Pennsylvania Operators Unhappy with State's New iLottery Games

Pennsylvania gambling operators and casino owners are up in arms over the state’s new ilottery games, which are actually run by the State of Pennsylvania. They say that the new games are not only unlawful, they represent unfair competition from the folks who wrote the state’s over-the-top online gambling rules and regulations.
At issue is a suite of online games that include titles such as, Cash Buster Towers, Crossword Cash, Monster Wins, Super Gems, Big Money Slingo, Foxin’ Wins, Cash in the Lamp, Big Foot Reveal, Robin Hood Reveal, Super Cash Buster, and Volcano. These games, according to the casino operators, are too much like traditional slots and table games and violate the spirits of the state’s online gambling rules.
Those rules include clauses that specifically prevent the state’s lottery from producing, “…games which simulate casino-style lottery games, specifically including roulette, poker, slot machines or black jack.” It should also be noted that those same regulations include a whopping 54 percent tax that has, so far, prevented any operators from setting up their online shops in Pennsylvania.
In a letter to Pennsylvania Governor Thomas Wolfe, the casino operators explained their grievances against the ilottery games saying, “If these same individuals tried to play the same games at our casinos… the players would be prosecuted and placed on the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board’s exclusion list, while we would face tens of thousands of dollars in PGCB-imposed fines.”
Neither Pennsylvania’s Governor nor any any member’s of the state’s gambling commissions have commented on the ilottery issue or responded to the letter in any way.