Online Gambling: Why don't all states allow cash games for skill based gaming?

Full Disclosure: I work for a company called Skillz which introduces skill-based cash tournaments for mobile games. This post is not intended for legal use nor should it be considered legal advice. When understanding the legality of skill-based gaming in the U.S., it’s important to first note that regulations have mainly been decided on the state level. In most states, determining whether a skill game that rewards cash prizes is permitted as opposed to prohibited is based on the relative degrees of skill and chance present in the game. The predominance test is the most commonly used indicator of whether a game is skill or chance based. Under this test, one must envision a continuum with pure skill on one end and pure chance on the other. On the continuum, games such as chess would be almost at the pure skill end, while traditional slot machines would be at the pure chance end. Between these ends of the spectrum lie many activities containing both elements of skill and chance. A game is classified as a game of skill if the game falls predominantly closer to the skill end of the continuum. The material element test is the second most commonly used test in the U.S. and is relied upon by 8 states to evaluate whether a game is skill or chance based. The test asks the question of whether chance plays a material role in determining a game’s outcome. As an example, in games like Minesweeper, a great deal of skill is generally exercised by players, but there are moments when players are forced to guess at random, with the results of that guess determining the winner and loser of the game. Skill predominates but chance plays the material role in determining the game’s outcome. Using these two tests, whether or not people can wager on games of skill varies from state to state. Some states mandate that skill be the deciding factor in the outcome of the game while other states only require that there be some small amount of skill involved in the game. Still other states do not take skill or chance into consideration at all, making allowances for neither. Although the distinctions between skill-based games and games of chance are clear - and the majority of U.S. states allow for competing in skill-based games for cash prizes- there are a few states that have not yet made it permissible, like Connecticut. That being said, the trend is certainly moving in the direction of broader legalization, as just last week Vermont legalized skill-based cash gaming. The real money skill-based gaming industry has been expanding in recent years, and now you can even play games for skill for cash on your smartphone or tablet. With the launch of Skillz last month, mobile games can be played for real money on the go. With a number of recent laws changing and the relaunch of http://UltimateBet.com in Nevada, hopefully we will have a robust public discourse over the future of real money gaming in the United States.Edit