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WASHINGTON
- According to survey results released on March 7 by the American
Gaming Association (AGA), the portrait of the modern casino patron
closely mirrors the average American. In fact, the percentage of
casino patrons who own their own home, have a family income greater
than $60,000, and read a newspaper once a day for at least 15 minutes
is slightly higher than that of the general public.
The poll, conducted
by Peter D. Hart Research Associates, Inc., and The Luntz Research
Companies, reveals that casino patrons are successful, well-rounded
individuals who are involved in their community. According to the
poll:
73 percent of casino patrons own their
own home, compared to 68 percent of average Americans.
51
percent of casino patrons read a newspaper every day for at least
15 minutes, compared to 42 percent of average Americans.
26
percent of casino patrons have a family income over $60,000, compared
to 22 percent of average Americans.
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Other key findings
of the poll show that:
41 percent of casino patrons attend religious
services at least once a week, compared to 45 percent of average
Americans.
29
percent of casino patrons attend at least one major league baseball
game, compared to 21 percent of average Americans.
41
percent of casino patrons eat dinner with their family every night
of the week, compared to 42 percent of average Americans.
The release
of the national polling data marks the kickoff of a yearlong national
campaign by the AGA to emphasize that casino customers represent
a slice of America - just like your neighbors, your friends, your
family and yourself. . The campaign theme, "Just Like US,"
will be a fixture of AGA activities and communications throughout
2002.
Full poll results
will be released this spring as part of the 2002 State of the States:
The AGA Survey of Casino Entertainment. A total of [900] adult Americans
were interviewed in January 2002. An additional 441-person over
sample of gamblers also was conducted. The margin of error for the
total sample is +/-3 percent.
The AGA represents
the commercial casino-entertainment industry by addressing federal
legislative and regulatory issues. The association also serves as
a clearinghouse for information, develops educational and advocacy
programs, and provides leadership on industry-related issues of
public concern.
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| "Not
long ago, a federal study commission's report said, 'Once exotic,
gambling has quickly taken its place in mainstream culture.' They
were right," said AGA President and CEO Frank J. Fahrenkopf,
Jr. "These poll results show that casino customers are just like
average Americans, and in many areas, such as income and home ownership,
they excel."
Additional findings
reveal that casino patrons are charitable and patriotic. While 66
percent of average Americans donate at least a hundred dollars of
their annual income to charity, 69 percent of casino patrons do
so. And 71 percent of casino patrons fly an American flag outside
their home or on their car, compared to 67 percent of average Americans.
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Lithuania
Opens First Casino
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 LITHUANIA
- The Baltic Times reported recently "following last
July's lifting of a nationwide gambling ban Lithuania's first
casino has opened for business in the sea port city of Klaipeda.
Players at the Nese Hotel's casino can choose from four gambling
tables, three of them for card games and one for roulette.
Some 20 croupiers are on hand to assist up to 30 players at
a time in a classic English style casino setting.
Kazys Paulikas, Nese's owner, has spent the last few months
visiting casinos in Las Vegas and talking to Belgian consultants
in an effort to ensure the project's success.
The opening night at the casino on March 1 proved popular
although nobody bagged the maximum potential payout of 1.2
million litas (US$300,000).
But Nese's casino will not have long to wait before competitors
start nipping at its heels.
Last month two gambling halls were opened in Vilnius by Estonia's
Olympic Casino Group Baltija, owner of the Baltic states'
biggest casino, the Park Hotel and Casino in Tallinn, and
owner of 12 gambling halls in Estonia.
The company plans more gambling halls and to open a casino
in August.
Casino Planet plans to open casinos in Vilnius' former planetarium
building and in Lubys' Vetra Hotel in Palanga this year.
Meanwhile an as yet unidentified Latvian enterprise is planning
a casino in Lithuania's second largest city, Kaunas, and is
advertising for croupiers to work at the city's Los Patrankos
nightclub.
Lithuania
lies in the east of Europe, on the coast of the Baltic Sea.
In the north Lithuania borders with Latvia, in the east and
south with Byelorussia, in the southwest with Poland and with
the Kaliningrad region of the Russian Federation.
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