Ban deceptive slot machines, says group
Last Updated: Thursday, October 4, 2007 | 1:58 PM ET
CBC News
The head of Ontario's Problem Gambling Research Centre is calling for tougher rules to protect players who use the 23,000 slot machines in the province.
The Alcohol and Gaming Commission is currently drafting new standards to address questions about machines that flash jackpot symbols or distort the true odds of winning.
But Rob Simpson of the gambling research centre says the new standards proposed for Ontario's slot machines allow for cheating and deception and is calling on the commission to toughen the rules to better protect players and potential addicts.
Earlier this year CBC News videotaped slots in action across Ontario and then slowed down the images.
The investigation found that some machines rapidly flashed jackpot symbols at players, symbols barely detectable to the naked eye.
Others showed suspicious clusters of winning symbols, repeatedly showing up on each spin.
"What it really does is give the impression that there is a near miss that's just occurred. You almost won," said Simpson. "And that leads to the person thinking, 'I'm due a win, the machine's ready to win!'"
Simpson said slot machine displays are allowed to grossly distort the true odds, which preys on those with gambling problems.
"Under the current standards the winning symbols are allowed to be substantially larger than the blank losing symbols. So you are constantly flashing winning symbols far more frequently than you are actually going to win," he said.
Simpson said the proposed new rules do not ban flashing jackpots.
"We would rather the standards say, 'There will be no subliminal messages,' and we add and expand that and say, 'Or potentially subliminal messages.' Anything that could reasonably be interpreted as trying to influence perceptions should not be allowed."
Roger Horbay, a slot analyst with the group Gambling Watch, said the new standards will legitimize video slot machines that ought to be illegal.
"These are cheating techniques that wouldn't be allowed in any other gambling game. If you had weighted or loaded dice, or a stacked deck of cards it wouldn't be allowed."
The Ontario Lottery Corporation says Ontario's slots are no different from ones across North America.
The AGCO says it plans to review Simpson's complaints and will accept other groups' input until the end of this week.
It hopes to finalize new standards by the end of the year.
