Translated material
90% luck
The Federal Tax Service will force slot machines to play along with customers more often
Hitting a jackpot may soon become a very real prospect for those who want to spend money in a gambling hall. Slot machines installed in casinos and gambling halls will be checked by tax authorities for the average winning percentage. True, the introduction of such control measures can lead to unexpected consequences for the inspectors themselves - the involvement of new participants in gambling.The law on state regulation of activities related to the organization and conduct of gambling, which came into force in the new year, among other restrictions, allows the use only of slot machines where the average technical winning percentage is not lower than 90%. Compliance with the norms laid down in the law will be checked by tax authorities, as the Ministry of Finance reminded in a letter to the Federal Tax Service (FTS). Since January 1, 2007, the Federal Tax Service has been vested with the right to check the technical condition of gaming equipment, including the right to check the technically established average percentage of winnings of slot machines. Tax officials can also petition to close a gambling establishment that does not comply with the law.
It is no secret that almost the absolute majority of automatic bollards installed on the streets, in shops and at public transport stops have been reprogrammed. They managed to win only a very small amount, and even then they lost ten times more. The only exceptions were gambling halls at large casinos, where the winning level set by the manufacturers was 70-80%.
The new rules automatically subject both reprogrammed machines and slot machines in gambling halls to liquidation. The owner of the machine will be required to provide the inspectors with a document or certificate confirming the level of the technically established average winning percentage. A separate line in the document must also indicate confirmation of the fact that the machine’s software does not contain any undeclared capabilities to change the winning percentage during its operation.
Now all slot machine owners will have to either change their equipment if the software firmware does not allow them to correct the initially set winning percentage, or receive a new certificate after passing an examination. As market participants say, the situation is complicated because in Russia there are only three institutes authorized to carry out such certification. It is not yet possible to predict how long it will take to reissue the certificate.
Domestic equipment manufacturers have already confirmed their readiness to supply machines with certificates that meet the requirements of the new law. If the device was purchased on the Russian market, then it can be easily configured to achieve the 90% winning level required to comply with the law and obtain the necessary certificate, the manufacturers say. Another thing is that in Russia, especially in the outback, there are many gaming machines in use that were purchased in China and do not comply with Russian law. All these devices must be taken out of service.
On the one hand, the elimination of devices with “fixed” software fits well into the framework of the consolidation of the gambling business and the fight against “street gambling” declared by the state. Control over machine guns will probably achieve these goals. On the other hand, according to many psychologists, the consciousness of a player, especially a child or a poor person who plays to get money, is arranged in a paradoxical way - knowing that the machine is more likely to give out a win, the person will play more often and more actively. So tax officials may unwittingly contribute to the influx of customers to gambling establishments.