Crown Suspected in a Disguised Plot
7th February, 2008
It has been claimed that Crown could be using their latest offer of free bingo games and prizes to encourage people to play pokies and blackjack.
Russell Enders, Bingo Industry Association president, stated that Crown created the offer with a hidden agenda. He is sure that the casino wants to attract bingo players into the venue and tempt them with pokies and blackjack.
Here is what Mr Enders had to say about this: "Because of their size they can lure people in there to play bingo. That's fine but it will take them away from perhaps the more community-based bingo centers. Those players are going to have to come from somewhere. It would be a different atmosphere . . . when they play at local centres it's very much a community thing. They know exactly how much they're going to spend and they're probably sitting next to friends they sit with all the time."
Nevertheless, Crown’s spokesman Gary O’Neil, defended the casino, he said that the reaction from the bingo association was a huge overreaction.
Here is what he had to say: "If they had come to Crown and discussed it with us first, they would have realized that this is simply a short-term, marketing promotion for our Crown Club members. Crown is not setting up a bingo business."
