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Will e-wagering Hurt Racetracks?

``According to technology experts on the final day of the Harness Racing Congress, the ability to bet on the Internet will be almost limitless.

``But for all the pizazz surrounding new technology and the easy access to betting it can provide, ...will fans bother coming to the track anymore.

``…While interactive television will allow people to watch and wager from home -- or anywhere -- this same technology will allow racetrack operators to identify their customers in ways never before possible. The idea is that such tracking can prevent under-age youths from access to e-wagering services.

``Likewise, bet tracking systems will be able to alert users as well as service providers about changes in betting patterns. Users will be able to set limits on themselves and, if necessary, get immediate help with problem gambling.

```The technology is already here today,' said Bergstein, the son of Harness Tracks of America executive vice president Stan Bergstein. `The question for racing is how to take advantage of it.'

``Getting people to still come out to the track and become fans of racing -- not just gamblers -- is the major goal behind the use of such technology.

``…If they like it, they'll come out and try the real thing, Bergstein added…"

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