I work in the gaming industry and we’re told that we’re in the clear as long as nobody is taking a cut of the profits. A $20 bet must be paid in full and not subject to a vig. Same with home poker games and rake.
The market price is the point where supply meets demand in the aggregate, not what a single buyer pays a single seller. However, I agree on the point that we need to know whether the buyers in this case were paying more than they would have paid for comparable goods at other stores in the area, or at the same store when the promotion was not in effect.
Well, I can’t comment on the laws of Washington, but I know in most other places it doesn’t work like that.
By “gaming industry” do you mean state run gaming, indian casinos, or is there private gaming there? I spent some time in Washington but didn’t do any gambling.
In fact, my wife and I were in Kennewick for about half a day in June of 2005.
Private. I don’t know of a law that allows it, but that’s just what we’re told and nobody’s mentioned anything wrong about it. The only people I know that have gotten in trouble were making bets with either a bookie or online.