When people think of casinos, they often picture bright lights and big money. While musical shows, lighted fountains and shopping centers all help draw in visitors, the vast majority of casino profits are from games of chance like slot machines, blackjack, baccarat, craps and poker. While a small amount of skill may be involved in these games, the house has a mathematical advantage in all of them. This edge, known as the house edge, is a key element of the casino business model.
Besides the gambling, casinos also provide food and beverage services for their guests. Some of these services are free, while others are charged at a premium. In addition, casinos offer a wide variety of entertainment options, from stage shows and dramatic scenery to themed restaurants. Whether or not casino patrons win or lose, these amenities can add up and make for an expensive night out.
Aside from entertainment and dining, casinos also bring in a lot of tax revenue that helps the local economy. This money enables cities and counties to provide essential services, avoid cuts in other areas of the budget, or even fund new projects.
Casinos also employ a large number of workers. These include security personnel, dealers and other employees. These employees keep an eye on everything going on in the gaming rooms, including cheating (palming, marking or switching cards, and changing dice). They use cameras positioned throughout the casino to monitor tables and change windows. In more advanced casinos, these cameras are connected to a system that provides a high-tech eye-in-the-sky to be monitored by security staff in a separate room filled with banks of security monitors.
