Casino is a place where games of chance are played and gambling is the primary activity. Although a modern casino may add other forms of entertainment such as musical shows, restaurants and shopping centers to draw in customers, the billions of dollars in annual profits still come from the traditional gambling games of slot machines, blackjack, roulette, craps and keno.
The popularity of casino gaming has made casinos a major source of revenue for many cities and states. In the United States, most casinos are located in Nevada with a few in Atlantic City and other American Indian reservations that are not subject to state antigambling laws.
While a casino’s main business is gambling, it must also provide the necessary security and maintenance services. As a result, most casinos have elaborate security systems to prevent cheating and theft by both patrons and staff. For example, table managers and pit bosses supervise the games with a close eye on all players to detect blatant cheating such as “palming” and marking cards or switching dice. More sophisticated surveillance systems offer an eye-in-the-sky view of all casino tables and other operations.
To entice gamblers, most casinos reward big spenders with comps (free goods or services) such as free rooms, meals and tickets to shows. To qualify for these perks, gamblers must present a player’s card that is swiped before each game session. The cards are then tallied by casino computers to allow the casino to track spending patterns and patron game preferences.