In most states, playing slot machines online for real money is illegal. But a group of companies known as sweepstakes casinos has found a way around the law to let users play classic casino games online.
Their revenues have grown 10-fold in the last five years, and they’re now large enough to feature ads with Ryan Seacrest, Drake and Michael Phelps. Only recently have states like New York and Maryland contemplated restricting them, with billions of tax dollars at stake. But the loophole used by sweepstakes casinos complicates the states’ ability — and desire — to take action.
That loophole? The “no purchase necessary” rule that differentiates a legal sweepstakes from an illegal lottery.
