyd, Bally’s, and PENN for comment and reported that they each declined.

This is a gigantic if, but if the suit gains traction, it could suggest most of the slots on the casino floor are “rigged,” and every online casino game that doesn’t have a live dealer is also “rigged” (even if not “deceptive” in quite the same way a virtual representation of a wheel may be).

Call this a reach on top of a reach, but a gambling world in which RNGs are not allowed would be a very different looking gambling world.

Not horsing around

Remaining on the topic of lawsuits with potentially serious implications, Churchill Downs and the New York Racing Association (NYRA) sued the Horseracing Integrity and Safety Authority (HISA) and others in a Kentucky court last week for allegedly violating the Constitution and the Administrative Procedure Act.

In short, Churchill Downs and NYRA say the relatively new (founded in 2020) national regulatory body has threatened to bar them “from conducting any horseraces until they pay millions of dollars in illegally imposed fees” to HISA. In response, HISA, according to Sportico, says the plaintiffs “have refused to comply” with federally approved rules.

The suit contends that HISA has denied Churchill Downs and NYRA due process regarding fees HISA says they owe, the regulatory body having reached its own internal verdict and attempting to enforce it.

It remains to be seen how far this will go, but DRF’s Matt Hegarty writes that “it’s likely the two sides will conduct settlement talks that could attempt to bridge the gap.”

Boardwalk or bust

There was no shortage of Atlantic City news this week. Here are three topics that caught our eye:

• Next Wednesday, Dec. 18, tolls at the A.C. Expressway’s Pleasantville Toll Plaza are free from noon to midnight, thanks to FanDuel Casino, which is covering all drivers. No word yet on whether the money saved has a play-through requirement before customers can spend it elsewhere.
• A new boutique hotel will be breaking ground on Tennessee Ave. next year, and it will have a Monopoly theme. It’s called The Top Hat, and passers-by will see two original game pieces prominently displayed: a top hat on the roof, and a racecar sticking out of the front façade. All I know is this place had better have Free Parking. And good shower pressure. (Ya know, because one assumes the Water Works.)
• As The Philadelphia Inquirer noted this week, the number of marijuana dispensaries in A.C. is now greater than the number of casinos — and that gap is only going to widen, as there are dozens more weed shops on the way. It’s actually a pretty smart marketing plan by the city: Get people so high that they may forget they’re in Atlantic City.

House Rules: Insights from around our network

PLAYING DK’S ADVOCATE: Beyond the outrage: a closer look at the DraftKings VIP lawsuit raising sports betting alarm bells [by Jeff Edelstein]

TINY TAX HIKE: Michigan legislators propose tax increases on iGaming and sports betting [by Erik Gibbs]

WHINY TAX HIKE: FanDuel rallies against proposed iGaming and sports betting tax hikes in Michigan [by Erik Gibbs]

WHOLE LOTTO LOVE: The top 5 feel-good lottery stories of 2024 [by Bill Dettloff]

FULL TRANSPARENCY: FanDuel launches ‘My Spend’ tool to help users track gaming budget [by Jeff Edelstein]

COURT IS IN SESSION: BetMGM and addicted gambler dispute their roles in fraud, negligence case appealed to Third Circuit [John Brennan]

YEAH, THAT’S THE TICKET: Mega Millions winner sues over missing jackpot ticket, tries to claim two prizes [by Erik Gibbs]

AMERICA’S NEXT TOP MODEL?: NCLGS iGaming model legislation seeks to mitigate fears over online shift, but some casinos are not satisfied [by Matt Rybaltowski]

COORDINATED ATTACK: US senators want DraftKings and FanDuel investigated for alleged antitrust violations [by Erik Gibbs]

DOWN TO THE WIRE: WagerWire: The Startup Turning Sports Bets Into Tradeable Assets [by Jeff Edelstein]

BLOCKCHAIN REACTION: Monkey Tilt secures more funds, DexWin goes ‘gasless’ [by Christian Holmes]

NAUGHTY OR NICE?: Are lottery tickets good holiday gifts? The ultimate FAQ guide [by Eric Raskin]

NOW HEAR THIS: Senate Judiciary Committee takes aim at sports betting [by Jeff Edelstein]

TO THE MOON: Apollo Global Management joins S&P 500 Index [by Erik Gibbs]

CUSTOMER DISSERVICE: One customer’s maddening story, several lessons for gaming regulators [by Richard Schuetz]

CELEBRITIES — THEY’RE JUST LIKE US!: Tracking personality promos on ESPN Bet: even worse than you imagine [by Aaron Moore]

The Shuffle: Other news and views

START SPREADING THE REVENUES: New York sets $231.6 million online sports betting revenue record in November [iGaming Business]

CAN’T KILL ‘SKILL’: Commonwealth Court lifts city ban on casino-style ‘skill games’ in Philadelphia [The Philadelphia Inquirer]

SPY GAMES: Poker cheaters allegedly use tiny hidden cameras to spot dealt cards [Wired]

ENTERING THEIR PRIME: Prime Sports primed to enter Kentucky after approval [SBC Americas]

MINORITY VIEWPOINT: Cordish lobbies against online casino in LA, but says it will play if legalized [iGaming Business]

THE TAXING ILLINI: How Illinois generated $2 billion in tax revenue from gamblers in the last fiscal year [Daily Herald]

YELLOW FLAG: LVCVA head admits F1 race didn’t match attendance of ’23 event [Las Vegas Review-Journal]

FOR A GOOD CAUSE: NJ awards $720K to combat gambling addiction as sports betting surges [NorthJersey.com]

The Bonus Round

Completing the Spin Cycle with some odds and ends and our favorite social media posts of the week:

• I’m not always a fan of the “both sides” approach to journalism — it leads to a lot of false equivalencies in situations that aren’t so 50/50 — but I’d say Newsweek did the right thing this week, publishing an OpEd by American Gaming Association President Bill Miller that provided a balance to the polarizing piece authored recently on the same site by former presidential candidate Andrew Yang. Miller’s article is titled “Legal Sports Betting Is a Good Thing. Here’s Why,” and, frankly, he overstates the case (or at least understates the opposing case). But hey, that’s how it goes in our point-counterpoint, scream-without-nuance, embrace-debate world.

• A new form of legal online poker has come to Nevada in the form of Rampart Casino’s game Five Card Draw Poker, which … uhh … yeah, that sure seems more like video poker than traditional peer-to-peer poker, but it is multi-player, and we live in a world in which there’s now peer-to-peer poker in the DraftKings Casino app, so … I guess I’d just say enjoy the loophole, Nevadans, if you’re into this sort of thing.

• The headline: “Caesars Virginia pushes back Danville opening date.” The buried lede: Dennis Rodman will be there to place the ceremonial first bet. Here’s hoping he parlays someone’s over on rebounds with their under on points.