The head of the Massachusetts Gaming Commission is answering critics who say the panel has allowed Plainridge Park Casino, operated by an affiliate of Penn National Gaming, to drag its feet on implementing a first-of-its-kind automated compulsive gambling control system through the player club system.
“Play Management” would allow slot player to set a predetermined spending limit, and through use of the player’s club card, the system would track losses and issue an alert when they approach and exceed their limits. (It would not prevent them from continuing to play.)
Gaming Commission Chairman Stephen Crosby said last week in media interviews and statements that Plainridge Park, opened June 24, has nothing to do with the delay. He said the delay is due to the commission studying ways to perfect the system. “Plainridge has been nothing but cooperative and has nothing to do with the delays,” Crosby said, according to the Sun Chronicle. “ It’s purely a function of this being a very complicated project that has never been done before in the United States.”
Crosby said software is being developed to enable communication among 1,250 slot machines manufactured by different vendors, and the commission wanted to assure the system is done right.
