At the middle of September the CASINO Magazine participated with its own stand at the Entertainment Arena, a true exhibition of the producers of casino equipment for the amateurs. September brought CASINO Magazine’s first event, organized with the support of the Romanian Association of the Casino Organizers, a meeting that took place between the representatives in this the field and the officials, about which you can read more in our next number. In December you can find us at the Luxury Show next to the most exclusivist brands in Romania. A short schedule of our approach to those that operate on this market, to the gambling consumers, to those interested in a way or in the other in this fascinating world, inexhaustible and full of life. The approach to more and more personalities and public persons from many fields, from politics to business or show-biz also took place, everyone showing their appreciation and the desire to appear on the pages of our magazine. At the same time, the casino operators from the Romanian market feel more and more that the magazine truly reflects their interests, faithfully presents the business and brings them a real image benefit. It is a natural continuation of a unique publishing step in Romania and it is addressed to a big number of people, those interested in finding out new things, information and those interested in quality.

THE BOX MAN, THE EMBLEM OF THE JOB IN A CASINO

The most wanted jobs in a casino are those from the livegames area, those of box man, all the other ones being jobs common to other fields of activity too: waiters, tapsters, the security personnel, receptionists, hostess etc. The specific job, exclusively met in a casino is that of box man. Unlike the box men from other European countries or even those in the United States, the Romanian box men know all the games from a casino that need a dealer. Firstly, they take a course that lasts 3 years and in which they get familiar to all the casino games. In Europe or the United States, they get familiar to only one of the games, be it blackjack, roulette or poker.

This is why the Romanian box men are also the most wanted on the cruisers and in the casinos abroad, being put to work, alternatively, to all the tables and they handle everything very good. These courses are organized by the casinos themselves. Each casino organizes its own courses, depending on its own internal rules and the needs it has.

AN ACKNOWLEDGED JOB

Between 100 and 200 candidates usually come to a course. Those are selected and only 30 or 40 of them remain, and they take the course. Besides the ability, those that want to work in this domain in which they have direct contact to the public of the casino must also have a pleasant aspect and this is the reason why in 70-80% of the cases girls are preferred.

The courses are held especially when the casinos go through a personnel crisis, usually during the spring time, when the recruiting season for the cruisers begins.

“The lessons” for the students are held by people that have 5 or 6 years experience in the field. At the end you don’t receive a certificate but you can be hired and the job is acknowledged in the Classified List of Jobs from Romania. In order to go and work in another casino, in the country or abroad, a good recommendation from the last working place is necessary. Without it, it is almost impossible to get hired somewhere else.

PROMOTED IN CASINOS AS IN THE ARMY

If an employee makes a big mistake or steals, the other casinos are announced and no one hires him anymore. For those that want a career in the field it is good to know that becoming the manager it is very hard and requires a lot of hard working, but at the same time is a branch out of which you can easily get out and no one ever hires you again. Because the courses are not paid, all those that take them in a casino are obliged to work there at least 6 months, period in which the casino redeems the respective courses and uses the trained people. No more than 10 remain after this course, out of which other 3 or 4 quite very easily. The programme is very strained, they work by night, many times there are many clients at the table, there are nerves, and they have to continuously smile. There are many students that come to work in order to support themselves during college, and some choose to remain in the casino after finishing their studies. In ten years one can become the manager of the casino, but after getting though all the preparing levels and the required jobs. One is considered able to run a casino only if he or she got through all the jobs in a casino and knows all there is to know about a casino. One must learn everything, step by step. Almost all the managers are over 30 years old and they are men. It is a natural selection that it is made, but there are also women, not many, holding high positions in the industry, in our country and abroad. The percentage shows that 70% of the managers are men and 30% are women.

MASTER DEGREES AND GAMBLING COURSES

When one gets to be the manager of a casino, the greatest part of one’s work remains that of communicating and getting in touch with the casino’s clients and also with the partners. There is already a team that does everything; the manager must take care of his clients. As managers are chosen those that have the experience, those that can be trusted, are firm in a company and haven’t worked in too many casinos in their career. Although the casinos abroad are bigger, they have the same personnel structure as those in Romania and if one is good here, one can do his/her job in any casino in the world, at least as good as one does it here. In Slovenia, there are master degrees in the field of gambling, as a continuation of the instruction of those that work in the field. It hasn’t happened yet in Romania too, being a market small enough as compared to those of other countries. Nevertheless, Romania is the 7th among the European countries regarding the number of casinos ascribed to the number of inhabitants.

ROMANIAN RULE IN ROMANIA AND ABROAD

There are many specialized courses for those that want to improve their knowledge, to learn and to advance, such as those about the psychology of the player, of recognizing the cheaters and many others. Those are not compulsory for the managers, but they can help them very much, this next to what they learn from each other’s experience. Casino managers constantly inform one another about the new cheating methods discovered and applied by the players or about many other problems they came across. There are also in the field persons that now pay for a mistake that work in Romania, for example Turkish that have came here after the casinos in Turkey have been closed and that hold different positions, from managers to box men or waiters. Besides these, there are also: Italians, Lebanese, Greeks etc. At the beginning of this business in Romania there were more foreigners employed, this when there weren’t specialized Romanians in this field. However, only in a few years, their number has diminished very much, their place being taken by Romanians, who have learnt fast and well. So well that now it is desirable to have Romanian managers, a thing available also for those that want to leave and work in other countries. Now there are plenty of Romanian managers in the casinos on cruisers, in Las Vegas, Australia and, in fact, all over the world.

WHEN DID YOU START THE CAREER IN THE CASINO’S FIELD?

In 1995. At that time I had just 2 machines, in a bar from Miercurea Ciuc.

HAVE YOU HAD THIS SORT OF ACTIVITIES ALSO OUTSIDE THE COUNTRY?

No, just internal businesses, since then I have continued to develop the games business and, in the last year, I have started an immobile project in Miercurea Ciuc, a residential complex. In 1998 I have also started a first business in Bucharest in the field of casino, with roulette, in a casino from Victoria Square.

NOW YOU HAVE A CHAIN OF GAMBLING HALLS, FORTUNA CASINO.

Yes, especially in the north and the west of the country. I’ve started them each one at a time, one by one, now there are 15 opened halls in 5 years. I’m also involved in Queen Casino from Bucharest, in the slots area of the casino and I’m also partner in the casino in Iasi. WHICH ARE THE PARTICULARITIES OF THE CASINO BUSINESS? It is a business that requires a big investment, but that is very fast redeemed, in on year maximum, as in other businesses, where liquidation is made in 3-5 minimum. However, it is true that it is even harder and more stressing.

IS IT MORE PROFITABLE THAN THE IMMOBILE BUSINESS?

In comparison, the profitability rate is bigger. Out of a gambling hall in which you have invested 500,000 euros you make a profit of 40,000 euros a month. The profitability rate is 5 times bigger than it is in an immobile investment. I think that this business is on the first place in fact, as far as the profitability rate is concerned, out of a wide variety of businesses that we can name.

HOW DO YOU SEE THE ROMANIAN LEGISLATION IN THE FIELD, AND MORE OVER, THE LAST MODIFICATIONS OF THE FISCAL CODE?

The legislation regarding our business domain is very bad and I would like it to be modified in such a way as to support and develop this business. The new modifications of the Fiscal Code are not applicable, there haven’t been yet set the parameters.

WHY AREN’T YET CREATED BIG SHOWS IN THE CASINOS OF ROMANIA ALSO?

The market is small, the casinos are opened on a small surface and the public is different. Abroad the clients are noisy, they love the atmosphere, the agitation, and the loud music, the noise, and they came to the casino to have fun. Here, they come to win, they want peace so that they can concentrate and you can’t do things as they are done abroad, almost continuous shows, you make them smaller, and more rare, for example in the weekend’s nights.

WHICH ARE THE GAMES THAT YOU LIKE?

I like to be on the other side of the field. I don’t play, but as a hall owner, I believe there is an indirect play between me and the client, the one that comes to bet his money here. And as an owner you feel the same adrenaline as the player.

WHICH IS, UNTIL NOW, THE MOST IMPORTANT ACHIEVEMENT?

The development of the immobile project, this is a very important business for me. The project represents an assembly of 5 blocks of houses in Miercurea Ciuc; it started from 2 million euros and at the end will represent a 20 million euros investment.

BUT THE BIGGEST INCOME, OF ANY KIND?

The association in the casino in Iasi, I’ve always wanted to pass from hall games to live casino, it is an achievement and at the same time an important gain for me.

WHICH IS YOUR OPINION ABOUT THE CASINO MAGAZINE?

It is very good; I was waiting for such a magazine to appear also on our market, something like this was necessary. The casino operators and the public waited for such a publication.

THE PLEASURE OF TAKING RISKS, THE ESSENCE OF BETTING, HAS “EXTENDED”, NATURALLY, FROM THE GAME TABLE TO ONLINE-BETTING. HOWEVER, MANY PEOPLE PREFER TO LIVE INTENSELY AMONG THE OTHER GAMBLERS, AMATEURS OR PROFESSIONALS, NOT IN VIRTUAL PLAN, BUT INTERACTING LIVE, DIRECTLY AT THE GAME TABLE. AND BUCHAREST OFFERS MANY OPTIONS FROM THIS POINT OF VIEW. WE WILL HAVE A SHORT FORAY THROUGH THE WONDERFUL WORLD OF LIVE GAMES, WHICH QUIVERS AT ANY TIME OF THE DAY OR NIGHT IN THE CAPITAL CITY. THEREFORE, LADIES AND GENTLEMEN – BET!

Casino Palace

Casino Palace, who had recently celebrated 12 years of existence in the world of gambling, is, beyond any doubt, a place where the gamblers are feeling good, because the offer is extremely tempting: 11 casino games. The American roulette lovers have at their disposal 9 tables spread in three gambling rooms, and the fans of blackjack can choose between six tables, two of them being dedicated to the Caribbean poker. Also unfailing is the table dedicated to the game of dice. Texas Hold’em Poker can be played at two tables and those who prefer, instead, Casino Hold’em Poker, have at hand two game tables. The last “acquisition” of the casino is the Ultimate Hold’em Poker, and for the amateurs of blackjack, Casino Palace has announced good news: Blackjack Plus, a new version of blackjack with 3 additional bets which offers more chances of winning.

Grand Casino

The two Grand Casino casinos (from the Marriott Hotel and the Hilton Hotel) are attracting many fans of gambling thanks to an impressive “collection” of game tables. Grand Casino, inside the Marriott Grand Hotel, puts at hand of the ones who are willing to bet a space with 19 slotmachines and 22 live games: four blackjack tables, four poker tables and four roulette tables. In the same time, Grand Casino Hilton is simply stimulating the players with the American roulette, Oasis Poker, Texas Hold’em Poker, Open Stud Poker and blackjack.

Olympic Casino

The Olympic Casino (exNapoleon) is inviting the guests to try their luck in the Texan poker, a relatively new game, invented by Stephen Au-Yeung in the year 2001. In essence, the Texan poker it is a variant of the popular club game Texas Hold’em Poker, adapted to the casino’ s conditions. You can start an unforgettable night at the 11 game tables. The blackjack can be played at three tables. If you prefer the poker, you can choose between three tables of classic poker and one table of Texan Poker. For those who have the courage to open-flirt with the good luck, the American roulette (4 tables) is a true source of adrenaline, emotions and winnings.

Casino Mirage

Casino Mirage, opened in 2003 and repaired in 2005 at the last western standards, gives at hand of the live-game lovers 12 tables (roulette, blackjack and poker). Those who want more privacy can choose the two tables from the VIP room.

Princess Casino

Havana Princess Casino holds 12 tables for the live games. At two out of five roulette tables they play in dollars, at the other three they play in lei (Romanian coin). Two out of the four blackjack tables work with dollars, and the other two with lei. Three poker tables have the same minimum and maximum level as the blackjack tables, two of them working with lei and one in dollars. At his turn, Perla Princess Casino offers to the clients the opportunity to play the roulette in lei or in dollars, at four tables, while six tables are waiting for them for blackjack and poker. The third casino from the Princess holding, Planet Princess Casino, is the biggest slots casino. But there are not forgotten those who prefer to be in the middle of the action, at the game table. Blackjack, Pai Gow, roulette, Luck Wheel, the dice game are only few of the “ingredients” of table gambling. From the modest gamblers to professional betters, let-it-ride and baccarat are the favorite “attractions”. In addition, you can be challenged to a game of Caribbean poker, regardless of the level you are at.

Casino Bucharest

Casino Bucharest belongs to the biggest casino holding in the world, Austria International, the elite player of the global industry of gambling. Working in Bucharest since 1991, the casino is challenging the gamblers with six American roulette tables, four tables for blackjack and three tables with different types of poker (Oasis, threecard-poker and the Ultimate Texas Hold’em).

Platinium Resort Casino

Platinum Resort Casino is more than a betting place. Baccarat, blackjack, Pai Gow, three-cardspoker, Caribbean poker, Texas Hold’em Poker, Open poker, all of them are favorite games of the gamblers and raise the adrenaline in the live games rooms. In addition, you can subscribe to the tournaments that the casino is organizing. Unlike others Bucharest casinos, Platinum Resort Casino holds a special room built for the poker lovers.

Casino Queen

“You will be treated like kings and queens!” This is the motto of the Casino Queen, where, one you stepped foot, you are charmed by the gambling games. The American roulette, blackjack, Caribbean poker, 3-cards-poker, Casino Hold’em, Texas Hold’em and duke are coming to satisfy all the wishes of the gamblers, in a “royal” environment.

YOU HAVE HAD MANY SHOWS INTO CASINOS, HOW THE ATMOSPHERE USED TO BE LIKE?

Those who come to casinos are really keen of gambling, they are professionals, but also those that get to relax at the end of the week. I have had the occasion to observe them all and what amazed me the most was the calm way in which professionals were betting large sums, no manifestation of joy or disappointment could be seen on their faces.

WHICH IS NOWADAYS THE SUCCESS RECIPE IN THE ROMANIAN SHOW-BIZ?

You have to work a lot to be successful. In one week you can cover 1,500-2,000 km, the public is more and more exigent and the artist has to reinvent himself permanently.

The way you sing or you appear on the stage are very important.

HAVE YOU EVER GAMBLED IN A CASINO FROM ROMANIA OR FROM ABROAD?

Not yet, but you never know when it may happen.

WOULD YOU WANT TO PERFORM IN ONE OF THE SHOWS IN LAS VEGAS?

There the shows are truly exceptional and very costly. The sceneries, the orchestras, everything is at another level and the show needs weeks in order to be ready. It is normal for every artist that didn’t get there to wish for that.

WHICH IS YOUR OPINION ABOUT GAMBLING?

I don’t have a solid opinion because I’m an outsider, but if a woman can have shopping as a main passion, then why can not gambling bring as much satisfaction to a man?

IS THERE A MOMENT YOU REMEMBER ABOUT THE SHOWS YOU PERFORMED AT THE CASINOS?

There have been many, but I’ll never forget the first show, because it was a new experience. I was surprised to see that people continue to stay at their gambling tables.

WHAT WILL YOU DO IN THE NEAR FUTURE?

I have an autumn full of concerts ahead of me. I’ve already started work on Cristina Rus new album, which I hope will be out this spring and until that time I’ll barely have time to shoot a video. We skip vacation this year.

IS THERE A THING YOU ALWAYS WANTED TO DO OR A PLACE YOU’D LIKE TO GO?

I’m trying to make time to go visit my sister in Italy. I miss her very much.

ALL THE NEW AND FAMOUS CASINOS IN LAS VEGAS ARE FOUND ALONG THE MAIN BOULEVARD CALLED STRIP.

At just 5 kilometres from the McCarran International Airport, Luxor Hotel and Casino is a huge 30 stories pyramid, with two 22 stories towers. Located on the Strip, occupying 11,148 square metres, the Luxor is the 3rd biggest hotel in the world and it is connected to the Mandalay Bay on the left side and to the Excalibur on the right by an airway train.

As everywhere in the USA at Luxor as well you must be at least 21 years old to gamble, but if you are offered a large variety of gambling choices. At the Luxor you can find gambling tables for Craps, Roulette, Fast Roulette, Pai Gow, Poker, Pai Gow Plus, MiniBaccarat, Blackjack(in four versions: 8 deck shoe, 6 deck shoe, Double deck and Single deck), Let it Ride, 3 Card Poker, Texas Hold’em Bonus, Big 6 and Lucky Ladies. It is good to know that the Luxor organizes informative sessions for all games (Roulette, Blackjack, Poker etc.), where amateurs are offered the possibility of learning Craps, a well known American game. As in other Las Vegas’ Casinos, at Luxor the most popular games are the Slot Machines, where mostly women play while they are waiting for their men who play at the gambling tables. At the Slot Machines you can bet from 5 cents to 100 $ and the Jackpot can reach up to 10 million $ or more. Sport’s bets are made at the Luxor in huge halls equipped with hundreds of TVs where you can watch live all the sport games in the world. The waitresses dressed provocative serve all gamblers with free cocktails, but you are recommended to leave them a 1 or 2 $ tip. According to a study on the game tactics in the Las Vegas’ Casinos, made by the “Weekly Shuffle”, at the Luxor the poker players are the most protected.

It is known that the poker game is encouraged in casinos to attract people who have high hopes of winning great amounts of money. These are the people who want to play the same game they see on TV in movies. At the same time casinos do not have significant earnings from this game because the commissions charged on it are much lower than the ones charged on the Blackjack for example. That is why casinos make waiting lists where after you have subscribed you have 1-2 hours when you can choose to play something else. Although all Las Vegas’ Casions have poker tables, they are different in each casino. The highest number of poker players is at the Luxor due to their low stake between 1 or 2 $ and 50 $. Thus, here the “weak” players, beginners or just undecided are protected because the amounts of money they could lose at one hand are limited. As well at Luxor there are daily poker tournaments with low stakes, with amounts ranging from 39$ to 55 $.

Made for especially for the wealthy, the playing cards were at the beginning decorated with gold and painted by famous artists.

However the cards’ game fame has increased immensely and consequently the need to create playing card for everyone, even If they’re not rich, appeared. Therefore the companies appealed to much more economical fabrication methods; at first the cards were of poor quality with modest drawings and disturbing colours. Along with the evolution in printing, considerable progress regarding the playing cards has been noticed. Thus, around the year 1420, thousands of playing cards’ packs were produced in Germany and Switzerland. But because the Church was bothered by the game’s popularity they prohibited playing cards in some cities. Moreover in 1423, some demonstrations took place in Bologna and Nuremberg against these “demonic practices”. Even though the number of playing cards had been established a long time ago, the symbols of the four series have developed differently depending on the nationality, époque and fabricant. These symbols were at first animals, than flowers or other different items; only at the end of the 15th century the symbols known today started being used. The countries which made an exception from these symbols were Italy and Spain where at the beginning the playing cards had had printings of sticks, swords, goblets and coins, inherited from the Arabs. The cards were printed on only side and the other one remained white. In those times the playing cards had more than one purpose: they were used as love notes, marriage certificates, business cards, debts registers, commercials, etc. and during the French Revolution they had financial value and due to this fact they have been preserved until this day. Also you can find in the French museums playing cards with notes written by Moliere, Napoleon and Rousseau and guest lists at Louis the 16th’s receptions. For four centuries the fabrication methods of the cards have not evolved much, as they were woodcut. Due to the fast deterioration of the wood, the use of limited series materials was determined and consequently the production remained at a handicraft state for a while. However, during the 19th century the handicraft procedures were gradually replaced by industrial ones, as B.P. Grimaud did in France. The new methods allowed printing more series at the same time, and the wood was replaced by stone, after which the offset procedure appeared and the cards were closer to perfection and more resistant. In Europe, France set the card-game trend, even though for a while Germany was an important competitor; all the other countries “borrowed” the symbols (including Great Britain, which introduced the playing cards in its American colonies, the future USA). The first cards printed in the USA appeared around 1800 and the highest card was called Best Bower a.k.a. Juker, which later became Joker. As in Europe, in USA the back of the cards was used for writing notes, commercials, events, etc. Later on, during the 1880-1890’s, Russell and Morgan founded the United States Playing Cards Company and created a professional line that started to produce high quality cards at an industrial scale.

The history of the game started in the 7th century France, the “father” of the roulette being Blaise Pascal the famous mathematician

THE SYMBOL OF THE CASINO GAMES

Responsible with the important discoveries in science, in 1655 Pascal tries to invent a perpetum mobile, when by accident, as most of the important inventions, he created the roulette. The attempt of the scientist to find the instrument of the eternal movement had failed but the Roulette remained a useful invention up to this day. Not long after that, the Roulette has been used for playing, but only in 1842 Pascal’s original concept has been changed. This happened after the French François and Louis Blanc have added the 0 number to the Roulette and thus it reached 37 numbers. At the beginning the Roulette game used to be illicit in France, but raising an enormous popularity, at Francois Blanc’s initiative, the first Monte Carlo casino has been created, the place where even today the Roulette is the “Queen of all Games”. In the 19th century, the Roulette crossed the Atlantic and arriving to the United States has won another number, double 0, reaching 38 numbers. Although in the European variant or in the American one the history of Roulette differs, the rules of the game haven’t suffered important changes. Like the other games, the Roulette has been the target of many fraud attempts. In 1873, Joseph Jagger had a controversial contribution in the development of this game: he paid 6 employees of a casino in Monte Carlo to find out information about the numbers that usually were the lucky ones in Roulette. Having those data, he succeeded to win the equivalent of nowadays 450,000 euro. But Jagger wasn’t the only one. In 1891 Charles Wells, a famous cheater of those times, won almost 2 million Francs playing in two casinos in Monte Carlo, where he has “guessed” the luck numbers at the Roulette, in 23 out of 30 games. The development of the number sciences has determined, in 1955, the American mathematicians Edward O. Thorp and Claude Shannon to create a mechanism which permitted them to know the probability of the lucky numbers in Roulette. And, at the end of the ‘70s, a group of students (at the University in Santa Cruz, California), called Eudemons, has built a small computer equipped with an oscilloscope and a video camera, which increased their chances on betting the Roulette.They have tested the invention in the casinos in Las Vegas and they didn’t quit until the device they have created broke down and one of the members of the group got hurt by the electronic waves. After a single “cannon” (only 10,000 dollars worth) the group split, but the proof that there is a scientific method to determine the trajectory of the ball remained. More recently, in the ‘90s, Gonzalo Garcia Pelayo, with the help of a computer, studied the Roulettes of the Madrid’s casinos, winning this way about one million euros, until he has been caught. Sent to trial, he won the cause being declared free of any charges.

With an almost four century history and many attempts to find out its secret, the Roulette is still the symbol of the games in all the casinos around the world. from all over the world.

The last modification of the Fiscal code introduces controversial regulations for the gambling industry.

Thus, by the stipulations of the Urgent Decree of the Government for modifying and completing the Law no. 571/2003 regarding the Fis- cal code, which will be applicable starting from the 1st of January 2008, the obligatorily taxing of the incomes realized through winning while playing casino type games and in electronic machines, until now untaxed incomes, was introduced. In the note that sustains this legislative measure, this modification is justified by the necessity of in- creasing the budgetary resources.

According to the stipulations of the Fiscal code applicable from 1st of January 2008 (art. 77 aliniat 2-4), the incomes from gambling will be taxed by retaining from the source, a 20% part applied to the net income that does not rise above 10.000 lei and 25% for the in- comes that rise above 10.000 lei, inclusively. The net income is calcu- lated at the level of the earnings realized during a day from the same gambling organizer or payer, the obligation of the calculation, retain- ing and transferring the tax being due to the incoming payers. There are not taxable the incomes under 600 lei obtained from gambling, re- alized by the tax payer from the same gambling organizers or payer in the same day.

Legal impediments oppose to the application of this legal stipula- tions. Thus, we note next to the representatives of the respective as- sociation, the lack of some methodological norms through which the Ministry of Economics and Finances can explain the way the tax for the incomes obtain from the prizes offered in casino type games and electronic playing machines can be collected from the source: daily or each time a person plays?

The taxation of these incomes is unbelievable even from a prac- tical point of view, because the income that goes into one player’s pocket in the casino type games and the electronic slot machines can not be quantified, it is impossible to track how much money came out of a pocket or is collected. Such a behavior would have as a consequence the bankruptcy of the gambling’s organizers, and the effect of the legislative measure would be contrary to the de- sired one.

The representatives of the respective association claim that they weren’t even consulted in elaborating the texts from the modified proj- ect that hints at them in the Fiscal Code, and the Ministry of Econom- ics and Finances did not refute this fact.