Casinos provide people with an environment to either win or lose large sums of money. While these venues also boast musical shows, lighted fountains, shopping centers and elaborate themes – their most renowned attraction remains their gambling games which generate billions in profits every year. While it can be easy to become entranced by all that glitters with bright lights and exciting atmosphere, gambling should not be seen as a viable source of extra income.
Modern casinos rely heavily on games of chance for revenue generation, including slot machines, blackjack, roulette, craps and baccarat. Each of these casino offerings possesses its own house edge – which represents how much a casino makes on bets placed by patrons – with lower-than-2-percent house edges adding up over millions of bets accepted at any one time.
Since casinos deal with such huge sums of money, their security can become an area of serious concern. One obvious threat is theft or cheating by either patrons or casino employees; to combat this threat most casinos have implemented extensive security measures including physical guards and specialized surveillance departments.
Casino security also involves training employees to recognize suspicious activity in a more subtle fashion. Casino games usually follow set routines, making it easy for security personnel to detect deviations. Their observation is made even easier given that many employees have received extensive training in all the rules and procedures of each game they oversee.
Casino owners also face the threat of mob involvement. In Las Vegas’ early days, organized crime figures provided much of the capital necessary for casinos; their vast funds came from drug dealing, extortion and other illegal rackets. Furthermore, mob members would take an active part in managing casinos – often exerting control over decisions made by management.
Today’s casinos have gone above and beyond to attract customers by providing a range of free services. Casinos strive to pamper their visitors, from complimentary meals and hotel stays, to concert tickets or tickets to exclusive events – in order to keep spending their money at the gaming floor. Comps are part of casinos’ overall marketing strategies to build customer loyalty, with casinos hoping that offering them can help increase market share while upholding their reputation as places where people can have fun and win big. Casinos usually boast flashy decor to lure patrons in while creating an air of mystery that draws them in; such characteristics are most closely associated with casino, which originated in Italy.