Yes there may be a way to stay open. North Carolina Internet Sweepstakes and Pot of Gold 8 Liner Parlor owners might have discovered a loophole in the law that allows them to stay open. It was first reported in the Hickory Record that the "look Ahead" or "Reveal" feature on some games might make them Legal to operate in North Carolina. The Skill Eldorado 8 liner game board (sold by Slotsdirect.com) actually allows the player to reveal the results BEFORE he places his bet. This gimmick makes the games non-gambling games since the player knows the outcome before he places his wager. Any Cherry Master or 8 Liner game can be retro-fitted with the new Skill Eldorado board. Bruce Mitchell, owner of Slotsdirect.com is quoted as saying he expects a big demand in North Carolina for the new Skill Eldorado boards.
The Attorney General has not commented on the new games yet and the legal status has not yet been tested. This might be a way to stay open and stay legal. What happens next remains to be seen. Stay tuned.
Saturday, January 12, 2013
Wednesday, October 24, 2012
FREE E-Book "How to Start and Operate a Quarter Pusher Route Business
If you have ever thought about starting or operating a Quarter Pusher route then this manual will help show you the way. It tells you everything you need to know and best of all it is FREE for a limited time only. To get your free copy download manual
Sunday, October 7, 2012
Replace your Pot of Gold CRT with a LCD Flat Panel
Do you have a Cherry Master, 8 Liner or Pot of Gold game cabinet that needs to be converted from CRT to LCD display ?
If your CRT Picture tube type monitor goes bad in an older game cabinet and needs to be replaced, you will need to convert it to a new LCD Flat Panel monitor. This is because they no longer manufacture the CRT monitors. You can only buy LCD monitors. But don't worry because it is fairly easy to convert your cabinet to accept the new LCD monitor. We sell you all the parts needed to make the conversion at Slotsdirect.com and we have the full LCD monitor conversion instructions available. So don't throw that old cabinet away. Convert your cabinet CRT to LCD flat panel, it is easier than you think.
Friday, August 24, 2012
New Cherry Master 8 Liner Anti-Cheat Zap Preventer Announced by Slotsdirect.com
We are pleased to announce the availability of this new device that will prevent Zapping of almost any device in the coin-op world including 8 liners, and cherry masters, bill acceptors, ATM's , vending machines and arcade machines.- Stops EMP zapping of bill acceptors
- Easily installed on most major bill acceptor brands
- Links to multiple Anti-Zappers to secure all your machines
Zapping game machines with electromagnetic pulse (EMP) devices to induce credits is one of the most common methods of cheating in the amusement industry and there are few effective solutions to prevent it from happening - until now.
Our Anti-Zapper Device puts a stop to zapping in your game room. Able to be installed on nearly any game machine, the Anti-Zapper Device sounds an alarm, shuts off your LCD, and restarts the bill acceptor when players attempt to zap credits.
- Sounds an Alarm with Flashing Lights, Shuts Off LCD, and Restarts Bill Acceptors when players attempt to zap credits.
- Stops Cheaters in the act!
- Works on nearly any gaming application — Cherry Master, Pot-O-Gold, WMS and countless other gaming applications.
- Sensitivity Dial for customized electromagnetic sensitivity settings.
- Links with multiple Anti-Zapper Devices - when one alarm triggers, all linked devices will trigger.
- Quick, easy installation.
- Click Here for more information
Wednesday, February 29, 2012
Legal Struggles in 9 States regarding Video Gaming Machines
Here is the Latest update in 9 different states that have legal battles over Video Gaming machines
Illinois
The town of Gurnee, near Chicago, became the latest jurisdiction to opt out of the state's forthcoming operator-run video lottery market. The five-person board of trustees voted unanimously on Feb. 20 to ban VLTs from bars and other locations. Local press outlets said 77 communities and four counties statewide had already opted out, taking advantage of a clause in the 2009 Video Gaming Act, which established regulations for the VLT sector. Chicago, the state's largest potential VLT market, has still not decided the issue.
Ohio
The Ohio House voted 69-24 to pass HB 386, a bill that would permit casino gambling and video lottery terminals -- but not for amusement operators. VLTs would be confined to a few racetracks. The Ohio Coin Machine Association has been lobbying hard since late 2011 to convince legislators to include amusement operators in any gambling expansion bill, but so far without success.
South Carolina
A Senate Judiciary subcommittee on Feb. 22 passed a measure that would explicitly outlaw sweepstakes videogames, which are popping up statewide. The full Judiciary Committee now has an opportunity to consider the bill. Gov. Nikki Haley opposes sweepstakes videogames and other forms of legalized gambling in the Palmetto State. As reported by Vending Times, South Carolina has recently seen legal warfare erupt statewide over the status of sweeps games.
North Carolina. The state Court of Appeals on Feb. 22 upheld, by a vote of two to one, the right of local jurisdictions to impose special taxes on sweepstakes videogames. Local operators in Lumberton had sued the city after it imposed a $5,000 operating fee per location and a $2,500 per-terminal licensing cost.
Georgia
The Legislature is facing a proposal for limited VLT legalization, but only the state lottery would be allowed to operate them. State Rep. Ron Stephens (R-Savannah) has offered a measure to allow the state lottery to operate VLTs in areas with high tourist traffic. Stephens cited a state lottery study that estimated the move could raise $1 billion to support Georgia's underfunded HOPE scholarship program.
Tennessee
Waynesville city leaders said they plan to join jurisdictions such as Maggie Valley, Canton and Franklin that charge up to $32,000 per location annually for Internet sweepstakes café licenses. Video gambling was banned statewide in 2007 and sweepstakes games were banned in 2010, but operators have challenged the latter with multiple lawsuits.
Pennsylvania
Rep. Curt Schroder (R-Chester County) has introduced HB 1893 to ban sweepstakes videogames in the House Committee on Gambling, which he chairs. Schroder told local press outlets that only 13 sweeps cafés are currently operating in the Keystone State but could proliferate if lawmakers fail to act. As earlier reported by VT, in 2009 Schroder asked the FBI, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder and assorted Pennsylvania law enforcement and tax agencies to investigate the amusement industry. Two years later, the result was a massive bust of organized crime figures who were charged for operating a number of the state's estimated 17,000 illegal video pokers.
Alabama
State prosecutors rested their case in the second trial against electronic bingo operators and associates in late February. Meanwhile in the city of Oxford, a sweepstakes videogame parlor was preparing to open in early March, even while city officials said they planned to shut it down.
South Dakota
Senate Bill 167, which would raise the state's VLT bet limit from $2 to $5, lost a vote in the state Senate on Feb. 6. On Feb. 22, the $5 limit proposal lost a second vote in the House. Unfortunately for VLT supporters, when the House version of the $5 bet limit went down, it took with it a bill -- already passed by the Senate -- that would allow operators to expand the number of VLTs from 10 machines per location to 14.
If you are interested in more information visit Slotsdirect.com
Thursday, February 16, 2012
South Carolina Still Unclear about legality of Internet Sweepstakes Games
COLUMBIA, SC -- Sweepstakes videogames in bars, restaurants, Internet cafés and even operators' trucks are being targeted for seizure by local sheriffs in South Carolina. Some local judges, who view electronic sweepstakes games to be illegal, are ordering them to be destroyed. But other judges assert they are legal under a state law that permits promotional sweepstakes games.
Surveying the confusion, one prominent state lawmaker predicts that the state Legislature will eventually fight a battle over the legal status of the profitable and highly controversial games. Other observers said the issue could wind up in the hands of the South Carolina Supreme Court.
No wonder the chief of the State Law Enforcement Division, based here, said he is holding off on a previously announced plan to raid video sweepstakes cafés statewide. Two months after taking the job last July, SLED Chief Mark Keel originally vowed that his department would forcefully crack down on sweeps games. Now Keel admits that further investigation, including a legal seminar that touched on the subject, has made him back off.
Simply stated, Keel is uncertain if sweeps videogames are legal after all, as maintained by industry members, according to a story in the State newspaper.
Ironically, Keel's SLED predecessor Reggie Lloyd is now a lobbyist for sweepstakes game companies. Lloyd argues that the devices are legal under state laws that permit promotional games.
In Kershaw County, Sheriff Jim Matthews calls the sweepstakes defense a "scam." County cops seized 10 games at c-stores and even from operators' trucks between Jan. 26 and Feb. 9, said a South Carolina TV news organization.
Police in other jurisdictions have been seizing up to 24 sweeps games at a time from a single Internet café. Raids in Bluffton and Hardeeville confiscated machines made by Texas-based Hest Technologies.
District judges continue to issue conflicting rulings on the legality of the machines. Three magistrates -- from Kershaw County, Georgetown and Greenville County --ruled sweeps games are legal. A judge in Horry County more recently ruled they are illegal. According to local press outlets, the question may eventually land on the docket of the state Supreme Court.
The cities of Greenville, Sumter, Beaufort, Bluffton, Port Royal, Hardeeville and Charleston have also seen actions by police, courts and local governments that either seized, approved or banned the devices over the past several months. In late January, the Charleston City Council imposed a six-month moratorium on new licenses for sweeps cafés.
The growing controversy over sweeps games is increasingly on the radar of state lawmakers. In January, state Rep. Phyllis Henderson (R-Greenville) sponsored a bill to outlaw "casino-type" games, a measure that she said should include sweepstakes videogames. In February, state Rep. Leon Stavrinakis (D-Charleston) predicted the state Legislature would erupt into a battle over the legality of the devices.
One locally produced sweeps game, which is part of a phone-minutes vending machine called Magic Minutes, is manufactured and operated by a former investigator for a South Carolina district attorney and his wife, a former police officer. These previous law enforcement officials said they agreed with sweeps operators and with any number of district judges across the state that sweeps games are legal promotions.
Hest Technologies has advanced another legal argument in favor of its devices, asserting that the machines are collection points for charitable contributions to benefit autistic children, not gambling devices. Some judges have apparently found in favor of Hest under this doctrine.
South Carolina banned video pokers in 2000, eliminating an industry that was variously estimated to generate between $2 billion and $3 billion in annual revenues. Legal poker machines had become a major cause of political controversy in a gubernatorial election campaign.
Tuesday, February 14, 2012
New Internet Sweepstakes now offered by Slotsdirect
We provide a terminal that has the complete solution all in one convenient box, we have the software and hardware to get you up and running with little or no technical knowledge required. You just plug it in and your internet sweepstakes is up and running. We can work with a store owner directly or with a distributor or operator. Let us show you the way to setting up your own profitable internet sweepstakes business. We provide all the Sweepstakes software. All you provide is the internet connection via either LAN cable or WIFI. You pay a fee for using our sweepstakes software. You own your equipment. Your only costs are the original purchase of the equipment and the fee for using our software. There is no splitting of revenue with a third party. You keep all the winnings from your machines. The software fees will cost less than 12% of your total winnings.Call us today. You will be glad you did. Check it out here
Sunday, December 18, 2011
North Carolina and Fayetteville Serious about Taxes on Sweepstakes Parlors !
Fayetteville seizes property from sweepstakes firms that owe privilege license fees
Published: 06:47 AM, Wed Dec 14, 2011 The Fayetteville Observer
The city of Fayetteville has taken the unusual step of seizing furniture, computers and other property from two Internet sweepstakes businesses that the city said each owed more than $200,000 in privilege license fees. At the request of The Fayetteville Observer, city spokeswoman Jennifer Lowe on Tuesday identified the two businesses as SWAT Gaming Group at 664 Country Club Drive and 777 Sweepstakes at 6257 Raeford Road. Lowe said SWAT Gaming owed more than $238,000 in delinquent license fees, and 777 Sweepstakes owed more than $200,000.
City officials said police officers accompanied city employees with a moving truck when they took the property from inside the businesses, sometime within the past month. Lowe said the seized property will be sold. The city plans to target other businesses with the highest amounts of delinquent privilege license fees. The fees are an annual tax charged to many entities that do business in the city limits.
Efforts to reach someone at the sweepstakes businesses were unsuccessful. Last year, the city began charging fees of $2,000 per sweepstakes cafe and $2,500 for each computer terminal. The fees add up for owners with multiple terminals. Other cities also have levied hefty licensure fees against the gaming businesses, which have sprung up in old storefronts and strip centers.
At the gambling businesses, customers can buy Internet or phone time to play variations of card and number games on computer terminals. Their purchased time gives them chances to win cash prizes.
Fayetteville City Attorney Karen McDonald said state law gives cities broad authority to enforce the collection of license fees. One way is seizing property, she said. "The city is aggressively pursuing the collection of privilege license fees," McDonald said. McDonald said seizing property from a delinquent business owner doesn't require a warrant or court action. The city is taking the action only after other attempts to collect the money have failed, including warning letters, she said. The action is not unprecedented. The city seized property for similar reasons in the early 2000s, McDonald said.
Other remedies cities can use to collect privilege license fees from business owners, she said, are through attachments of bank accounts, garnishments of state tax refunds and lottery winnings. In city warning letters, delinquent business owners are told that "failure to pay a privilege license could result in the issuance of a criminal citation." McDonald described the seizures under police escorts as a "levy" and "a last resort" to collect a tax that was six months past due. She said it would be incorrect to describe the actions as raids.
Published: 06:47 AM, Wed Dec 14, 2011 The Fayetteville Observer
The city of Fayetteville has taken the unusual step of seizing furniture, computers and other property from two Internet sweepstakes businesses that the city said each owed more than $200,000 in privilege license fees. At the request of The Fayetteville Observer, city spokeswoman Jennifer Lowe on Tuesday identified the two businesses as SWAT Gaming Group at 664 Country Club Drive and 777 Sweepstakes at 6257 Raeford Road. Lowe said SWAT Gaming owed more than $238,000 in delinquent license fees, and 777 Sweepstakes owed more than $200,000.
City officials said police officers accompanied city employees with a moving truck when they took the property from inside the businesses, sometime within the past month. Lowe said the seized property will be sold. The city plans to target other businesses with the highest amounts of delinquent privilege license fees. The fees are an annual tax charged to many entities that do business in the city limits.
Efforts to reach someone at the sweepstakes businesses were unsuccessful. Last year, the city began charging fees of $2,000 per sweepstakes cafe and $2,500 for each computer terminal. The fees add up for owners with multiple terminals. Other cities also have levied hefty licensure fees against the gaming businesses, which have sprung up in old storefronts and strip centers.
At the gambling businesses, customers can buy Internet or phone time to play variations of card and number games on computer terminals. Their purchased time gives them chances to win cash prizes.
Fayetteville City Attorney Karen McDonald said state law gives cities broad authority to enforce the collection of license fees. One way is seizing property, she said. "The city is aggressively pursuing the collection of privilege license fees," McDonald said. McDonald said seizing property from a delinquent business owner doesn't require a warrant or court action. The city is taking the action only after other attempts to collect the money have failed, including warning letters, she said. The action is not unprecedented. The city seized property for similar reasons in the early 2000s, McDonald said.
Other remedies cities can use to collect privilege license fees from business owners, she said, are through attachments of bank accounts, garnishments of state tax refunds and lottery winnings. In city warning letters, delinquent business owners are told that "failure to pay a privilege license could result in the issuance of a criminal citation." McDonald described the seizures under police escorts as a "levy" and "a last resort" to collect a tax that was six months past due. She said it would be incorrect to describe the actions as raids.
Wednesday, November 30, 2011
Still no ruling on video gaming in North Carolina
Hickory Daily Record
By: Sharon McBrayer Published: November 26, 2011
HICKORY --
Both sides in the Internet Sweepstakes debate are waiting on the North Carolina Court of Appeals to make a ruling on recent appeals.
Two cases currently are pending in the appeals court regarding enforcement of the law against video gambling, said Noelle Talley, public information officer for the North Carolina Department of Justice.
The state Court of Appeals recently heard arguments from the North Carolina Department of Justice and separately from Sandhill Amusements and Hest Technologies, two of the companies that provide Internet sweepstakes software and gaming.
Hest Technologies is appealing a ruling in Guilford County, while Sandhills Amusements is involved in a Wake County case.
The judge in the Guilford County case struck down part of the state’s law that banned the gaming in 2010, while the judge in the Wake County case upheld the law.
Around this time last year, Judge John Craig III of Guilford Superior Court in High Point ruled that the state has the right to limit games that mimic gambling. His order said a game that mimicked card games, bingo, craps, keno, lotto or a game that required a player’s skill was illegal. But he said a subpart of the state’s new law banning Internet sweepstakes gambling is unconstitutional and infringed on free speech.
Before the Guilford ruling, Wake County Superior Court Judge Paul Ridgeway dismissed a lawsuit filed by Sandhill Amusements that challenged the state’s law that went into effect in December last year. In his order, Ridgeway dissolved a preliminary injunction previously entered by the court on June 26, 2009 barring law enforcement from enforcing the previous state law on sweepstakes gaming. Cooper has argued that the two judge’s rulings contradict one another.
“So, basically we are waiting for the Court of Appeals to rule,” Talley said.
A three-judge panel will review written and oral arguments from both sides and then issue an opinion in the cases. Decisions from the Court of Appeals usually come months after the oral arguments, Talley said.
The legitimacy of Internet sweepstakes gambling has been a cat-and-mouse game between the state and its lawmakers and the gaming industry for years. Lawmakers pass a new bill that outlaws gambling and proponents of the gaming industry find a loophole in the law or sue to get the law overturned.
Proponents argue the state allows other forms of gambling — North Carolina Education Lottery and the Eastern Band of Cherokee casino — and it should allow Internet sweepstakes gaming so it can regulate the industry and receive tax revenue from it. They say the gaming is a form of entertainment for people.
Chase Brooks, president of the Internet Based Sweepstakes Organization of North Carolina, argued in an e-mail sent out last week by the organization that the state will now receive tax revenue from the Cherokee casino from its ‘live-dealer’ games such as poker, dice games and roulette.
Brooks says the Internet sweepstakes industry isn’t going away in the state. It will adapt and change as needed, he said.
“Our message is simple. We will find a way to survive. There is a valid market for this type of gaming and entertainment. We will adopt to the law and we will continue to operate,” said Brooks. “We think it is time for the leaders of the state to work with the video entertainment industry to find ways to regulate it and do like they are doing in Cherokee, tax it to generate new revenues with it.”
Opponents say the gaming preys on those who can least afford it by seducing players and taking their money.
For its part, Talley said the state Department of Justice is doing its job.
“Our job here is to defend the state law,” Talley said.
By: Sharon McBrayer Published: November 26, 2011
HICKORY --
Both sides in the Internet Sweepstakes debate are waiting on the North Carolina Court of Appeals to make a ruling on recent appeals.
Two cases currently are pending in the appeals court regarding enforcement of the law against video gambling, said Noelle Talley, public information officer for the North Carolina Department of Justice.
The state Court of Appeals recently heard arguments from the North Carolina Department of Justice and separately from Sandhill Amusements and Hest Technologies, two of the companies that provide Internet sweepstakes software and gaming.
Hest Technologies is appealing a ruling in Guilford County, while Sandhills Amusements is involved in a Wake County case.
The judge in the Guilford County case struck down part of the state’s law that banned the gaming in 2010, while the judge in the Wake County case upheld the law.
Around this time last year, Judge John Craig III of Guilford Superior Court in High Point ruled that the state has the right to limit games that mimic gambling. His order said a game that mimicked card games, bingo, craps, keno, lotto or a game that required a player’s skill was illegal. But he said a subpart of the state’s new law banning Internet sweepstakes gambling is unconstitutional and infringed on free speech.
Before the Guilford ruling, Wake County Superior Court Judge Paul Ridgeway dismissed a lawsuit filed by Sandhill Amusements that challenged the state’s law that went into effect in December last year. In his order, Ridgeway dissolved a preliminary injunction previously entered by the court on June 26, 2009 barring law enforcement from enforcing the previous state law on sweepstakes gaming. Cooper has argued that the two judge’s rulings contradict one another.
“So, basically we are waiting for the Court of Appeals to rule,” Talley said.
A three-judge panel will review written and oral arguments from both sides and then issue an opinion in the cases. Decisions from the Court of Appeals usually come months after the oral arguments, Talley said.
The legitimacy of Internet sweepstakes gambling has been a cat-and-mouse game between the state and its lawmakers and the gaming industry for years. Lawmakers pass a new bill that outlaws gambling and proponents of the gaming industry find a loophole in the law or sue to get the law overturned.
Proponents argue the state allows other forms of gambling — North Carolina Education Lottery and the Eastern Band of Cherokee casino — and it should allow Internet sweepstakes gaming so it can regulate the industry and receive tax revenue from it. They say the gaming is a form of entertainment for people.
Chase Brooks, president of the Internet Based Sweepstakes Organization of North Carolina, argued in an e-mail sent out last week by the organization that the state will now receive tax revenue from the Cherokee casino from its ‘live-dealer’ games such as poker, dice games and roulette.
Brooks says the Internet sweepstakes industry isn’t going away in the state. It will adapt and change as needed, he said.
“Our message is simple. We will find a way to survive. There is a valid market for this type of gaming and entertainment. We will adopt to the law and we will continue to operate,” said Brooks. “We think it is time for the leaders of the state to work with the video entertainment industry to find ways to regulate it and do like they are doing in Cherokee, tax it to generate new revenues with it.”
Opponents say the gaming preys on those who can least afford it by seducing players and taking their money.
For its part, Talley said the state Department of Justice is doing its job.
“Our job here is to defend the state law,” Talley said.
Sweepstakes parlor owners hope to benefit from Cherokee deal
RALEIGH, N.C. — As they battle to overturn a state ban on their video-style games, owners of Internet sweepstakes parlors are now eying a proposed casino deal between North Carolina and the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians.
Gov. Beverly Perdue and tribal leaders finalized an agreement Monday that would allow live card dealers at the Harrah's Cherokee Casino and Hotel in the mountains in exchange for North Carolina school districts getting a piece of profits from the new games.
"We would also like for the legislature to look at our industry as well," Brian Henry, treasurer of the Internet Based Sweepstakes Organization, said Tuesday. "We would just like a seat at the table with our legislature to have our industry regulated and have it taxed." Read More
Gov. Beverly Perdue and tribal leaders finalized an agreement Monday that would allow live card dealers at the Harrah's Cherokee Casino and Hotel in the mountains in exchange for North Carolina school districts getting a piece of profits from the new games.
"We would also like for the legislature to look at our industry as well," Brian Henry, treasurer of the Internet Based Sweepstakes Organization, said Tuesday. "We would just like a seat at the table with our legislature to have our industry regulated and have it taxed." Read More
Wednesday, September 28, 2011
South Carolina retailers who offer electronic sweepstakes to customers are feeling jittery.
“The question is, are electronic sweepstakes legal in South Carolina?” said Alexander Shadwick, after Tuesday’s meeting. “They don’t know if the games are legal or illegal, so the courts have to decide,” he said. “But it scares all the retailers.” Shadwick likened the activity to using coupons or putting in $20 and purchasing songs on iTunes while also being entered into a contest.
This month The State newspaper quoted the S.C. State Law Enforcement Division chief announcing a renewed effort to combat illegal video poker games. The industry was banned in 2000 but frequently arises in legislative debates about relaxing the state’s restrictions on raffles.
During Tuesday’s committee meeting, Paula Harper Bethea, the executive director of the S.C. Education Lottery, shied away from the suggestion that she was targeting “sweepstakes” in a warning she issued to retailers. “I’ve heard the whole sweepstakes-game talk, frontwards, backwards, and that’s not for me to decide,” she said. “A magistrate in South Caroline ultimately has to decide that. ... What I do enforce, however, is who sells our lottery products.”
She said she has been working with lottery officials in Georgia and North Carolina on how to address the effects of Internet gaming on state-run lottery programs. In May, Bethea sent a letter to the state’s 3,700 ticket retailers to warn them that the agency could revoke or suspend their lottery license if they violate state laws.
“Please be aware that a machine can be determined to be illegal by a local judge even if cash or other items are not given in exchange for credits earned while playing the machine,” wrote Bethea. “You may wish to consult with an attorney or local or state law enforcement officials to assist you in determining which machines are appropriate under state law and which are not.”
In June the S.C. Attorney General’s office responded to a question from Beaufort County Sheriff P. J. Tanner. The county official was asking whether the owner of a Hilton Head Island restaurant could operate Sweepstakes Promotional electronic games by Products Direct, LLC.
The letter said the office was unable to say if a specific machine was illegal. But if police had probable cause that it was, then the machine should be seized and taken to the magistrate, who could decide on a machine-by-machine basis
This month The State newspaper quoted the S.C. State Law Enforcement Division chief announcing a renewed effort to combat illegal video poker games. The industry was banned in 2000 but frequently arises in legislative debates about relaxing the state’s restrictions on raffles.
During Tuesday’s committee meeting, Paula Harper Bethea, the executive director of the S.C. Education Lottery, shied away from the suggestion that she was targeting “sweepstakes” in a warning she issued to retailers. “I’ve heard the whole sweepstakes-game talk, frontwards, backwards, and that’s not for me to decide,” she said. “A magistrate in South Caroline ultimately has to decide that. ... What I do enforce, however, is who sells our lottery products.”
She said she has been working with lottery officials in Georgia and North Carolina on how to address the effects of Internet gaming on state-run lottery programs. In May, Bethea sent a letter to the state’s 3,700 ticket retailers to warn them that the agency could revoke or suspend their lottery license if they violate state laws.
“Please be aware that a machine can be determined to be illegal by a local judge even if cash or other items are not given in exchange for credits earned while playing the machine,” wrote Bethea. “You may wish to consult with an attorney or local or state law enforcement officials to assist you in determining which machines are appropriate under state law and which are not.”
In June the S.C. Attorney General’s office responded to a question from Beaufort County Sheriff P. J. Tanner. The county official was asking whether the owner of a Hilton Head Island restaurant could operate Sweepstakes Promotional electronic games by Products Direct, LLC.
The letter said the office was unable to say if a specific machine was illegal. But if police had probable cause that it was, then the machine should be seized and taken to the magistrate, who could decide on a machine-by-machine basis
Wednesday, August 24, 2011
NEW PULL TAB Phone Card Sweepstakes Machines
INTRODUCING New Pull Tab Phone Card Sweepstakes machines. These machines meet legal requirements for "finite" winnings and par sheets are available.
Features:
You insert money and immediately a phone card is printed which gives you pin codes for 15 minutes per dollar inserted. You insert $20 you get 300 minutes of phone card time.
You also get FREE credits to play the game
CGA Graphics
Video Pull Tab Game
Multi Denomination
Standard 36/10 Pin Cherry Master Harness Ready
6 Month Warranty
Machine includes 5,000 initial fifteen minute pincodes (75,000 minutes) and can be reloaded as needed
You insert money and immediately a phone card is printed which gives you pin codes for 15 minutes per dollar inserted. You insert $20 you get 300 minutes of phone card time.
You also get FREE credits to play the game
CGA Graphics
Video Pull Tab Game
Multi Denomination
Standard 36/10 Pin Cherry Master Harness Ready
6 Month Warranty
Machine includes 5,000 initial fifteen minute pincodes (75,000 minutes) and can be reloaded as needed
19" Multi Resolution LCD Display securely mounted in a high quality metal bezel
ICT GP-58CR Thermal Printer included
"PINTASTIC" Phone Pin Print Interface Board included
Includes Spinning 7's Video Pull Tab game board
Finite Based Board Sweepstakes Game
Custom Spinning 7's bezel graphic
Your choice of Pyramid 5400 Stacker Bill Validator or ICT A6 Stacker Bill Validator
Additional customization available. Call for more details
Estimated ship out time is 3-5 days
We will contact you with an email or phone confirmation to follow up with your online order
Sunday, December 12, 2010
North Carolina Sweepstakes Operators Scramble to stay open
The video sweepstakes ban attempts to outlaw games in which people purchase a service, such as Internet access or telephone calling card minutes, and in the process enter a gambling-style sweepstakes game played on a computer screen. Customers usually focus on the gambling and winning money, and rarely pay attention to the service they have purchased.
Since Dec. 1, the Lucky Charm Internet Cafe on Hope Mills Road closed temporarily to install new games, said owner Ann Drabek.
Where the cafe once had about 10 "pot-of-gold" machines and 12 Internet terminals, it now has just the 12 terminals. The new games on the terminals have changed their rules and use less flashy graphics.
The constitutional section of the law bans sweepstakes video games that resemble popular gambling games, such as card games, bingo, keno and slot machines. Other games that involve the random or chance matching of two or more words, pictures or other symbols also are illegal.
The new games got a mixed reception from players. One woman, so shy about her playing that she took a seat away from the store windows, said she likes the simplicity of the new games. Whereas the games used to require her to play cards or to match several pictures to win, now she wins when just one picture of a lucky horse shoe or elf's pipe appears on the screen.
"It's nice, because I didn't know how to play cards anyway," said the woman, who declined to be identified.
But Chris Edge of Fayetteville misses the old games.
"It's not as much fun as it was before," he said. New games feel slower and have less excitement, he added.
Drabek, the owner, re-opened the cafe Tuesday. She estimates her business is down 50 percent compared to before Dec. 1.
The Sheriff's Office is handling enforcement of the law in the county, plus Hope Mills, Spring Lake, Eastover and Stedman, said spokeswoman Debbie Tanna. The department will investigate complaints, she said, and was visiting the cafes to monitor their compliance. But the Sheriff's Office has since stopped while it waits for the courts to rule on the ban's constitutionality.
"We will not start visiting again until the law is defined," Tanna said.
Butler made this decision in consultation with other sheriffs, Tanna said.
"When they are ready to move on this law, they will do so as a group," she said.
Since Dec. 1, the Lucky Charm Internet Cafe on Hope Mills Road closed temporarily to install new games, said owner Ann Drabek.
Where the cafe once had about 10 "pot-of-gold" machines and 12 Internet terminals, it now has just the 12 terminals. The new games on the terminals have changed their rules and use less flashy graphics.
The constitutional section of the law bans sweepstakes video games that resemble popular gambling games, such as card games, bingo, keno and slot machines. Other games that involve the random or chance matching of two or more words, pictures or other symbols also are illegal.
The new games got a mixed reception from players. One woman, so shy about her playing that she took a seat away from the store windows, said she likes the simplicity of the new games. Whereas the games used to require her to play cards or to match several pictures to win, now she wins when just one picture of a lucky horse shoe or elf's pipe appears on the screen.
"It's nice, because I didn't know how to play cards anyway," said the woman, who declined to be identified.
But Chris Edge of Fayetteville misses the old games.
"It's not as much fun as it was before," he said. New games feel slower and have less excitement, he added.
Drabek, the owner, re-opened the cafe Tuesday. She estimates her business is down 50 percent compared to before Dec. 1.
The Sheriff's Office is handling enforcement of the law in the county, plus Hope Mills, Spring Lake, Eastover and Stedman, said spokeswoman Debbie Tanna. The department will investigate complaints, she said, and was visiting the cafes to monitor their compliance. But the Sheriff's Office has since stopped while it waits for the courts to rule on the ban's constitutionality.
"We will not start visiting again until the law is defined," Tanna said.
Butler made this decision in consultation with other sheriffs, Tanna said.
"When they are ready to move on this law, they will do so as a group," she said.
Thursday, October 28, 2010
Video Gaming Company drops Lawsuit Against Morgantown
Morganton --
The two software companies who sued the city of Morganton because of the business license fee it charges Internet sweepstakes cafes have dismissed the lawsuit. Attorneys for the two companies requested a voluntary dismissal of the lawsuit. They asked the court to do so “without prejudice,” which means they could re-file the lawsuit within the next 12 months.Meanwhile, lawyers for both sides are watching a separate lawsuit filed last month in Cumberland County Superior Court by 13 Internet cafe owners in Fayetteville who are fighting the license fees on constitutional and other grounds.International Internet Technologies and Hest Technologies filed suit in early August against Morganton, Fayetteville, Lumberton, Pembroke and Wilmington. The lawsuit alleged the cities’ business license fee, or privilege license, violates the federal Internet Tax Freedom Act. The act prevents local and state governments from taxing Internet access.The lawsuit ended up in business court before Judge Ben F. Tennille.The cities named in the lawsuit contended that because the two software companies weren’t paying the privilege fees — the fees only apply to local business operators — they didn’t have a dog in the fight, said Steve Settlemyer, attorney for the city of Morganton. Settlemyer also said he doesn’t believe the Internet Tax Freedom Act applies to privilege licenses. During depositions taken in the case, he pointed out, lawyers for the companies said people don’t have to go on the Internet to reveal a sweepstakes win and that the games are a local server-based program. The city has spent around $8,000 so far to retain an attorney who regularly practices in business court to fight the lawsuit, Settlemyer said. The Kilpatrick Stockton law firm in Winston-Salem represented IIT. Attorney Richard Gottlieb said the company decided to dismiss the lawsuit because of the similar suit filed against the city of Fayetteville. He said it made more sense to his clients and was more efficient to allow the Fayetteville case to proceed and then consider their options. Gottlieb said IIT is not a party to the lawsuit against Fayetteville. According to the Fayetteville Observer, the Cumberland County Superior Court judge in that case granted a preliminary injunction to block the city’s ability to collect the fees from those owners until the case is settled, either by trial or out of court. Gottlieb and Settlemyer both said they want to see how that lawsuit is resolved.In the meantime, Settlemyer said, Internet sweepstakes gaming operators have to pay the privilege license in Morganton. Settlemyer said that of the 17 operating in the city in the spring, 10 paid Morganton’s privilege license, three got rid of their machines and one closed up shop. Two have yet to pay the fee, he continued. The combined total due is $58,050. The Morganton City Council voted in May to require businesses who offer video gaming to pay for a privilege license. It costs $2,000 per business and $1,500 per machine (city staff originally proposed $2,000 and $2,500). City officials projected the 2010-11 municipal budget would get $125,000 for the Internet sweepstakes cafe privilege license. Settlemyer said that if the two businesses don’t pay the privilege license fee, the city could file a lawsuit to collect the money or the city could get a court order to close down the businesses. Those offering the Internet sweepstakes gaming say they provide a way for people to access the Internet for e-mail, social networking, entertainment and religious purposes. They say they use the sweepstakes to promote their business. Opponents say the operators — whether they call themselves Internet cafes, business centers or something else — are nothing more than gambling parlors.The North Carolina General Assembly voted on July 7 to outlaw the electronic sweepstakes gaming. The law is scheduled to take effect Dec. 1. Gottlieb said he and his clients believe the law the General Assembly passed is unconstitutional because it infringes on the First Amendment right of free speech and, specifically, on the way the sweepstakes can be played and displayed.
The two software companies who sued the city of Morganton because of the business license fee it charges Internet sweepstakes cafes have dismissed the lawsuit. Attorneys for the two companies requested a voluntary dismissal of the lawsuit. They asked the court to do so “without prejudice,” which means they could re-file the lawsuit within the next 12 months.Meanwhile, lawyers for both sides are watching a separate lawsuit filed last month in Cumberland County Superior Court by 13 Internet cafe owners in Fayetteville who are fighting the license fees on constitutional and other grounds.International Internet Technologies and Hest Technologies filed suit in early August against Morganton, Fayetteville, Lumberton, Pembroke and Wilmington. The lawsuit alleged the cities’ business license fee, or privilege license, violates the federal Internet Tax Freedom Act. The act prevents local and state governments from taxing Internet access.The lawsuit ended up in business court before Judge Ben F. Tennille.The cities named in the lawsuit contended that because the two software companies weren’t paying the privilege fees — the fees only apply to local business operators — they didn’t have a dog in the fight, said Steve Settlemyer, attorney for the city of Morganton. Settlemyer also said he doesn’t believe the Internet Tax Freedom Act applies to privilege licenses. During depositions taken in the case, he pointed out, lawyers for the companies said people don’t have to go on the Internet to reveal a sweepstakes win and that the games are a local server-based program. The city has spent around $8,000 so far to retain an attorney who regularly practices in business court to fight the lawsuit, Settlemyer said. The Kilpatrick Stockton law firm in Winston-Salem represented IIT. Attorney Richard Gottlieb said the company decided to dismiss the lawsuit because of the similar suit filed against the city of Fayetteville. He said it made more sense to his clients and was more efficient to allow the Fayetteville case to proceed and then consider their options. Gottlieb said IIT is not a party to the lawsuit against Fayetteville. According to the Fayetteville Observer, the Cumberland County Superior Court judge in that case granted a preliminary injunction to block the city’s ability to collect the fees from those owners until the case is settled, either by trial or out of court. Gottlieb and Settlemyer both said they want to see how that lawsuit is resolved.In the meantime, Settlemyer said, Internet sweepstakes gaming operators have to pay the privilege license in Morganton. Settlemyer said that of the 17 operating in the city in the spring, 10 paid Morganton’s privilege license, three got rid of their machines and one closed up shop. Two have yet to pay the fee, he continued. The combined total due is $58,050. The Morganton City Council voted in May to require businesses who offer video gaming to pay for a privilege license. It costs $2,000 per business and $1,500 per machine (city staff originally proposed $2,000 and $2,500). City officials projected the 2010-11 municipal budget would get $125,000 for the Internet sweepstakes cafe privilege license. Settlemyer said that if the two businesses don’t pay the privilege license fee, the city could file a lawsuit to collect the money or the city could get a court order to close down the businesses. Those offering the Internet sweepstakes gaming say they provide a way for people to access the Internet for e-mail, social networking, entertainment and religious purposes. They say they use the sweepstakes to promote their business. Opponents say the operators — whether they call themselves Internet cafes, business centers or something else — are nothing more than gambling parlors.The North Carolina General Assembly voted on July 7 to outlaw the electronic sweepstakes gaming. The law is scheduled to take effect Dec. 1. Gottlieb said he and his clients believe the law the General Assembly passed is unconstitutional because it infringes on the First Amendment right of free speech and, specifically, on the way the sweepstakes can be played and displayed.
Thursday, July 8, 2010
N.C. House expected to vote to close video gambling loophole
THE FAYETTEVILLE OBSERVER 08:16 AM, Wed Jul 07, 2010
North Carolina lawmakers are poised to try again to kill the state's burgeoning video sweepstakes gambling industry. The House of Representatives is scheduled to vote today on a bill to ban the gambling games, which are played in lounges and other locations throughout the state. The ban previously passed the state Senate by a vote of 47-1. Gambling industry lobbyist Brad Crone expects the ban to pass despite the industry's request that it be allowed to stay in business and be taxed and regulated. The ban would take effect Dec. 1.
Read More
North Carolina lawmakers are poised to try again to kill the state's burgeoning video sweepstakes gambling industry. The House of Representatives is scheduled to vote today on a bill to ban the gambling games, which are played in lounges and other locations throughout the state. The ban previously passed the state Senate by a vote of 47-1. Gambling industry lobbyist Brad Crone expects the ban to pass despite the industry's request that it be allowed to stay in business and be taxed and regulated. The ban would take effect Dec. 1.
Read More
Sunday, July 4, 2010
Wednesday, June 2, 2010
City Capital Adds Three More Gaming Centers to Clean Sweeps Family
RALEIGH, NC--(Marketwire - June 1, 2010) - City Capital Corporation (PINKSHEETS: CTCC) today announced that its sweepstakes gaming subsidiary Clean Sweeps Holdings, LLC has now further expanded into the state of North Carolina with the addition of three sweepstakes gaming center locations. The three gaming centers currently operating Clean Sweeps hardware and software are located in the municipalities of Rolesville, Walnut Cove, and Kernersville. The locations represent approximately seventy additional Clean Sweeps terminals in operation, or under Clean Sweeps management.
Ephren Taylor, Chief Executive Officer of City Capital Corporation, stated, "In 2009 we laid out an aggressive plan to roll out thousands of our terminals into concentrated areas, these three locations represent the tip of our expansion into the Southeast. We look forward to adding new locations running our systems every month as we continue to grow this division."
Clean Sweep Holdings' games allow players to win cash or other prizes at terminals located in shopping centers and kiosks. The games attract players of all types, diversifying the clientele that frequent retail business entities. Comparable to the McDonald's Monopoly gaming concept, Sweepstakes Income games are 100% legal, yet they offer far more feasible probabilities for achieving victory. And perhaps more significantly, owners of Sweepstakes gaming machines regularly experience significant, rapid revenue generation that is simplistically sustainable.
read entire story
Ephren Taylor, Chief Executive Officer of City Capital Corporation, stated, "In 2009 we laid out an aggressive plan to roll out thousands of our terminals into concentrated areas, these three locations represent the tip of our expansion into the Southeast. We look forward to adding new locations running our systems every month as we continue to grow this division."
Clean Sweep Holdings' games allow players to win cash or other prizes at terminals located in shopping centers and kiosks. The games attract players of all types, diversifying the clientele that frequent retail business entities. Comparable to the McDonald's Monopoly gaming concept, Sweepstakes Income games are 100% legal, yet they offer far more feasible probabilities for achieving victory. And perhaps more significantly, owners of Sweepstakes gaming machines regularly experience significant, rapid revenue generation that is simplistically sustainable.
read entire story
Sweepstakes Video Parlors Grow From Virginia To Florida
Internet-enabled sweepstakes videogames that pay cash prizes are cropping up from Florida to Virginia, leaving city and state officials in a quandary about how to respond. The games have long flourished in North Carolina, where House Speaker Joe Hackney (D-Chapel Hill) recently predicted the state legislature might amend the law to ban video sweepstakes games if the courts fail to do so. At least two district court judges have upheld the legality of the machines in North Carolina.
But now payoff sweepstakes games -- many located in Internet cafés -- have begun to proliferate elsewhere up and down the Eastern seaboard. In Florida, 400 people jammed a city council meeting in Jacksonville this month to debate the status of the games. As Internet sweepstakes gamerooms increase throughout the state, enforcement policies vary from one county to the next, and sometimes within a single county, according to local press sources.
Read Entire Story
But now payoff sweepstakes games -- many located in Internet cafés -- have begun to proliferate elsewhere up and down the Eastern seaboard. In Florida, 400 people jammed a city council meeting in Jacksonville this month to debate the status of the games. As Internet sweepstakes gamerooms increase throughout the state, enforcement policies vary from one county to the next, and sometimes within a single county, according to local press sources.
Read Entire Story
Wednesday, May 26, 2010
North Carolina asks Where do you draw the line on gambling?
One of the biggest gambling issues in North Carolina involves the proliferation of those Internet sweepstakes parlors where computerized versions of slot machines, video poker, keno and many more games can be accessed.Mount Airy is now home to at least five of those businesses, mirroring a trend across the state that has posed a quandary for lawmakers unsure of how to deal with the practice. Part of the problem seems to be the distinction between computer servers used by the Internet cafes and actual gambling devices such as video poker machines which clearly are outlawed.Read more: Mount Airy News - Where do you draw the line on gambling
Asheville NC passes some limits on video sweepstakes
City Council passed some restrictions on so-called “video sweepstakes” machines Tuesday, but put off other rules for six months. The machines are close cousins to video gambling machines banned in North Carolina in 2007 except at the casino in Cherokee. They are now cropping up around the state and locally in convenience stores and stand-alone parlors.
The council voted 4-3 to set a $1,000 application fee and $2,500 fee per machine. Mayor Terry Bellamy and councilmen Jan Davis and Bill Russell voted no. The following passed 6-1 with Russell dissenting: restricting large operators from residential areas and most other zoning districts but allowing smaller operators in community business districts; setting the cap at 20 machines per establishment; and giving businesses 180 days to comply. Read Story
The council voted 4-3 to set a $1,000 application fee and $2,500 fee per machine. Mayor Terry Bellamy and councilmen Jan Davis and Bill Russell voted no. The following passed 6-1 with Russell dissenting: restricting large operators from residential areas and most other zoning districts but allowing smaller operators in community business districts; setting the cap at 20 machines per establishment; and giving businesses 180 days to comply. Read Story
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)