Hey, So i was thinking of adding a raffle to my site, which i know is illegal. From what i have read, it either has to be a non-profit type of thing or involve skill. Would this be a work around? Have the users choose the raffle they want to participate in, then have them (for this example the raffle ticket would cost $5) pay 5$ to play a mini game where the odds of winning are close to 100%, however if they do loose they get to play again. Then upon winning they get a "free" ticket. I feel like its a streatch but could bypass the law in this case. I would like somebody with more knowldage on the subject to put their .02 cents in THANKS!
I was in the same situation about 6 months ago. I wanted to run a gambling site, make money, and not get in trouble. So I made one and instead of letting users use real $$ I set it up to run with the Moola API (which uses advertisers money). Now it's a legal site that does everything that would normally be illegal. I recommend checking out the Moola API, It's pretty powerful and basically allows you to skate around law *disclaimer: not a real legal person
Yeah ive actually seen the moola api (i used it while in beta ). I was wondering specificly about the method where you have the users pay to play a game which is almost un-loosealbe and then upon winning they get the ticket... This would be a runaround for having the user buy a ticket for 5$ Would it work?
Need more peoples thoughts on this, I would like to get started as soon as i can ( without rushing, last thing i want is to get hunted by lawyers lol )
Your plan does not sound legal at all, at least not if your going to make this available in California.
That didnt really help browntwn... What's the reasoning behind that, maybe i can try and work around the law some more haha Thanks for the input, i need reasonings behind it tho
Correct. I believe you are allowed to do something like this. WAAAYYYY back when i was in high school. Our class had "Business Day". Where basically for a month you had to build your own small business. So some people did the odd chores thing. Others bought wholesale goods like junk food and sold at school. I remember at one point there was a massive talk about raffles not being allowed. But one group did do one. Cause they made it if you buy 3 chocolate bars, you go into the draw to win this massive tolberone bar. Not exactly similar, but you get the drift. This also happens in motorcycle clubs. Where they arent selling beer. They sale tickets. And exchange for the tickets, you can win a prize. That prize happens to be a beer or wine etc
None of your proposed ideas would make it legal. You really have a simple choice, don't do a raffle or do it knowing it is illegal and risk the consequences. Attempting to "outsmart" the law is silly, and this thread only serves as evidence of your effort. You should stick to trying to run a legal contest and not try to find a loophole in the laws against raffles. Search this forum and you should find several threads already on this topic which have links to all the relevant sources. While it may not seem like a big deal it is a serious issue to run illegal raffles in many states as those are typically reserved for charities.
i dont mean to seem like an ass but i couldnt find the reason WHY it was illegal.. I understand that running around the law is always not a good thing to do, except i dont have a great idea for a site that doesnt deal with raffles, my idea is directly pertaining to raffles. And if i do find a loophole, then its not illegal . You seem to know what your talking about, so could you point out where my idea is flawed (this might make it easier to find the answer i want) Raffles are gambling. If it is a game of skill it is NOT gambling aka not illegal. If i find a way to make somebody pay to play a game of skill ( completly legal ) and then GIVE them a FREE ticket for winning ( no pay entry, which i also read is legal ) then would that whole business idea be ILLEGAL or LEGAL ( why or why not ). Thanks for reply to this thread, its helping me alot in understanding the fine line with gambling and not.
You have done nothing to make it legal. People are still paying $5 to enter your raffle. Your proposed game where "the odds of winning are close to 100%, however if they do loose they get to play again". There is no game of skill. You are creating a sham game so you can sell illegal raffle tickets. It is a very transparent sham and will not provide you any additional protection. If you are still unclear I suggest you do some reading on the subject of raffles. If you are interested in running a legal contest you can read the link below for some guidance. http://www.dca.ca.gov/publications/legal_guides/u-3.shtml Sorry I can't be of more help but this topic comes up repeatedly and has been explained several times on this forum. I would do some searches for additional info. "What is a raffle? A raffle is a type of lottery in which prizes are awarded to people who pay for a chance to win. Each person enters the game of chance by submitting a detachable coupon or stub from the paper ticket purchased. A raffle must be conducted under the supervision of a natural person age 18 or older. At least 90 percent of the gross receipts from raffle ticket sales must be used by the eligible tax-exempt organization to benefit or support beneficial purposes in California. Groups are prohibited from awarding raffle prizes by use of a gaming machine, apparatus or device such as a slot machine. A raffle also may not be advertised, operated or conducted over the Internet. However, the organization conducting the raffle may place on its website an announcement of a raffle. See Penal Code section 320.5 and Statutes and Regulations." http://ag.ca.gov/charities/faq.php#raffles
After reading the rules from your link on the differences of raffles, sweepstakes, lotterys etc. if i do the following, i should be ok and not be crossing the line between raffle / gambling if I: - State all the rules, regulations, terms and conditions of the "game" or whatever i decide to call it. - State the maximum amount of money, including postage and handling fees, which a participant may be asked to pay upon winning the prize. - Start / End dates of the "competition" - State the exact method of picking the winner ( it will be fully automated by a custom algorithm ) - Have the user pay to play a game of skill, which is NOT blatently a bypass of the law, but simple enough that anyone of age and mental capacity can win. This would probably be a simple game that does involve skill, but not tricky enough to scare a user away. If they loose the game, tough loss. -Upon winning the game of skill, the user who sucessfully won will get a complimentary ticket into a specific "sweepstakes" -State the exact odds of winning the so called "raffle" ( 1:1000 etc. ) -Any user in the state of california may not HOLD a "sweepstakes" but they are able to participate in one. If they would like to HOLD a raffle, they need to register with the attourney generals office. (keep in mind i will be consulting a real lawyer before i do any of this, but i dont want to walk in there a fool and just get shot down and there goes my idea. I want to make sure that im on to something before i go through all the trouble)