The casino is the center of entertainment for millions of people worldwide, providing a glamorous atmosphere for gambling and other games of chance. It offers everything from table games to slot machines and poker rooms, as well as restaurants, hotels, retail shops, and entertainment. Casinos are often combined with resorts, theme parks, and shopping centers to create complexes that cater to the whole family.
Whether they are located in massive casino resorts or smaller card room operations, casinos depend on game of chance to generate the billions of dollars in profits that keep them going each year. In addition to the glitz and glamour, they are also notorious for their dark side – gambling addiction. Compulsive gamblers consume a large percentage of casino revenues and can wreak havoc in communities by reducing productivity and driving up the cost of health care and other services.
Security is another big area of concern for casino operators. Modern casinos are usually divided into two departments: a physical security force and a specialized surveillance department. The former patrols the premises and responds to calls for assistance or reports of suspicious or definite criminal activity. The latter runs the closed circuit television system, known as “the eye in the sky.” Increasingly, technology is being used to supervise gaming activities. For example, betting chips with built-in microcircuitry let casinos monitor the amounts placed minute by minute and alert them to any statistical deviations. Similarly, roulette wheels are electronically monitored to detect and correct any anomalies.