Gaming device OK’d by Senate

Friday, May 27, 2005 | 10:49 a.m.

CARSON CITY -- An electronic handheld device that would allow a gambler to play the slots, poker, 21 or roulette as he wanders through a Nevada casino is a step closer to reality.

The Senate on Thursday approved and sent to Gov. Kenny Guinn Assembly Bill 471 that would permit the state Gaming Commission to adopt regulations to control the tiny units and to license companies that make them.

But the remote betting devices won't be appearing immediately in Nevada casinos. It will take months for the commission to adopt needed regulations, and then there would be background investigations of those manufacturing the units.

A device has been developed by a New York Company that operates a bookmaking business in England that takes bets on everything from stocks to soccer games.

"What the bill is designed to do is to utilize state-of-the-art technology to permit customers to play during what might otherwise be downtime, obviously with the goal of increasing casino revenues," said Joe Asher, managing director of Cantor Fitzgerald in testimony earlier to the Senate Finance Committee.

Dennis Neilander, chairman of the Nevada Gaming Commission, said Wednesday these devices are used in the United Kingdom and people bet on everything from the outcome of the Oscars to whether it will rain tomorrow.

The bettors in the UK, said Neilander are called "punters" and they carry the devices around with them and take them home.

He said that despite approval by the Legislature and a likely signature from the governor, it still will be some time before the remote gaming devices are allowed in Nevada casinos. He said the control board was "neutral" on the issue, but the commission would have to adopt regulations where the "gizmos" could be used and rules to stop any abuses.

Cantor Fitzgerald has 2,000 employees and offices around the world, is a financial services firm and is involved in cutting-edge technology.

Neilander said other companies are also interested in distributing the devices.

The bill allows a casino with 100 slot machines and a table game to employ the devices. A customer would deposit money and then obtain the mobile gaming apparatus.

No longer would the player have to sit before a slot machine or at other games. The customer would be able to use the device only in public areas of the casino -- not in hotel rooms or off the premises.

Asher said that when a customer tried to play a game in a prohibited area, the unit would shut down. And it can be programmed with a fingerprint reader so that someone else, including a minor, could not use it, if lost or stolen.

When finished, the player would return the device to the casino to collect his winnings, if any or to recover what was left of his deposit, if any.

It could also be programmed to cut off a bettor after a certain amount is lost.

Bob Faiss, Las Vegas attorney for Cantor Fitzgerald, said mobile gambling does not include betting on the Internet. He said these units "must be secure and reliable and provide reasonable assurance they are used only by adults."

For tax purposes, they would be treated like a slot machine. There would be a levy of $330 per year plus a percentage on the gross revenue license fee.

Neilander said "different people" came to the gaming commission to inquire about allowing the remote betting units in Nevada casinos, but the commission determined the existing law does not permit them.

The gaming board, Neilander said worked with Cantor in writing the bill to make sure the state would have adequate controls over what could be a new fad in Nevada.

There was no debate in the Senate and the bill passed 20-1. Sen. Maggie Carlton, D-Las Vegas, cast the lone dissenting vote. It had earlier been approved by the Assembly by a 41-0 vote.