HARRAHS EXEC BULLISH ON INTERNET GAMBLING
http://www.casinomeister.com/news/
october2002.html#statement
Online gambling
will be widely available as entertainment.
One of the more
interesting and perhaps unexpectedly positive views of Internet gambling
expressed at the recent GGE conference in Vegas came from Harrahs president and
COO Gary Loveman.
Loveman said that
gambling is part of the entertainment industry and will eventually be
distributed by the same channels used by the mass entertainment industry – via
interactive TV, live game simulcasts and the Internet. 'We have something for
sale that people want to buy, but the problem is in most cases it's really hard
to buy,' said Loveman, adding that the overwhelming desire of Americans to
gamble will inevitably lead to the major entertainment companies such as AOL
Time Warner, Viacom and Walt Disney Co. buying up small casino companies.
The land-based
casino president admits that the public wants online casino entertainment,
“There's no doubt that Americans would embrace more casinos and new forms of
gambling,” he said, citing industry-funded research showing that 27% of the US
adult population visited a casino last year, spending nearly $40 billion.