Massachusetts task force report on online gambling due this week

The Massachusetts Gaming Commission special committee tasked by state lawmakers with studying and presenting recommendations on the regulation of intrastate-legalised online gambling (see previous reports) is due to submit its conclusions this week, but media sources have expressed doubts that it is yet in a position to do so.

The Commission has studied different proposals, with land casino interests suggesting that licensing should be confined to existing land operators in the same manner as has been the case in New Jersey.

Addressing the committee recently, a spokesman for MGM Springfield (whose land casino is set to open in the state in 2018) said the operator is not overly concerned about online gaming and what it could mean for land casino enterprises.

“Our view is that online and brick and mortar can co-exist; we are active in online gaming so with the power of the MGM brand we’ll be in that conversation so we can bring our best practices forward,” he said, adding that the introduction of legalised online activity would bring a younger demographic to the business.

The committee held its inaugural meeting in early December 2016 following political initiatives for legalisation and requests by the Massachusetts Lottery Commission for permission to offer more online options in order to attract the younger millennial demographic.

This week Stephen Crosby, chair of the MGC, said: “We think there’s a real opportunity here for Massachusetts, not only to break new ground, but to create an economic driver that would pay real dividends for the Commonwealth.”

http://wwlp.com/2017/02/28/gaming-commission-looks-into-regulating-online-gambling/