Category Archives: Online Gambling

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Cryptocurrency and blockchain technologies have had a significant impact on the development of the iGaming industry and online betting particularly in recent years. The first to see the potential of cryptocurrencies in gambling was SOFTSWISS, an international company with Belarusian roots.

SOFTSWISS as a fast growing company has always been interested in new technology and innovation. We had been closely following the development of cryptocurrency since 2011, says Ivan Montik, the Founder of SOFTSWISS. We had a fairly young company at the time and an equally ambitious team. So we decided to focus on developing crypto solutions for classic casino and in the spring of 2013 added special features for the SOFTSWISS Online Casino Platform and processing for bitcoin gambling. There was nothing like it on the market at that time except for a few one-page dice games.

SOFTSWISS was the first in the world to offer the B2B market a turnkey crypto solution for running a casino. This coincided with the crisis in Cyprus, when bitcoin showed serious growth and drew attention as an interesting tool not only for geeks and IT professionals, but also for businesses. However, in iGaming cryptocurrency was still considered a dark horse. Even the seasoned players of the gambling industry did not know or understand the full potential of the new currency at the time.

Initially, SOFTSWISS was the first to introduce bitcoin and blockchain into the operation of gambling, notes Andrey Starovoitov, Chief Operating Office at SOFTSWISS. It was SOFTSWISS that first recommended providers to include cryptocurrencies in the list of currencies available in casino games to accept bets.

We were the ones who first sponsored and helped organise the bitcoin seminar at the ICE Totally Gaming conference in London in 2014, where there were panel discussions and I spoke to the iGaming guys, Ivan continues. We tried to tell the industry that it was cool and to open their eyes to the fact that cryptocurrencies were the future of iGaming. The main objective was to convince providers to add bitcoin as a full-fledged betting currency without exchanging it for euros.

The pioneers in crypto gambling were Bitstarz, 7Bit Casino and BetChain, well-known and successful companies now. These were the first brands to start taking bets in bitcoin, taking advantage of the SOFTSWISS Online Casino Platform and cryptocurrency solution.

This segment of the casino industry existed separately for a long time, until the year 2020-2021 when a radical change occurred. This is when so-called dice sites, which were not online casinos in the classical sense, but offered players their in-house developed games: roulette, crash games, etc., came into the limelight. One of the important components of these companies was the provably fair feature, based on cryptographic algorithms, which allowed players to verify the outcome of a bet. Among them were crypto gambling giants such as Stake and BC.Game.

Dice sites have long been known in the industry, but have always had an isolated place amongst other iGaming projects. We saw great potential in collaborating with them and expanding their gaming content. So we decided to use the knowledge we already had and offer them a complete ecosystem of products, including Game Aggregator, Affilka and Sportsbook. So in 2020 the SOFTSWISS Game Aggregator partnered with several new crypto projects Stake .com, Roobet, BC.Game, Rollbit. Their performance has been staggering. In the first few months, the count was in the millions of GGR. There is no other example in my practice of gaining momentum and showing such rapid growth, says Andrey.

We started communicating with them, offering to diversify their content with SOFTSWISS, adding to their existing games hundreds of new brands, brought together in the SOFTSWISS Game Aggregator. We had a large set of providers that, thanks to their cooperation with SOFTSWISS, were open to cryptocurrency betting. So since our partnership, crypto betting rates have been breaking one record after another, adds Ivan.

One of the benefits of the dice sites has been the use of more effective marketing tools borrowed primarily from cybersports (CS:GO, Dota 2). Created by guys who knew these games and their audience from the inside, they offered the younger generation exactly what they wanted: engagement, demonstration of skills and elements of competition with rivals, rather than slots that produce results you cannot influence. New brands have learned how to attract and retain this audience in online casinos through new formats, gamification and niche social platforms such as Twitch streaming.

We are seeing a landmark shift in the gambling audience. It is getting younger whereas classic casino brands are mainly geared towards the mature player. The competitive element is very much in favour of and attracts the younger generation, Andrey concludes. It can be easily seen by the popularity of eSports and games where several people can play at the same time. And while marketing experts in many companies are struggling with the question of how to attract a young audience, the new brands have already found a way to do it.

What we are seeing now is the second wave of crypto gambling that has already come to us. Cryptocurrencies and blockchain are the reality that can no longer be denied. There are still a lot of opportunities for development in this field. Unfortunately, there is often no space for innovation due to strict licensing and regulation. And that leaves the entire industry at a disadvantage. But SOFTSWISS already offers innovative and unparalleled solutions for crypto gambling. You just have to take advantage of them if you want to be on the crest of the new wave, rather than watching the most interesting things unfold from the shore.

Related

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The future of crypto gambling: how SOFTSWISS is driving the iGaming industry forward - European Gaming Industry News

West Ham's 'colouring in' page has a direct link in the top left hand corner to its gambling sponsor's website

The Gambling Commission says it will investigate how seven Premier League and Championship clubs had direct links to betting sites from children's pages of their websites.

BBC Sport contacted top-flight clubs Arsenal, Tottenham, West Ham and Aston Villa, plus Championship clubs QPR, Millwall and Reading, to inform them of the links, which contravene the regulatory body's rules.

The links appeared at the bottom of their junior membership and games pages, and have since been taken down.

In some cases the links clicked through to offers of free bets.

But at the time of publication there is still a direct link to West Ham's gambling sponsor on its children's 'colouring in' page which has pictures of a teddy bear, the club mascot and former captain Bobby Moore.

The sponsor features on a banner across every page of its website.

The Gambling Commission said it would be "looking into the matter raised".

It added: "Gambling advertising and sponsor credits must not appear on any web pages that are directed at under-18s.

"Sports teams should be ensuring that all content on such webpages is appropriate for children, and we expect gambling companies to take responsibility for where their adverts and logos appear."

Campaign group The Big Step, part of the charity Gambling with Lives, said: "The junior section of a club website should be a safe place for children to engage with their club - not be one click away from an online gambling site.

"Most clubs thankfully don't have any gambling links on pages targeted at children and although it's welcome clubs have now acted after pressure, the damage has already been done."

A similar issue was highlighted by the BBC 5 Live Investigates programme in 2018, when 15 British clubs had links to betting websites from their junior pages.

West Ham, Tottenham, Aston Villa, QPR, Millwall and Reading said the links at the bottom of some of its junior pages were made in error.

Arsenal said the list of sponsors only appeared on its junior membership programme, which was "aimed at parents who want to sign their children up" but "took its responsibilities with regard to marketing to children very seriously" and removed the links "to avoid future confusion".

A Tottenham spokesperson said: "We sincerely regret this error and have adjusted our practices to ensure this does not happen again. We apologise for any offence caused."

QPR said: "The club appreciates this issue being raised. The link has subsequently been removed and an internal investigation will now take place to understand how this has happened and to ensure it does not occur again."

The Big Step added: "With 55,000 children already addicted to gambling, this is another awful example of how football is normalising gambling to a generation of young fans."

Read more:

Gambling links from children's pages on club websites to be investigated - BBC Sport

Posted on: November 5, 2021, 12:21h.

Last updated on: November 5, 2021, 11:22h.

Election Day 2021 featured two major questions that stood to impact the US gaming industry. But each ballot referendum was rejected by voters, which begs the question, Why?

While Casino.org doesnt have all the answers, we dug deep to better understand why voters in Richmond rejected the $565 million ONE Casino + Resort proposal for the Virginia capital, and why New Jerseyans opted not to further expand sports betting.

Virginia legalized commercial gambling last year by way of a bill designed to spur economic activity in distressed cities. Five cities qualified to ask constituents whether they support using a commercial casino resort as a means to bring their towns new jobs and generate additional tax revenue.

Norfolk, Portsmouth, Bristol, and Danville each passed local casino referendums during the 2020 election. And all four cities did so convincingly.

Richmond opted to wait a year because of considerable interest from casino companies.

The capital ultimately received six bids, including proposals from nationally known companies, such as Golden Nugget and Ballys. The Cordish Companies and its Live! casino brand also bid, as did Wind Creek Hospitality, the Pamunkey Indian Tribe, and Urban One.

The pitches garnered strong feedback, with more affluent communities in the capital region largely opposing a casino in their neighborhoods. Race was injected into the matter when flyers opposing the Cordish $600 million blueprint for the historic Scotts Addition neighborhood were passed around.

More traffic. Higher crime. Lower quality of life for us. Tell them to build it over there, read the flyer, which led many to question where over there is.

Richmond, through its Resort Casino Evaluation Panel, ultimately went with Urban One, a Black-owned media conglomerate with no experience operating a casino or a resort. Urban One partnered with Peninsula Pacific Entertainment, an experienced casino operator, to help guide the project. The $565 million undertaking was set to be built next to the Philip Morris tobacco plant and was to be the first Black-owned casino in the history of the United States.

Richmond residents cast 78,381 votes on the governors race. The city gubernatorial vote went vastly in favor of Democratic candidate Terry McAuliffe, who lent his support to ONE Casino. The former governor received more than 77 percent of the vote in Richmond but lost statewide to Republican newcomer Glenn Youngkin.

As for the casino question, 77,823 Richmonders weighed in. A little more than 51 percent voted no to deny Urban Ones casino ambitions.

Analyzing the voting data, the majority of the no vote came north of the James River where the majority of Richmonds wealthier neighborhoods are located. Though they still voted heavily Democrat and backed McAuliffe who endorsed the casino that demographic overwhelmingly went against the gambling initiative.

Despite support from celebrities, including Missy Elliott and Jamie Foxx, the casino question was defeated.

Concerns were raised, including increased crime, traffic, and doubts that the project would lead to other economic development in the area, which is among Richmonds more impoverished districts, explained Kate Andrews, deputy editor of Virginia Business.

On social media, many gave their own opinions as to why ONE Casino failed.

In May 2020, Peninsula Pacific Entertainment, the entity that will supposedly create 4,500 jobs in Richmond, closed their casino in Bossier City, Louisiana, laying off over 400 people. This even though other local casinos reopened:https://t.co/IlW0iDMz5p

Michael Gryboski (@MichaelGryboski) November 1, 2021

I wonder if missy elliot knew how Radio One fought against economic empowerment for black musicians when they opposed Congress bill HR848 if shed still be recording these videos for yall? https://t.co/ZdJN8i7907

ChipmanForRichmond (@MrLegacyJones) November 1, 2021

I'm not going to tell you who to vote for, but if you are a Richmond voter, please vote against the casino. It's one of the few times you can actually vote against the interests of large corporations.

Goad Gatsby (@GoadGatsby) October 30, 2021

New Jersey oddsmakers take more legal bets on sports each month than any other state with regulated sports wagering. Licensed oddsmakers in New Jersey, both retail and online, took almost $6 billion in sports bets in 2020.

To help New Jersey sustain its front-runner position, industry stakeholders argued that the ban on college sports betting involving state schools or taking place within the state must be repealed.

New Jerseyans were presented with the opportunity to do so on Election Day. But 57 percent more than 1.1 million voters responded No to allowing oddsmakers to take bets on Rutgers, Seton Hall, Princeton, and other New Jersey-based universities.

One potential concern with lifting the ban may have been that college athletes would feel more pressure and/or face more scrutiny on social media because of the added attention and money involved, explained Jane Bokunewicz, director of Stockton Universitys Lloyd D. Levenson Institute of Gaming, Hospitality and Tourism. This is something that professional athletes have faced, with some questioning whether sports betting was a contributing factor.

Though the gaming industry hoped the sports betting expansion question would pass, political pundits believe the absence of any real campaign to get out the message ultimately led to its failure.

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Election Day Explainer: Why Richmond Casino, NJ Sports Betting Questions... - Casino.Org News

It seemed like sports betting in Ohio was almost figured out around this time last year. Late changes and failed negotiations turned it into an issue for this year, though.

Ohio-based bettors are hoping for better news this year, which could come as soon as this week. Thats according to Sen. Kirk Schuring during an interview with 1480 WHBC last week:

We are getting closer. So heres what I would tell you: if we can get this meeting with (House) Speaker (Bob) Cupp this week, the conference committee should be able to do something as early as next week.

Neither Cupp nor Sen. President Matt Huffmans offices would confirm or deny if the meeting happened when contacted by LSR Friday morning.

One thing is definite: online Ohio sportsbooks will launch later than the Senate previously wanted if a bill passes at this point.

The Senates current pitch includes the application period opening Feb. 15 because it takes 90 days for legislation to go into law after Gov. Mike DeWine signs it. Those applications would be approved or disapproved no later than April 30.

Ohio sports betting could have started April 1 if it were legalized over the summer.

That means just like last year, bettors must flock to the neighboring legal states to place their March Madness bets.

There is no question Ohio is feeding the legal sports betting markets around it for NFL betting as well this year. Pennsylvania sportsbooks and Michigan sportsbooks ranked second and third in online gambling transactions through the first four weeks of the NFL season.

There are plenty of familiar names appointed to the conference committee that will hammer out the final details if Cupp and Huffman come to an agreement.

Senators Schuring, Nathan Manning and Cecil Thomas will represent the Senate. All were involved in the multiple hearings held on OH sports betting earlier in the year.

Representatives Jay Edwards, Bill Seitz and Adam Miller will negotiate for the House.

Notably missing is Sen. Niraj Antani, a co-sponsor of SB 176 who promised an Ohio resident he could come yell at Antani if sports betting was not figured out by June 30.

Go here to see the original:

Could Ohio Sports Betting Bill Action Finally Restart This Week? - Legal Sports Report

news, latest-news, online gambling, gambling tax, gambling ads, Virtual Gaming Worlds, sportsbet

This week, an Australian gaming giant found its way into the finance pages of our major newspapers. And no, it wasn't the well-known casino company you're thinking. It was the virtually-unknown Virtual Gaming Worlds. More profitable than the highly-regard Canva and Atlassian, Virtual Gaming Worlds has a valuation of $3.38 billion. VGW is now being touted by some as Australia's most successful "unicorn", and is reportedly considering a North American IPO. For its predominantly North American customers, VGW mimics the casino experience by providing online poker machines, online poker and online blackjack, online scratchies and online sports wagering. Real money buys virtual coins. After winning, those virtual coins can be redeemed for cash - the same way chips work at a bricks-and-mortar casino. In 2021, VGW's profitability grew 300 per cent to $294 million. Revenue grew 200 per cent to $2.22 billion. This phenomenal growth demonstrates just how favourable the coronavirus-induced lockdowns and restrictions have been for online gaming companies all over the world. While their bricks-and-mortar competitors have been forcibly closed by government decree, online gambling has boomed. Closer to home, we need only look at wagering giant Sportsbet's recent self-congratulatory Investor Day to see evidence of this impact being replicated. Sportsbet - owned by Dublin-based Flutter Entertainment - made more profit in the past six months than throughout all of 2019. It made a whopping $710 million in profit in the last year. Together, foreign-owned online bookmakers such as Neds, Ladbrokes and Sportsbet shipped $1 billion in super-profits overseas during 2020. The online bookmakers have an intimidating advertising war-chest with which to bombard us, spending $271 million in the last year to convince Australians to bet online. We all know the ads; blokey, jocular, unrelenting, and strategically targeted at 18- to 34-year-old males - the demographic proven to be most at risk from online gambling harm. The online bookmakers' insidious use of this war-chest to target customers of pubs, clubs and TABs who couldn't place a bet on the sport or horses because of lockdown has paid off. According to the Australian Gambling Research Centre, one in three survey participants had signed up for a new online betting account during COVID-19. Unlike your local pub, online betting apps have no closing time, no prohibition on betting with credit cards and no trained staff checking in on punters in real time. READ MORE: This means online gambling harm in the ACT is happening around the clock, on borrowed money, and in secret. Most Australians understand how damaging online gambling can be. Polling shows 50 per cent of Australians loathe online gambling, and 70 per cent of Australians think the online gambling giants should be taxed more. Gambling taxes, along with beer taxes and cigarette taxes, are part of the suite of "sin taxes" governments have at their disposal to nourish their increasingly stressed budgets. Government budgets across the country (perhaps excluding Western Australia) have been seriously whacked by funding the health and economic responses to the COVID-19 pandemic. A stubby of beer is taxed at about 40 per cent. A packet of cigarettes is taxed higher than 40 per cent. By comparison, online gambling is only taxed at 15 per cent. A progressive taxation system demands those who can afford to pay more, do pay more, especially when business is booming. The online gambling giants can afford to pay more tax; Sportsbet's chief financial officer Nathan Arundell has admitted profitability didn't skip a beat when online betting taxes were first levied in 2019. We shouldn't tolerate foreign companies extracting super profits from our communities by inflicting online gambling harm, meanwhile blasting the rest of us (and our children) with irritating advertising. The Commonwealth should urgently change the advertising laws to prohibit online gambling advertising, just as tobacco advertising has been banned for decades. In the meantime, the ACT government - as well as state governments around the country - should also step up in the next mid-year economic and fiscal outlook and increase the betting operations tax to 20 per cent. It's only a gentle increase, but a sensible first step that would increase the return to the territory government by $5 million annually. If not, the online gambling giants will continue to pump this money into unyielding advertising campaigns. Canberrans will continue to miss out on their fair share, as will regional communities in NSW, Victoria, Queensland and South Australia, because governments around the country refuse to appropriately tax the super-profits of foreign-owned online gambling behemoths.

/images/transform/v1/crop/frm/RXMuw2JbrrS7ELSxSY9rkR/9864344f-d322-4420-a770-d9b8313b003d.jpg/r2_149_6715_3942_w1200_h678_fmax.jpg

OPINION

November 1 2021 - 5:30AM

This week, an Australian gaming giant found its way into the finance pages of our major newspapers.

And no, it wasn't the well-known casino company you're thinking.

It was the virtually-unknown Virtual Gaming Worlds.

More profitable than the highly-regard Canva and Atlassian, Virtual Gaming Worlds has a valuation of $3.38 billion. VGW is now being touted by some as Australia's most successful "unicorn", and is reportedly considering a North American IPO.

For its predominantly North American customers, VGW mimics the casino experience by providing online poker machines, online poker and online blackjack, online scratchies and online sports wagering.

Real money buys virtual coins. After winning, those virtual coins can be redeemed for cash - the same way chips work at a bricks-and-mortar casino.

In 2021, VGW's profitability grew 300 per cent to $294 million. Revenue grew 200 per cent to $2.22 billion.

This phenomenal growth demonstrates just how favourable the coronavirus-induced lockdowns and restrictions have been for online gaming companies all over the world. While their bricks-and-mortar competitors have been forcibly closed by government decree, online gambling has boomed.

Closer to home, we need only look at wagering giant Sportsbet's recent self-congratulatory Investor Day to see evidence of this impact being replicated. Sportsbet - owned by Dublin-based Flutter Entertainment - made more profit in the past six months than throughout all of 2019. It made a whopping $710 million in profit in the last year. Together, foreign-owned online bookmakers such as Neds, Ladbrokes and Sportsbet shipped $1 billion in super-profits overseas during 2020.

The online bookmakers have an intimidating advertising war-chest with which to bombard us, spending $271 million in the last year to convince Australians to bet online. We all know the ads; blokey, jocular, unrelenting, and strategically targeted at 18- to 34-year-old males - the demographic proven to be most at risk from online gambling harm.

The online bookmakers' insidious use of this war-chest to target customers of pubs, clubs and TABs who couldn't place a bet on the sport or horses because of lockdown has paid off. According to the Australian Gambling Research Centre, one in three survey participants had signed up for a new online betting account during COVID-19.

Unlike your local pub, online betting apps have no closing time, no prohibition on betting with credit cards and no trained staff checking in on punters in real time.

This means online gambling harm in the ACT is happening around the clock, on borrowed money, and in secret.

Most Australians understand how damaging online gambling can be. Polling shows 50 per cent of Australians loathe online gambling, and 70 per cent of Australians think the online gambling giants should be taxed more.

Gambling taxes, along with beer taxes and cigarette taxes, are part of the suite of "sin taxes" governments have at their disposal to nourish their increasingly stressed budgets. Government budgets across the country (perhaps excluding Western Australia) have been seriously whacked by funding the health and economic responses to the COVID-19 pandemic.

A stubby of beer is taxed at about 40 per cent. A packet of cigarettes is taxed higher than 40 per cent. By comparison, online gambling is only taxed at 15 per cent.

A progressive taxation system demands those who can afford to pay more, do pay more, especially when business is booming. The online gambling giants can afford to pay more tax; Sportsbet's chief financial officer Nathan Arundell has admitted profitability didn't skip a beat when online betting taxes were first levied in 2019.

We shouldn't tolerate foreign companies extracting super profits from our communities by inflicting online gambling harm, meanwhile blasting the rest of us (and our children) with irritating advertising. The Commonwealth should urgently change the advertising laws to prohibit online gambling advertising, just as tobacco advertising has been banned for decades.

In the meantime, the ACT government - as well as state governments around the country - should also step up in the next mid-year economic and fiscal outlook and increase the betting operations tax to 20 per cent. It's only a gentle increase, but a sensible first step that would increase the return to the territory government by $5 million annually.

If not, the online gambling giants will continue to pump this money into unyielding advertising campaigns. Canberrans will continue to miss out on their fair share, as will regional communities in NSW, Victoria, Queensland and South Australia, because governments around the country refuse to appropriately tax the super-profits of foreign-owned online gambling behemoths.

More:

Online gambling companies need to be taxed for community harm - The Canberra Times

Detailed study and analysis of the Global Online Gambling Market highlights new trends in the Online Gambling industry and provides companies with trading insights. This study helps manufacturers, suppliers and investors, CEOs to identify opportunities and business optimization strategies to improve their value in the global Online Gambling market. Provides important information for well-known companies that are one of the top performing companies. The report provides comprehensive coverage of existing and potential markets as well as an assessment of competitiveness in changing market scenarios.

The report also presents data in the form of charts, tables and figures together with contact details and sales contact information for the major market players in the global market. There is a detailed overview of the competitive landscape of the global Online Gambling industry, with all the information gathered and deepened with the SWOT analysis. Opportunities for potential industrial growth have been discovered and the competition risks involved have also been structured.

Get FREE Sample copy of this Report with Graphs and Charts at:https://reportsglobe.com/download-sample/?rid=87378

Online Gambling Market Segmentation:

Online Gambling Market, By Device (2016-2027)

Online Gambling Market, By Type (2016-2027)

Online Gambling Market, By Region (2016-2027)

Major Players Operating in the Online Gambling Market:

This report includes the estimation of market size for value (million USD) and volume (K Units). Both top-down and bottom-up approaches have been used to estimate and validate the market size of Online Gambling market, to estimate the size of various other dependent submarkets in the overall market. Key players in the market have been identified through secondary research, and their market shares have been determined through primary and secondary research. All percentage shares, splits, and breakdowns have been determined using secondary sources and verified primary sources.

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What to expect from the report?

The Online Gambling Industry focuses on major leading industry players providing information such as company profiles, product picture and specification, capacity, production, price, cost, revenue and contact information. Upstream raw materials and equipment and downstream demand analysis is also carried out. The Online Gambling industry development trends and marketing channels are analyzed. Finally the feasibility of new investment projects are assessed and overall research conclusions offered. With the tables and figures the report provides key statistics on the state of the industry and is a valuable source of guidance and direction for companies and individuals interested in the market.

The Study Objectives are:

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Global Online Gambling Market 2021 Future Set to Massive Growth with High CAGR value | Market Players: Betsson AB, Paddy Power Betfair PLC, Bet365...

Robin Thicke has largely disappeared from the public spotlight.

(Beyond a few lawsuits, at least )

The lines between fantasy sports and sports betting, however, continue to be blurred in todays environment.

Back in 2014when daily fantasy sports first became a part of the American sports ethos, many people noted the similarities between daily fantasy sports and what most thought of as sports gambling.

Given that daily fantasy sports emerged at a time where sports gambling existed primarily in markets that were inaccessible to most Americans, the chance to participate in something that looked more like sports betting than previous iterations of fantasy sports, naturally, drew significant interest from sports fans.

Now, many have access to both. Regulators should ensure that operators on both sides of the sports betting boundary are operating within the law. Failing to stop fantasy operators who step across the parameters punishes the operators who play within the rules.

Much of the country has worked diligently to set up a regulated sports betting environment. One of the responsibilities of regulators is to protect the value of those licenses.

The most efficient way of doing that is going after people who are operating sports betting products without a license, even if they are branding them as fantasy or DFS.

Despite what is now almost certainly hundreds of millions of dollars spent on marketing, fantasy sports were always a type of sports betting. Even if you want to argue that there was skill involved in fantasy sports (season-long or daily, take your pick,) both were a type of sports betting.

Fantasy sports, however, were long viewed as the safe or family-friendly version of sports betting; after all, at least some of the sports leagues thought no one would ever fix a game over a fantasy contest.

That might well be true. The economics would not make much sense barring an incredibly high-stakes fantasy contest. Fantasy sports were not only treated as a special category of sports gambling when the sports leagues opposed traditional sports betting, but the sports leagues knew that fantasy players were amongst the leagues most hardcore fans.

Leagues saw fantasy sports as a pathway to connect to new generations of fans, sponsoring school programs that taught math skills through fantasy sports-type games.

When Congress began taking aim at online gambling with sports betting being a primary focus, fantasy sports quickly became regarded as an activity that would be differentiated from the bad type of sports gambling.

Congress began carving out a fantasy sports exemption within internet gambling legislation almost as soon as they became coming up with apocalyptic stories of ruin, and even before online gambling was linked to terrorist money laundering.

The reason that fantasy sports were viewed differently was that fantasy sports were supported by at least one players association, and it became clear that at least some members of Congress did not really know what fantasy sports were. At least one member seemed to believe that fantasy sports referred to sports video games.

After nearly 10 years of debate, the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (UIGEA) emerged as a sieve-like effort to ban online wagering.

Amongst the carveouts in the legislation was an exception from the definition of bets and wagers for certain types of fantasy contests. The three numerical prongs set forth in the UIGEA exemption have been examined to death, but they set the stage for something that no longer resembled what was the predominant form of fantasy sports at the time UIGEA was passed.

For years, fantasy sports were a season-long endeavor, often played between friends and sometimes with elaborate in-person drafts. But a consistent theme was that these contests last more than a day or two.

UIGEAs language, though, made no reference to a season or length of time at all. This of course led to entrepreneurs crafting games that were facially compliant with the language of UIGEA but were a significant departure from what most people had thought of when they heard the term fantasy sports at the time.

Out of this innovation emerged two DFS powerhouses, FanDuel and DraftKings. While neither was the first, both companies operated the new concept of daily fantasy sports better (at least as a business) than their competitors.

Within a few years, it was DraftKings and FanDuel, then everyone else. In the years before the Murphy v. NCAA decision opened the US sports betting market, daily fantasy sports was the only legal game in town for much of the country.

Fighting a constant customer acquisition battle saw many DFS companies begin to push the envelope, including offering contests on single events, something that did not appear to comply with UIGEA. In spite of forays across what appeared to be a clear boundary, federal (and state) law enforcement seemed to have little interest in stopping operators who were serving customers who participated voluntarily.

In the wake of theMurphy decision, it is easy to forget that fantasy sports and daily fantasy sports are still prominent activities, especially when looking at handle or revenue, Nearly half the country still lacks access to regulated sports betting markets.

While UIGEAs fantasy sports exemption creates significant opportunities to offer a product that looks more like sports betting than traditional fantasy sports, UIGEA still creates a bright-line rule that fantasy operators must not cross.

Read more from the original source:

Opinion: How Blurred Are The Lines Between DFS And Sports Betting? - Legal Sports Report

Australias most loved and only show about advertising continues its 13th season tonight.

Same show, all new ads.

In tonights episode, the team are paying out online gambling; the pitch makes an each-way bet on abolishing the states; and fresh ads for fresh breath become so extra.

Joining Wil Anderson, Todd Sampson and Russel Howcroft on the panel will be Carolyn Miller and Dee Madigan.

Gruen, the multi award winner (and loser, because truth in advertising matters) is back to enjoy another season of broadcast television before inevitably being reduced to a 7 second sponsored #ad on TikTok.

Production credits: A CJZ and ABC co-production. Executive producers: Nick Murray, Wil Anderson and Polly Connolly. ABC Executive Producer Nick Hayden.

- ADVERTISEMENT -

Same show, all new ads.

In tonights episode, the team are paying out online gambling; the pitch makes an each-way bet on abolishing the states; and fresh ads for fresh breath become so extra.

Joining Wil Anderson, Todd Sampson and Russel Howcroft on the panel will be Carolyn Miller and Dee Madigan.

- ADVERTISEMENT -

Gruen, the multi award winner (and loser, because truth in advertising matters) is back to enjoy another season of broadcast television before inevitably being reduced to a 7 second sponsored #ad on TikTok.

Production credits: A CJZ and ABC co-production. Executive producers: Nick Murray, Wil Anderson and Polly Connolly. ABC Executive Producer Nick Hayden.

Read the rest here:

Carolyn Miller and Dee Madigan join the panel as GRUEN focuses on Online Gambling - TV Blackbox

The states first legal online sports bets happened on Sept. 30 with a soft launch of the new gaming system. The Connecticut Lottery Corp., and Mohegan Sun both reported the first-ever bets on their online platforms to be $10 on the Major League Baseball playoff game between the Milwaukee Brewers and Atlanta Braves, which the Braves won 5-4. The lottery said its bettor picked the Brewers to win while Mohegan Sun didnt disclose which team its bettor selected.

For Foxwoods, the first online sports bet was on the NCAA football matchup between the Appalachian State Mountaineersand the Louisiana-Lafayette Ragin Cajuns, with the bettor placing a wager for Louisiana-Lafayette to cover the spread (+4.5 points) against Appalachian State.

According to the Connecticut Lottery, the top three bet on events in thefirst full day of online sports betting using PlaySugarHouseSportsbookwere the Houston Astros vs. Boston Red Sox game, theAtlanta Braves vs. Los Angeles Dodgers game and theGolden State Warriors vs. Los Angeles Lakers game. The first bet after 6 a.m. on Tuesday was for $10 in favor of Ergi Kirkin to win against Raul Brancaccio at the Losinj Challenger in men's professional tennis.

As online gaming and sports betting take off in Connecticut, heres what to know about the latest addition to gaming in the state.

Nutmeggers ages 21 and older can place wagers on online casino games, as well as fantasy sports, professional sports and Olympic and international sports. E-sports and college sports do allow for wagers, but not if one of the participants is a Connecticut team playing in non-tournament event, according to the states gaming website.

As of Oct. 19, online wagering is offered through the Mohegan Tribe and the Mashantucket Pequot Tribes online gaming partners, according to the state, which include:

Additionally, the Department of Consumer Protection has approved more than 130 games for the FanDuel and DraftKing apps. Both tribes can also offer iCasino,or online casino games. The Connecticut Lottery also offers PlaySugarHouse for sports wagering.

Wagering may also take place in-person at either Mohegan Sun casino or Foxwoods Resort and Casino.

In 2018, the Supreme Court struck down the federal Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act of 1992, which kept states from allowing sports betting on NFL, MLB, NBA and college-level sports games, according to U.S. News and World Report. Before the act was overturned, U.S. News reports that several states fought to overturn the act, starting with New Jersey.

In Connecticut, launching sports betting and online gaming has hinged on the Mashantucket Pequot and Mohegan tribes involvement. The two tribes have separate compacts,oragreements, with the state that date back to the 1990sspelling out the percentage of revenue the tribes would contribute to the state in exchange for the rights to gaming exclusivity in Connecticut.

For online gaming and sports betting to materialize in Connecticut, the state had to amend and establish new compacts with the tribes. With the new deal, Connecticut aims to generate tens of millions of dollars in new revenues from this emerging industry, while keeping the state competitive with gaming being offered or considered in neighboring states. Among its key provisions are an 18 percent tax rate for the first five years on new online commercial casino gaming, followed by a 20 percent rate for at least the next five years. There would be a 13.75 percent tax rate on sports wagering.

People wagering on the Connecticut sites must be physically located in Connecticut; GPS fencing keeps those from other states from placing bets in the state while they are in a location outside of Connecticut. Winnings earned as a result of gambling must be reported for tax reasons.

As for the state as a whole, it expects to draw in $30 million in the first year, eventually ramping up to an estimated $100 million a year, by taxing online sports betting at 13.75 percent, and online casino games at 18 percent, rising to 20 percent after five years.

The lottery will not pay a tax because all of its revenues after expenses move to the states general fund. The size of the cut and likely profits for the three online operators FanDuel, DraftKings and Rush Street Interactives is not public.

Separately, the lottery is setting up in-person locations for sports betting, in a partnership that includes a gaming operator and Sportech, which owns and operates off-track-betting locations around the state.

Hearst CTInsider Staff Writer Ken Dixon, politics reporter Julia Bergman and columnist Dan Haar contributed to this report.

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Online sports betting is live in Connecticut - CTInsider - CT Insider

October 21, 2021Latest Poker News

Connecticut joined the online gambling party this week with sports betting, casino, and slots games, but online poker players still have to wait before they can ante up online.

The Connecticut Lottery Corp., the Mohegan Tribe, and the Mashantucket Pequot Tribe officials launched sites online gambling sites on Tuesday, bringing more than 130 digitalized games and sports betting to the states 2.4 million residents over the age of 21. Despite that, no player-vs.-player online poker sites were opened.

Although online poker is included in the largest gambling expansion residents have seen since tribes sued to be allowed to open brick-and-mortar casinos in the 90s, no online poker operators have yet stepped into one of the smallest markets in the country.

The Mohegan Sun is partnering with FanDuel to provide its online gaming offerings while Foxwoods, which is owned and operated by the Mashantucket Pequots, has partnered with DraftKings. DraftKings is trying to get into the online poker business by offering to buy partypokers parent company Entain for $20 billion.The Connecticut Lottery partners with Rush Street Interactive, which doesnt offer online poker.

This is an exciting moment for our state and our tribal partners, Governor Ned Lamont said in a press release. Connecticut has proven to be a leader when it comes to the gaming economy going back decades, and that legacy will continue with the launch of these new online options for all eligible residents.

The tribes obtained exclusive online gambling rights in the state for 25% of their slots revenue.

Focusing on sports betting and online casino games, particularly slots, is a good bet for gambling corporations. With the online gambling launch, Connecticut connected its residents to an industry thats expected to continue to grow significantly over the next half-decade.

According to Markets and Research, an investment research firm, the United States online gambling market was valued at $2.178. billion in 2020 and is projected to register a compound annual growth rate of 17.3% during the forecast period of 2021-2026.

Connecticut isnt the only state where online poker is legal, but games remain unavailable to its residents. West Virginia, another state with a small population, legalized online sportsbooks and casino gambling last summer, including online poker. Even so, none of the five casinos that paid $250,000 each for a five-year online gambling license has launched a poker site in the state where no more than five interactive licenses are available.

While online gambling operators in West Virginia dont have the will to open online poker rooms, they certainly have the means and expertise to do so. FanDuel, which partners with Greenbrier Casino to run its sportsbook, is owned by Flutter Entertainment, which also owns PokerStars.

Greenbrier also partners with BetMGM in West Virginia. Caesars, the owners of WSOP, runs Mountaineer Casinos online sportsbook, as well as online WSOP poker rooms in Nevada, Pennsylvania, and Michigan.

Because every jurisdiction that currently allows online poker also requires operators to use geofencing to ensure that only players located within their state borders are allowed to play, that limits the available player pools and, ultimately, the number of games and tournaments that can run at any one time. In small states, such as Connecticut and West Virginia, these restrictions limit game selection for players and make it financially unviable for operators to offer online poker in these jurisdictions.

That situation could change, however, if West Virginia and Connecticut officials agree to compacting agreements with other jurisdictions that already allow online poker within their state borders, such as the agreement that allows New Jersey, Nevada, and Delaware to combine their individual player pools together.

Until then, however, its likely that residents of Connecticut and West Virginia who want to play poker online will have to travel to nearby states like Pennsylvania and New Jersey if they want to ante up without setting foot in a live poker room.

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