Coming to Israel?
Slot machines coming to Israel?
National Lottery Corporation says only legal gambling machines can beat black market
JERUSALEM - The National Lottery Corporation has requested a license to widen its gambling machine empire around the country as part of a fight against thousands of illegal video poker, blackjack and slot machines currently operating around the country.
Casinos in Eilat?
By Seya Egozy
Benjamin Netanyahu lays all the cards on the table, saying he will work to establish Israel's first casino in the tourist-rich coastal town of Eilat
The finance ministry recently approved 500 new machines at 150 new locations around Israel, but Corporation head Shimon Katzenelson says it is not enough to beat the country's illegal gambling industry.
"(The permit) is a good start, but our legal machines are but a tiny drop in the deep, wide ocean of the black market," he said.
He also said the Lottery Corp. is the government's only realistic body to effectively fight illegal gambling, and added a dedicated campaign against illegal gambling would yield important, tangible benefits for the country.
'If you give the Lottery Corp. license to provide legal machines around the country, NIS 350 million (about USD 76 million) in profit will go right back into the community for education initiatives, such as an extended school day, smaller classes, more nursery schools, gyms and other things," he said.
Katzenelson also stressed Corporation machines are strictly monitored to prevent them from getting "out of hand," and said minors are strictly forbidden from using them.
He also said the Lottery Corporation maintains a company policy to encourage "responsible gambling".
Katzenelson says the illegal gambling market earns about NIS 5 billion (about USD 1.1 billion) in annual profits, spread out over 10,000 machines – all "exempt" from tax.
Not casinos
Lottery Corporation Director General Shaul Sutnick said other countries, including Sweden, Switzerland, Canada and the United States, have won their wars with illegal gambling, and said Israel could learn from those examples.
"The experience many countries around the world...proves the only way to fight the black market is to legalize gambling.
"We're not talking about opening casinos here, far from it. There is no casino in the world with just two slot machines. We're also in favor of legalized, monitored casinos, but make no mistake about it: this is not it."
