This may turn into quite a poker game — the state lottery on one side of the table, and bar and tavern operators, the retailers of the state's video poker racket, on the other.

The state wants to earn more money from gambling, so it is adding online slots to the video poker already offered. But it wants to pay the retailers only about half what they get paid for hosting the poker machines.

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The retailers have 5½ years to go on their six-year contracts. They don't want to accept less money for the slots. But they might be tempted by the notion that people would lose a lot more money on the slots, with the result that their earnings would rise or stay the same even with the lower commission rates.


The state might say that if the retailers don't want to play, the lottery will open its own slot parlors. But that ace in the hole is probably not available, prohibited by the constitutional ban on casinos.

So these two players — the state and the operators — will have to try to outbluff each other as they keep playing their game. (hh)

Source: Democrat-Herald