The government-lottery industry depends on the effectiveness of regulatory frameworks to protect its business model. Market driven changes and well-funded private interests (off-shore online gaming operators, Facebook and Google, Sheldon Adelson, etc.) are making it increasingly difficult for governments and their regulators to control the industry. “Non-money” online games (paradoxically, some that are making more money than real money games) are integrating prizes into their game structures in ways that defy the traditional definitions of “gambling.” Games are being invented that have an element of skill, or some twist on prize structure or the precise nature of the “wager,” or otherwise finding ways to avoid being classified as “gambling.” What about Fantasy Sports—why is it not classified as gambling? Bitcoin and cyber-currencies threaten to unleash underground economies that evade regulatory constraints and the obligation to pay taxes. Online betting websites that replicate the lottery-playing experience and others that appear to be selling the most popular lottery games like Powerball, Mega Millions, Euromillions but are illegal and fraudulent … What are the front-lines in the battle to preserve the integrity of the gaming and gambling industry? What can we do to prevent the breakdown of regulatory discipline and effectiveness?

Moderator: James Maida, Co-Founder & President, Gaming Laboratories International (GLI)

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Mark Hichar, Partner, Hinkley, Allen Snyder Law Firm, Chair of Gaming Law Practice Group