What is a Casino?

A casino is a special place where people can come and play games of chance for money. Although other forms of entertainment like musical shows and restaurants help to bring in visitors, casinos would not exist without the huge profits generated by games of chance such as slot machines, blackjack, poker, roulette, craps, keno, and baccarat. These games have a built in advantage for the casino, which is known as the house edge. Over the course of a year, these edges add up to billions of dollars in profits for casinos.

Gambling has existed for thousands of years, with primitive protodice and carved six-sided dice found in many ancient archaeological sites [Source: Schwartz]. However, the idea of the modern casino as a place where patrons can find a variety of ways to gamble under one roof did not appear until the 16th century during a gambling craze in Europe. Italian aristocrats at the time often hosted gambling parties at their homes, which were called ridotti.

The casino concept spread to other parts of the world and in America, where each state regulates its own gambling laws. Casinos are often combined with hotels, restaurants, retail shopping, and other entertainment facilities to create complexes that are designed to appeal to a wide range of interests and tastes. The gambling industry also employs a number of security measures to protect patrons and their assets. For example, table games use chips instead of actual cash to prevent patrons from hiding or tampering with their bets. In addition, high-tech eye-in-the-sky systems allow surveillance personnel to monitor the entire casino from a control room filled with banks of security monitors.