In The News: International Gaming Institute
In today’s age, buying stocks, betting on sports, or even wagering on current geopolitical indicators like inflation or elections can all be done by a click of a button on your phone. So what is the line between investing and gambling? And who’s responsible when risk is gamified: the user, the platform, or regulators? For answers to these questions, we’re joined by Christopher S. Jones, chair of the Department of Finance and Business Economics at USC, and Brett Abarbanel, Executive Director at the UNLV International Gaming Institute.

Gaming revenue in the United States rose by 7.2% to hit $18.96 billion in the third quarter of 2025, marking the best quarter of revenue since 2022, according to the American Gaming Association’s latest Gaming Industry Outlook.
A huge source of income for Nevada is tourism and hospitality, focused mainly on casinos and hotels. A UNLV study has found that around 15% of Nevada’s residents have a problem with gambling. These residents are described as far more likely to suffer negative consequences due to their gambling compulsion.
Despite the gaming's near-omnipresence in our city (airports, grocery stores, and every corner bar), surprisingly little is known about the gambling habits of locals. That's changed with the release of a landmark study just released at UNLV that looked into the rates of problem gambling in Nevada — spoiler: it's a lot higher here than it is nationwide. Co-host Dayvid Figler talks with the study's author, Andrea Dassopoulos, about the study's surprising findings, who is at highest risk (it's not who you think), and what can be done.

The failure of Resorts World New York, a sister company of Resorts World Las Vegas, to disclose regulatory violations of money laundering in its New York casino application could jeopardize its effort to turn its electronic gaming establishment in Queens into a full-service casino.

The 19th International Conference on Gambling & Risk Taking will convene on May 26-29, 2026 at the Bellagio in Las Vegas. Also referred to as the Eadington Conference because it was founded by the late Dr. Bill Eadington in 1974. Eadington was the founding academic in gaming research and host this first-of-its-kind gathering, which has reconvened every three years. Since Eadington’s passing in 2013, UNLV’s International Gaming Institute has produced the conference. Brett Abarbanel, now in her third year as executive director of the IGI, is excited about the possibilities for next year’s event.

Days after he was charged in one of the National Basketball Association’s biggest gambling scandals, a Mississippi man was back on social media, offering up betting advice to his tens of thousands of followers.

Is cashless gaming a boon for casinos? Could it result in more problem gambling? There is no clear answer to either question, but those in the responsible gaming community are still concerned as the technology expands.

Dynamic pricing, a strategy used by airlines and resorts, adjusts prices based on demand, offering cheaper rates during low-demand periods.
A Las Vegas-based company recently unveiled new cashless gambling technology which would allow gamblers to connect slot machines directly to their bank account via QR code. So, ya know, what could possibly go wrong? Then again … is there an upside? Co-host Dayvid Figler is joined by gaming industry veteran and UNLV faculty member Alan Feldman and Josh Swissman, GMA Consulting Founding Partner and Gaming Industry Expert, for a spirited conversation about the pros and cons of making gambling easier than ever.
Artificial intelligence is a facet of technology in all of our lives and may be reshaping the gaming industry as we know it. From slot machines that track your every spin to surveillance cameras that can predict a fight before it happens, AI is finding its way into nearly every corner of the gambling world.

Las Vegas recently hosted approximately 100,000 guests, driven by major events such as NASCAR weekend at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway, the Raiders and UNLV Rebels games at Allegiant Stadium, and the Global Gaming Expo (G2E).