A casino, also known as a gambling house or gaming den, is an establishment that allows patrons to gamble. Successful casinos bring in billions of dollars each year for the corporations, investors, and Native American tribes that own and operate them. They can be massive resorts or small card rooms. In addition to gaming machines, many casinos feature live entertainment such as music and stand-up comedy.
A key element of casino marketing is to create an environment that attracts gamblers and keeps them there. This is accomplished by using a variety of tricks to appeal to the senses, including noise and bright lights. The sound of coins dropping in slot machines is electronically tuned to a musical scale so that it is pleasing to the ear, and more than 15,000 miles (24,100 km) of neon tubing light the casino floors on the Las Vegas Strip. Casinos are designed to be appealing to the eyes as well: their walls and floors are covered in vivid colors, and they use a variety of shapes and textures to draw attention.
Gamblers are lured into casinos by free food and drinks, a variety of games, and the promise of easy money. In order to maximize profits, casinos must know the house edge and variance for each game. This information enables them to calculate expected returns and to discover any statistical deviations from normal results. This is done by a group of mathematicians and computer programmers called gaming analysts. In the 1990s, casinos greatly expanded their use of technology. Video cameras monitor tables to ensure the integrity of wagers, betting chips have built-in microcircuitry that interacts with electronic systems in the table, and roulette wheels are electronically monitored to detect any anomalies.
While a small percentage of casino visitors are addicted to gambling, the bulk of revenues come from people who play for fun and don’t lose too much. This crowd is generally middle-aged and older, and most of them come from households with above-average incomes. They spend more than twice as much per visit on average as do the heaviest gamblers.
Despite the revenue generated by these customers, critics argue that casinos hurt local economies because they drive gamblers away from other forms of entertainment and divert tax revenue from local businesses. They also erode property values in surrounding neighborhoods. In addition, the expense of treating compulsive gamblers eats into the profits of many casinos. Some states have begun to address these concerns by limiting the number of gaming facilities and restricting their locations. Others have regulated the operations of existing casinos or banned them altogether. Still, others have permitted them to open within state borders but require that they be located far from residential areas. In these cases, the casinos are usually built in large, heavily guarded warehouse-type buildings. Increasingly, however, casinos are being constructed in smaller, more intimate settings. Many are being combined with hotels and other tourist attractions. They can also be found on cruise ships and in some states at racetracks, where they are known as racinos.