A casino is a place where people gamble. Casinos are often built near or combined with hotels, restaurants, retail shops, and other attractions. There are more than 3,000 legal casinos in the world. They are regulated by governments and have security measures to prevent cheating and theft. Casinos are also known for their shows and fine dining. People visit them to win money and experience the thrill they see portrayed in movies.
Something about gambling—maybe it’s the large amounts of money involved—seems to encourage cheating and stealing, either in collusion or independently. Casinos spend a lot of time and money on security measures to prevent these kinds of incidents. A typical casino has a physical security force and a specialized surveillance department. The latter uses cameras that are located throughout the facility and can be adjusted to focus on suspicious patrons. These “eyes-in-the-sky” can be monitored by casino workers in a room filled with bank after bank of security monitors.
Every game in a casino has a mathematically determined advantage for the house, which can be very small, but over millions of bets it adds up to significant profits. In addition to the edge from games of chance, casinos collect fees for services such as delivering chips, handling bets and collecting winnings. These fees are called the vig or the rake, and they contribute to the casino’s gross profit. In addition, casinos give out free goods and services to their best patrons, such as food and drinks. This is known as comping.