University of Macau / Faculty of Law

Casino gambling in South Africa was in the past not perceived as a mainstream economic activity but rather a reluctant concession. Consequently, it remained an "exiled industry" geographically isolated and strictly regulated. The rationale for this conceptualisation has varied - from religious objections concerning the immorality and irrationality of gambling, to public concern over the establishment of organised and street crime around casinos themselves. Despite the persistence of these arguments, there has over the past decade been a vast and rapid expansion of the industry throughout both South Africa and the world. It is difficult to precisely pinpoint the rationale for this paradigm shift. Popular explanations emphasise a liberalisation of public values concerning gambling, or changes in modes of governance from paternalistic prohibition to regulatory liberalisation. Many scholarly writings on casino gambling on the other hand, point to a far more sinister political agenda (Hunter and Bleinberger 1995; Rose 1998) that manipulates public perceptions of morality to serve more utilitarian needs. The political expediency of a restricted activity like gambling cannot be discounted. It remains an effective means of attracting capital investment in depressed areas without governments having to offer any quid pro quo. As a regulated industry, a premium is set on immorality, which translates into significant revenue. Gambling in South Africa has so far generated Rl 1,7 billion in investment, and in the 2002/03 financial year generated R526,4 million in tax revenue1. It has also created about 50 000 direct and indirect jobs.2 Without a doubt, in a fledgling democracy, trying to balance growth with redress and redistribution, the macro economic advantages from the gambling industry are immediately apparent but macro economic gains should not be at the expense of the country's poorest or at the expense of the moral, physical and spiritual well-being of society. This study is an attempt to probe the intersections of these sometimes conflicting imperatives on the South African society by looking specifically at the Pietermaritzburg community. / Thesis (MBA)-University of Natal, Durban, 2003.

This diploma thesis analyses the historical development of gambling legislation in the Czech Republic, from the first mention of the regulation in the Middle Ages to present days, while the primary (but not exclusive) subject of my research are the basic sources of gambling regulation in the field of administrative law. In my thesis, I identify and examine the main reasons for implementation of new institutes and other changes into the gaming law. In this context, I assess the degree of restrictiveness or liberality of each regulation while focusing on whether there were any long-term tendencies to make the legislation more or less strict. All of this is done through the interpretation of legal norms with the help of legal methodology - methods of subjectively historical, teleological and logical interpretation are used in the thesis. These forms of legal methodology were chosen with regard to the resources used in the thesis, which include mainly legislation and its explanatory statements. The whole thesis is divided into three chronologically subsequent chapters representing the main periods of the gambling legislation development. The first chapter deals with the evolution of gaming law from its beginnings in the 13th century until 1989; its subchapters then divide this long period into several...

Gambling is a complicated topic not only because of its addictive features but it requires knowledge of medical, social and economic field. The current public discussion about new gambling law is moreover disturbed by false arguments and manipulations coming from activists. In the first part of this thesis I focused on paper (PCP, 2014): Socio-economic costs of gambling in Czech Republic, which is considered to be a cornerstone of new gambling law. I reviewed its way of data transfering and its presumptions and found out that the original amount of the costs were overvalued by 120 %. I also analysed the impacts of proposed measures, which have been prepared by the Treasury, the main regulator of gambling market. Measures are presented as harm reducing, but they will subvert the industry instead. In the third section I consider the threats and costs of electronic gaming machines prohibition, which had been introduced in some municipalities. The data analysis as well as field research did not validate the positive effects of EGM ban presented by anti-gambling activists. In final chapter I'm following less common approach to gambling not as a threat but as an opportunity and trying to evaluate the potential of gamblers from Germany and Austria, who are the frequent visitors of casinos at the czech side of the borders.

L’histoire normative française comme l’histoire normative sarde, démontre une certaine ambivalence vis-à-vis des jeux de hasard, exprimée dans les textes répressifs (le décret du 24 juin 1806 et les articles 410 et 475 du Code pénal de 1810). Le cadre répressif dominant, au travers des lois du 21 mai et du 18 juillet 1836, révèle de nouveau cette ambivalence. En effet, l’article 4 du décret de 1806 et l’article 5 de la loi du 21 mai 1836, traduisent déjà une tolérance de l’administration supérieure vis-à-vis de la progression des jeux. Aussi, les autorités préfectorales confirment une tolérance progressive vis-à-vis des jeux de hasard. Localement, des casinos sont autorisés, après l’annexion à la France en 1860, ils suscitent des controverses de la presse et d’une partie de l’opinion publique. Néanmoins, face à la concurrence d’un État limitrophe (la principauté de Monaco), les pouvoirs publics des Alpes-Maritimes encouragent une politique d’exploitation des jeux, car favorable au développement urbain, généré par la villégiature, puis le tourisme. Un droit empirique des jeux de hasard se développe alors dans la zone de villégiature du département. La réforme nationale normative du 15 juin 1907, en légalisant alors les casinos-cercles dans les stations balnéaires, thermales et climatiques, est particulièrement favorable aux Alpes-Maritimes. Dorénavant, les intérêts économiques prévalent sur des considérations morales. La sphère des jeux devient un élément convoité. L’attraction financière, notamment vis-à-vis du prélèvement communal sur le produit des jeux, laisse entrevoir un droit utilitariste conforté par la réforme de la loi de finances en 1953. / The French normative history, just like the Sardian normative history shows a certain ambivalence when it comes to gambling games, as it’s expressed in repressive texts (the June 24th 1804 bill and the 410 and 475 articles from the 1810 criminal Code). The dominant repressive framework, through the laws of May 21st and July 18th 1836, reveals again that ambivalence. Indeed, the article 4 from the 1806’s bill and the 5 from the May 21st 1836’law, already translate a progressive tolerance of the games progression from the superior administration. Also, the prefectural authorities confirm a progressive tolerance about gambling games. Locally, some casinos are allowed, after the annexion to France in 1860, they bring up some controversial reactions from the press and the public opinion. However, because of the concurrence coming from a neighboring state (the principality of Monaco), the public authorities of the Alpes-Maritimes, encourage the game exploitation, because of their favorable impact on the urban development, generated by resorts then tourism. An empirical right to gambling games is then developing in the resort area of the department. The national reform of June, which legalized the casinos in the seaside, health and thermal stations is especially beneficial to the Alpes-Maritimes. From now on, the economic interests prevail on moral considerations. The gambling sphere becomes a much coveted domain. The financial attraction, especially from the communal tax on gambling games, shows a glimpse of the utilitarian law later confronted by the financial reform in 1953.

University of Macau / Faculty of Law

published_or_final_version / abstract / Sociology / Master / Master of Philosophy

Despite the implementation of legal prohibitions and regulatory policies to limit the commercial availability of lottery products to minors, published research continues to document a high prevalence of participation in and ease of access to lottery playing amongst adolescents. This study systematically investigated the influence of individual-level factors in vendor compliance with youth access statutes and policies for lottery and alcohol products. Six underage youths each attempted to purchase a lottery ticket, a beer, or both products together in the same 313 convenience stores, for a total of 1,219 purchase attempts. The results revealed that only a moderate proportion of vendors surveyed in this study were compliant with existing statutes and policies, and that gender and vendor age variables playa significant role in youth purchasing of lottery tickets and alcohol. These findings were interpreted in terms of their implications for strengthening regulatory policies and future research.

2019 reviderades Sveriges spellag, vilket betydde att nya spelbolag kunde söka licens för att verka på den svenska spelmarknaden. Revideringen tillkom i hopp om att de spelbolag som tidigare riktat sig mot svenska konsumenter istället skulle söka licens för att verka på den svenska spelmarknaden. I maj 2020 finns 71 licensierade spelbolag på den svenska spelmarknaden. Studiens syfte är att undersöka hur spelbolag på den svenska spelmarknaden arbetar med spelansvar samtidigt som de har ett stort vinstintresse, samt se om det sker en löskoppling av spelansvar till följd av detta.    Studiens forskare har genom dold deltagande observation undersökt 30 av 71 licensierade spelbolag i deras arbete med spelansvar. Därtill har tre semistrukturerade intervjuer genomförts med anställda på spelbolagen Svenska Spel, ATG och Unibet med syfte att få bättre förståelse för dess spelansvarsarbete. Studiens forskare har även intervjuat Anders P Håkansson i egenskap av extern part med övergripande förståelse för spelbranschen.    Studiens empiriska data från nämnda metoder analyseras med hjälp av teorier inom Corporate Social Responsibility och etik. Studien bidrar med en generaliserbar bild av den svenska spelmarknaden efter revideringen av spellagen 2019. Empirin påvisar att det förekommer löskoppling av spelansvaret på den svenska spelmarknaden. Den empiriska datan vittnar också om skillnader mellan hur utlandsbaserade och svenskbaserade spelbolag arbetar med sitt spelansvar. / In 2019, the swedish government revised the gambling law, which led to new gambling companies to enter the swedish market and to apply for a swedish gambling license. The revision was the effect of many years of foreign gambling companies operating illegally. In may 2020 there was 71 licensed gambling companies on the swedish market. The purpose of this study is to investigate how gambling companies operate with responsible gambling while they want to be as profitable as possible, and to see if they use decoupling as a consequence of that.   The researchers of the study have through hidden participation observation investigated 30 of 71 licensed gambling companies and how they work with responsible gambling. In addition. three semi-structured interviews has been conducted with employees of the gambling companies Svenska Spel, ATG and Unibet with the purpose to get a better perception how they work with responsible gambling. Furthermore has the researchers of this study interviewed a scientist in responsible gambling as an external part with an overall perception of the gambling industry.   The study's empirical data from the methods mentioned above has been analyzed using theories in Corporate Social Responsibility and Ethics theories. The study contributes with a generalizable picture of the swedish gambling market following the revision of the gambling law in 2019. The result demonstrates that there is decoupling of responsible gambling on the swedish gambling market. Additionally the result indicates differences in how foreign-based and swedish-based gambling companies handles responsible gambling.

No description available.