CEO of Las Vegas Sands Comes out Against Online Poker

The battle for the legalisation of online poker in the U.S suffered a setback this week when Sheldon Adelson the CEO of Las Vegas Sands voiced his opposition to the move.

Adelson is the world's wealthiest casino executive and his company is the gaming industry's biggest publicly-traded company. He has stated that he doesn't believe that technology has progressed to the point where it will prevent minors from gambling online.

His views put him in the minority of land-based Nevada casinos but his position makes him a highly influential man. However, Ron Reese the Las Vegas Sands spokesman pointed out that this is not the company's official position; the board of directors still need to formally initiate a strategy on the gambling issue.

His opposition to legalisation comes as other casino operators such as MGM Resorts International and Caesars Entertainment Crop. are making deals with gaming companies preparing to enter the online market in the US.
Recently the American Gaming Association (AGA) announced that they support the legalisation of online poker. The AGA's president and CEO, Frank Fehrenkopf, said that he recently spoke with Adelson. Fehrenkopf said that it is Sheldon's right to make the decision but the AGA will "continue to support federal legislation".

The worry over minors gambling online has been debated in recent Congressional hearings. The AGA is convinced that technology has progressed to the point where it can identify underage gamblers and prevent them from accessing poker websites. Fehrenkopf said that they are "totally opposed to young people gambling". He said that a combination of facial and voice recognition technology can be used to help confirm the identity of players.
This is an issue which will not disappear easily and a significant amount of research is likely to be needed before any legislation is passed.