BUSINESS & ECONOMY
Casinos face new regulations in Costa Rica
(Infocom) — A series of new guidelines, including an executive decree, are seeking to limit the operation of existing and new casinos in Costa Rica.
Restrictions recently announced by the government include the fact that casinos will only be allowed to open eight hours every day — a significant cutback from the 24-hour option currently permitted. The establishments also won’t be able to offer free drinks to players, and the casinos will be restricted from having direct access to the street.
Additionally, casinos will only be allowed to operate inside hotels that have at least a three-star classification and a minimum of 60 rooms.
The goal of these regulations is to keep Costa Rica from becoming a gambling hotspot, especially after Michael Boettcher, president of the well-known Russian casino chain Storm International, announced his interest in establishing operations here — shortly after Russia itself enacted legislation limiting the activities of casinos.
The new guidelines indicate that in hotels where casinos are established, the casino won’t be allowed to occupy more than 15 percent of the hotel’s total area. Plus there will have to be a proportional relation between the hotel’s total number of rooms and the number of tables and games in the casino. For example, a hotel with 60 rooms can install 10 tables and 60 slot machines. For every 10 additional rooms, the hotel will be allowed to add another table.
Moreover, casinos will be required to belong to the same individual or company that owns the hotel; the goal of this rule is to avoid the traffic of licenses, as established by an executive decree signed by the ministers of tourism, health and justice.
The new regulations recognize, for the first time, gambling addiction as a public health issue, banning the presence of minors in casinos.
In the case of non-compliance, hotels where casinos are located could face losing their tourism business certificates and the benefits that come with that. Also, the new laws require that the company owning the hotel be properly registered as an employer with the Costa Rican Social Security System (CCSS), be current with payment of taxes, and have its Ministry of Health’s permit current.
The new regulations will become effective once they are published in the official government newspaper, La Gaceta.
-----------------------------------
Rates for prepaid cell phone service approved
(Infocom) — The Public Services Regulatory Authority (ARESEP) has approved rates that will allow the Costa Rican Electricity Institute (ICE) to begin offering prepaid cellular telephone service through the GSM network.
The prepaid cell phone is a new option in the Costa Rican market, through which users pay a set amount of money in advance and can access the same services and capabilities of standard cell phone services. These include having a permanent cell phone number to make and receive calls, caller ID, private number, call redirecting, voice mail, call waiting, text messaging and cellular Internet, among others.
Customers can recharge their service by paying three different amounts: 2,500 colones ($5), 5,000 colones ($10) and 10,000 colones ($20). These amounts allow them to access phone services for 20, 45 and 60 days, respectively. Users are given a five-day grace period to recharge and use any leftover amount from previous recharges.
The rate authorization was published last April 11 in the official government newspaper, La Gaceta.
Regulator General Fernando Herrero explained that prepaid cell phones will allow lower-income people and tourists to have access to telecommunications services, becoming a good option to expand telephone accessibility in the country — this because users won’t have to pay a deposit (12,500 colones or $25) to acquire a prepaid line, like users of standard cell phone lines do.
Additionally, prepaid cell phones can become another substitute for landlines, providing the opportunity to improve mutual solidarity networks and access health services in emergency situations. “Everyone in the country should have access to a cell phone, and that’s why we are promoting this prepaid system,” Herrero said.
Since the prepaid service must offer the same conditions as the standard cell phones, the rates applied to both services are similar. Changes in the final cost of the prepaid cellular service will obey to charges related to service availability, access to the 911 emergency service, caller ID capabilities and sales tax.
To offer this service, ICE will need to assign any GSM lines available (whether by reclaiming delinquent accounts or by expanding the network) to the prepaid service mode, all along without subscribing more users than what current capabilities and licenses allow.
ICE must also allow any clients currently holding standard GSM cell phone lines to switch to the prepaid system should they wish to do so without any restriction, as long as the number of licensed lines is not exceeded. These individuals will get to keep the same phone number and will receive a reimbursement of their deposit.
Comments