Age Is Not a Factor: 2

The report released at the end of November 2008 by the Annenberg Adolescent Risk Communication Institute shows us that age is not necessarily as big of an issue when it comes to online casinos. The legislators in the United States have built many arguments against the online casino industry in their attempts to protect the youth of America from being lured into the world of internet gambling. The statistics released this year reveal that online casino playing amongst the 14-22 age range has leveled off in the past two years. The players that are able to gamble on internet gambling websites in the US often pay for their ability to play through third party payment websites. This is sure to make all of the arguments in the US legislation more interesting this year.

The study projects that the number of United States citizens that participate in online casino play from the ages of 14-22 is more than 300,000. The numbers go up even higher when you talk about the projected 700,000 who do it at least once a month. What the study fails to provide is a distinction between the players that are below the age of eighteen, the minimum age required to gamble in the United States. The most recent additions to the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act did not have an affect on the 2008 results, it is yet to be seen how they will affect the online casino industry in 2009. The people who conduct the study also inform the subjects of the risks associated with gambling at online casinos.

The report notes that there was an increase in online casino gambling by young males as opposed to young females. In fact, 48 percent of the young men surveyed said that they play at an online casino at least once a month as opposed to the women who only accounted for 25 percent. Women were more likely to play card games in person than at an online casino, less than one percent reported playing online on a regular basis. This leads the researchers to conclude that the rate of gambling addiction in the United States remains at a low 1 percent.