Social Casinos: Stay Far, Far Away
This report about online casinos is incredible.
The PBS Newshour reports that these gambling websites – for poker, roulette and slots – are able to target people who are the most vulnerable to gambling addiction. The video features a site that assigns VIP status to encourage vulnerable customers to keep playing.
That’s not the only problem. Customers pay real money to buy chips to gamble or cover their losses on the gambling site. But when the customer wins, the website “do[es]n’t pay real money. They only…give you virtual chips to continue to play on their apps,” said a Dallas woman who said she lost $400,000 while gambling online.
Only 1 percent of Americans are gambling addicts, so the problem, while very serious for them, is not widespread. However, in the video, Keith S. Whyte of the National Council on Problem Gambling said that online social casinos are far more addictive than brick-and-mortar casinos.
Whyte said these social casinos are not regulated. The social casino profiled in the video said that it strives “to comply with all applicable standards, rules and requirements.”
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Hi Kim, I agree that it is only 1 percent of Americans are gambling addicts.
Although, a small percentage, the issue is that research has shown that gambling problems increase the chances of domestics violence and child abuse as reported by the National Council on Problem Gambling.
Other reports have also pointed out the relationship between gambling problems and other mental disorders, such as alcohol and drug use disorder.
So to me, the issue is bigger as it is tied to so many other problems.
Do you think that some of these gambling apps should be regulated?
Gambling is as close as playing a video game that requires you to upgrade with real money in order for you to beat the next challenge.
They don’t reward you with real money, instead, they just give you tokens and maybe unlocks more harder parts that require more real money.