Casino Experts, Regulators to Explain Impact of AI, Biometrics and Big Data at UNLV Event

Posted on: December 12, 2019, 04:21h. 

Last updated on: December 12, 2019, 04:36h.

Ed Silverstein @casinoorgedsilv Read More

Expertise: Legal, Tribal Gaming.

UNLV Boyd School of Law will hold a cutting-edge conference next month on new trends in technology and how they impact the gambling sector. Called “Artificial Intelligence, Biometrics & Big Data in the Gaming Industry: An Analysis of Privacy Protections and Public Policy and Its Impact on Regulation” — the forum will take place Jan. 17 at the Las Vegas law school’s Thomas & Mack Moot Court Facility.

Conference participants will explain the technology. They will also discuss how it can be applied in security, surveillance, gaming, marketing and customer experiences.

The program will also focus on player privacy, as well as other legal and regulatory topics. These include current and proposed privacy laws and risks from data breaches, as well as issues when players do not consent to give private information for casino marketing or commercial efforts.

Lawyers, Industry Representatives to Speak

Several prominent attorneys and law professors will speak at the day-long program. Other participants include representatives from gaming sector companies.

These include Katie Lever, chief legal counsel for Drew Las Vegas, a casino and hotel now under construction, and Dan Cherry who works for Penn National Gaming.

Joe Bertolone, president, North America, Ainsworth Game Technology, is also among the speakers. So, too, is Kevin P. Mullally, vice president of government relations and general counsel for Gaming Laboratories International.

Also, Alan Feldman, chair of the National Center for Responsible Gaming as well as the Nevada Advisory Committee on Problem Gambling — as well as Distinguished Fellow of the International Gaming Institute at UNLV – will take part.

This conference … is different from typical gaming conferences,” Anthony Cabot, Distinguished Fellow of Gaming Law at the Boyd School of Law, told Casino.org. “Rather than being a collection of sessions loosely centered on the casino industry or gaming regulation, it concentrates on a single but potentially seismic topic to the gaming industry — artificial intelligence, biometrics, and the use of big data in the gaming industry.”

Among the concerns faced by the gambling sector is protection of data from breaches, says Cabot, who will also take part in the UNLV conference. Such incidents could harm casinos financially and hurt the perception of the industry, he explained.

“Moreover, the casino must understand the nature and impact of privacy laws and the restrictions that they place on [the] collection and use of patron information,” Cabot said. “Overall, the casinos are addressing these issues, but the expanded capabilities of artificial intelligence and biometrics present both new uses and new legal considerations.”

He said the casino sector has collected and analyzed data for several purposes. “Pit clerks would track a patron’s play for comp purposes and to pay junket representatives. And surveillance would observe the casino floor to look for cheaters or other undesirables,” Cabot said.

Best Practices Possible

As a result of the conference, the sector could come up with best practices for the gaming industry and model regulations. These may meet the goals of the casino industry, players, regulators, legislators and the general public, Cabot said.

For registration and more information, please click here.