Indian Gaming

An interview iwith Victor Rocha, the owner of Pechanga.net, about the inaugural Indian Country Online:

Becky Liggero: The tribes are very important to the gambling industry in the USA and that there are a lot of industry events scheduled year round for this group. Why did you decide to add an online gambling focused event to the list?

Victor Rocha: In business as in music, timing is everything. When we created Indian Country Online: The 2013 Congress, we expected some movement with online gaming in California. But with two bills in the legislature, and another bill being discussed among tribes, this issue is urgent now. Add the intertribal cooperation that didn’t exist last year, and even the card clubs would agree: there’s never been a better time for online gaming in California. And we’re right in the middle of it.

BL: Indeed you are. What are some of the biggest challenges that tribes face when it comes to the online gaming industry in the US?

VR: Tribes are challenged on the federal level with ensuring that those Members of Congress unfamiliar with tribes recognize the scope and influence of the tribal gaming industry, in terms of their percentage of the overall industry and their off-reservation economic impacts. Combined with the political sophistication of the tribal lobby, a federal bill will not get done without us. On the state side, tribes must deal with individual states’ willingness to engage in Internet gaming on any level – something many states are still coming to terms with at this point.

Get the Story:
Indian Country Online: Exclusive Interview with conference organizer Victor Rocha (CalvinAyre.Com 5/31)

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Victor Rocha: Come to the inaugural Indian Country Online (05/15)