But Taiwan's Ministry of Transportation and Communications, which sets gambling rules that supersede those of local governments such as Matsu's, says it is not ready to issue casino permits until at least the end of the year. Casino Business Online gambling differs from in-person casino gambling in a few obvious ways. There is little to no interaction between the players and the dealer. In fact, there is no dealer -- all the games are operated by computer programs. People who have experienced both kinds of gaming say online games like poker or blackjack usually go faster than their real-life counterparts because there's no conversation between players to slow things down.
Online casinos can offer dozens of different games. One site has slot machine games based on licensed comic book characters, while others have computerized versions of more traditional casino games. Most games are dressed up with fancy graphics and sound effects, much like real slot machines. Players can check the rules of each game and view a chart that shows payouts with the click of a button.
A brief survey of one top casino site shows more than 60 games, including blackjack, baccarat, craps, various versions of roulette, at least two dozen slot games, keno, and several video poker games. The specific rules of the games reflect their real-life counterparts. In video poker or blackjack, players make decisions about the cards that can affect the outcome of the game.
There are also sites that offer online sports betting, which is another form of gambling. These sites allow users to place bets on athletic competitions of every kind, as well as other events like political races or the outcomes of reality TV shows. The sites offer their own odds, which in some cases are better than the odds offered by the traditional Las Vegas bookmakers (due, in part, to the lower overhead required to run an online betting site). Many online casinos offer "instant play" versions of their games, which usually run within a Web browser using Java. Players can also download the casino's software and play the games in a separate application. Some sites only offer a download-to-play option. Players can try out the games for free using a play account filled with a few thousand dollars. Of course, these games don't pay out any real money.
There is a difference in the odds between the "play for fun" version and the real money versions of online games. Although it can't be confirmed, trying out the "play for fun" versions at several online casinos often results in hefty imaginary bank accounts. If the real money games also paid off that big, the casinos would quickly go bankrupt. Success in the "play for fun" games doesn't equal sucess when real money is on the line.
A casino is simply a public place where a variety of games of chance can be played, and where gambling is the primary activity engaged in by patrons. The typical casino adds a host of luxuries to help attract players, including restaurants, free drinks, stage shows and dramatic scenery, but there have certainly been less lavish places that house gambling activities. These would still technically be called casinos.
The ministry's Tourism Bureau is working out rules on how to accept and review bids for casinos, with a final version due out by late 2012, a ministry official said. The ministry is also working with more than 20 other government agencies on the Gaming Law, which outlines who can operate what types of casinos on any jurisdiction under Taiwanese control. That law must proceed to parliament, where opposition lawmakers have loudly protested other casino-related measures. There is no timeline for submitting the bill to lawmakers ,and no estimate on when it would be passed.
"The voters in Matsu just said it's OK to set up casinos, but they didn't say when," said the ministry official, who declined to give a full name. "We need to use a fair and transparent method to let operators make bids. We want those from in Taiwan and overseas to understand the process first."
The first online gambling Web site opened 10 years ago, paving the way for the hundreds that exist now on the Internet. A review by the Australian government in 2001 estimated the number of online gamblers worldwide at just fewer than five million, with more than $11 billion spent in online casinos[ref].
But does online gambling differ from casino gambling, and what's the appeal of playing at home by yourself instead of in a casino? In this article, we'll see what it's like to gamble online, find out how you pay to play, and discuss the legality of gambling via the Internet. Some people oppose sports betting because it can have an effect on the games themselves. The number of scandals related to gambling in the 20th century alone numbers in the dozens.
Before point spreads, it was risky for a gambler to attempt to manipulate a game. He had to find a player who was willing to lose the game in return for a bribe. But although it was risky, manipulation happened often. In the early 1900s, gambling was a well-known, if not well-liked, part of professional baseball. Gamblers gathered in one section of the stands, placing bets on everything from the winner of the game to the outcome of the next pitch.
This control came to the public's attention in 1919, when the Chicago White Sox lost the World Series to the inferior Cincinnati Reds. By the start of the next season, it was revealed that eight White Sox players had been bribed up to $10,000 each to make sure that their team lost the series. These eight players became known as the "eight men out." Although they were eventually acquitted of criminal charges, none of them ever played professional baseball again.
Point spreads lead to a more subtle kind of manipulation -- point shaving. College basketball is particularly susceptible to this practice. If a team is favored by eight points, gamblers don't have to bribe players to lose the entire game. They just have to convince them to win it by less than eight points.
Football has been the target of point shaving efforts as well. It has long been rumored that the final outcome of the 1958 NFL championship game was affected by substantial bets (as much as $1 million) that the owner of the Baltimore Colts had placed on his team. The Colts were favored by three or four points. In overtime, the team was in a position for an easy field goal, which would have won them the game by three points. Instead, they kept trying for a touchdown, which they eventually made, winning the championship and covering the spread [ref]. No real evidence was ever found that the owner actually influenced the plays called on the field.
One of the most famous betting scandals of recent decades involved former all-star baseball player and successful manager Pete Rose, who compiled a 412-373 won/loss record managing the Cincinnati Reds. In 1989, investigations revealed that he had made dozens of bets for up to $10,000 on baseball games, including betting on his own team. He was subsequently banned from baseball for life.