Solutions

Helping problem gamblers overcome addiction

Business Problem

Support a statewide initiative to address problem gambling

In accordance with recent regulations, the California Bureau of Gambling Control (BGC) administered a confidential list of self-excluded patrons for California card rooms.

Manual preparation

This list was maintained in Microsoft Excel format with bulletins manually prepared and mailed out to California casinos and card rooms.

Solution

Exclusion Management System (EMS) Web Application

The Exclusion Management System was developed to provide gaming entities, the Bureau of Gambling Control and the California Gaming Control Commission with a web based application to submit and access real time data on problem gamblers.

Web Interface

The secure web interface built for EMS allows on-line self exclusion and involuntary exclusion registration. Authorized system users can also view excluded patron's photos, print bulletins and record and share violations with all other gambling establishments and state agencies

Notifications

The Exclusion Management System (EMS) alerts the Bureau of Gambling Control BGC when a patron's term of exclusion is about to expire. This allows the BGC to notify the patron and encourage them to continue their recovery process. When a patron violates their exclusion by entering a gambling establishment, the EMS system will alert all gambling establishments within a certain distance of the establishment that a violation has taken place.

Real-Time

All updates are performed in real-time.

Secure

All data is encrypted, and all users are authenticated and authorized using the latest security technology.

CloverLeaf Added Value

CloverLeaf developed a state-of-the-art slide show of excluded patrons. We also incorporated a Jaro-Winkler matching algorithm to greatly enhance the patron search process. EMS also employs the latest in distance calculation procedures in order to alert local gambling establishments of any violations committed by patrons.

Benefits

Previously, all exclusions were made by sending paper documents (via US Mail or Fax) to the Bureau of Gambling Control, where staff would manually enter the data into an Excel spreadsheet. This process was inefficient, costly, backlogged, and prone to errors. EMS has eliminated the backlog, reduced the number of staff needed to process data, and greatly reduced errors that stemmed from illegible handwriting.

EMS has provided measurable cost savings to the State of California.