The Fantasy Sports Trade Association is lobbying vigorously in Illinois for a regulatory bill launched by Rep. Mike Zalewski (see previous reports) but faces determined opposition in the state following an opinion by Illinois AG Lisa Madigan that DFS contests are illegal gambling under state law. The Zalewski bill sets a minimum age of 18 …
Kathryn Martini has been appointed Director, Client Services at BMM Testlabs after fourteen years with the company as its business development manager based at the Las Vegas headquarters. Martini started her career with BMM in Melbourne, Australia in 2002 and worked as Project Office Manager and Compliance Consultant prior to taking up her business development …
The Rank online and land gambling group has announced the appointment of Steven Esom as a non-executive director to its board with effect from 1 March 2016. He will also chair Rank’s remuneration committee and serve on its audit and nominations committees. Esom (55) had a 12-year career at Waitrose, the last five years of …
Pennsylvania state lawmakers are taking a more cautious approach to the daily fantasy sports issue, commissioning a study of the phenomenon before making any legalisation or regulatory moves. Our readers will recall that last year Representative George Dunbar and six sponsors introduced HB1197 to the House, proposing that state gambling licensees be permitted to offer …
Isle of Man-based online gaming technology provider Pariplay has announced the launch of its online gambling content aggregator platform, branded Fusion. Once integrated, Fusion provides operators with access to hundreds of online casino, instant win, scratch card and bingo games developed by leading game developers as well as Pariplay’s own titles, a company statement claims. …
Novomatic’s live dealer subsidiary, Extreme Live Gaming, has announced a new 12-game supply contract with the UK-licensed EnergyCasino. The games include seven live roulette tables and three live Blackjack games supported by Baccarat and Super6 games. Energy Casino manager Dan Hurley said this week that the addition of live dealer action benefits his casino’s overall …
The attempts by DFS operators FanDuel and DraftKings to obtain a stay on the preliminary injunction against them obtained by New York AG Eric Schneiderman in December (see previous reports) has triggered a lengthy court filing in response from Schneiderman, strongly opposing such a stay, and giving five reasons why it should not be granted. …
E-Sports sponsor and game developer of Counter Strike: Global Offensive, Valve Inc., has announced that it is investing more money into e-Sports: beginning with MLG Columbus 2016, each CS:GO Major Championship prize pool will carry a four-fold increase in prize pools to a million dollars. “When we announced the first CS:GO Major Championship in 2013, …
The Danish regulator Spillemyndigheden has published Q4-2015 and FY-2015 numbers, commenting that Q4 GGR for both betting and online casino was higher than the same quarter in 2014. In Q4-2015 the GGR for online casino grew nearly 25 percent year on year, representing the fourth consecutive quarter where GGR was more than 20 percent higher …
Online gambling software provider Playtech plc announced its FY-2015 results Thursday, showcasing strong growth but heavier taxation burdens. Highlights reported by the company included: * Double-digit revenue increase of 38 percent to Euro 630.1 million; * Adjusted earnings up 22 percent to Euro 251.9 million; * Net profit up 8 percent at Euro 205.9 million; …
Playtech’s biggest shareholder, Teddy Sagi, will be pleased with the latest contract signed by his financial services company SafeCharge – an agreement to provide deposit and withdrawal services to the merged Paddy Power-Betfair online and retail gambling giant. SafeCharge’s Personalised Cashier product will enhance customer payment and withdrawal services, the company boasts in a presser …
The US National Football League’s involvement in daily fantasy sports came under fire this week from the Campaign for a Commercial-Free Childhood and the National Council on Problem Gaming, which claimed that NFL Rush Fantasy (which allows young players to build fantasy teams for prizes) “has the trappings of DFS – including frequent contests requiring …
Online gambling games developer and media group Vermantia has announced that Get’s Bet, a major Romanian betting operator, has signed up for its portfolio of 12 virtual games, including Virtual Football, Horse, Greyhound and Motor Racing. The games will be offered online and in Get’s Bet’s 400 retail betting shops. Vermantia’s chief commercial officer, Thanos …
New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, who has been leading the prosecutorial charge against daily fantasy sports, must be gnashing his teeth at the news Wednesday that a new DFS legalisation bill has been introduced in the state Senate. The influential proposer of the bill – S 6793 – is Sen. John Bonacic, chairman of …
Sen. Ryan McDougle’s daily fantasy sports regulatory proposal SB646, which cruised through the Virginia Senate earlier this week on a 28 vs. 10 vote (see previous report), has received a rapid vote of approval in the state Assembly and is now on its way to Governor Terry McAuliffe’s desk for signature. Virginia’s bill specifically exempts …
The Chinese online lottery 500.com continued to be hobbled by the widespread Chinese crackdown on corruption last year, posting a disappointing 82.8 decline in net revenue at RMB99.6 million ($15.4 million) for FY-2015. Operating losses continued, resulting in an alarming 301.6 percent y-o-y decline to a loss of RMB301.4 million compared with an operating profit …
US land gambling and racing group Churchill Downs Incorporated’s decision to get into online social gaming through the acquisition of Big Fish Games over a year ago (see previous reports) was a sound one, as the latest company results illustrate. In Q4-2015 Big Fish delivered revenue of $113.7 million and earnings of $28.5 million, with …
Aussie gambling group Crown Resorts has posted a dismal half year report for the period ended December 2015, revealing that even its online operations – usually a highlight in gambling firms and including social gaming – sustained an EBITDA loss of A$9.8 million. The operations included well-established enterprises like CrownBet, Betfair Australasia and DGN Games …
Sen. Ryan McDougle’s daily fantasy sports regulatory proposal SB646 has cruised through the Virginia state Senate on a positive 28 vs. 10 vote and is now headed for the House The proposal; is understood to require each operator to pay an annual fee of $50,000 to register with the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services, …
DFS News reports that daily fantasy operator DraftDay hopes to cash in on the popularity of online porn through a deal with Vivid Entertainment, one of the internet’s largest purveyors of adult films, to offer daily fantasy to viewers through a new joint venture titled VividBetSports.com (see previous report). Company officials told the publication that …
The UK Gambling Commission has released new figures which it claims offer better insight into online gambling behaviour in Britain. Accompanied by easily digestible infographics the report cover participation in gambling, perceptions of gambling and rates of problem gambling. The research for the first time also includes information about how people gamble online – the …
FY 2015 results posted by Caesars Entertainment reveal that net revenues increased 14.7 percent to $4.5 billion driven by increased performance of the hospitality offerings and Caesar Interactive’s social and mobile games business. “Caesars achieved solid operating momentum throughout 2015. Including CEOC’s results, the enterprise experienced its best full-year of operating results since 2007,” said …
The proposed sale of the Western Australian government TAB betting agency (see previous reports) has prompted WA Gaming Minister Colin Holt to warn that he will not support the sale if the money goes towards paying down the mounting state debt. In a letter to WA Treasurer Mike Nathan, Holt emphasised that cash from such …
Media reports in the Sunday Times and investment publication Motley Fool this week quoted an anonymous source who speculated that Playtech could be eyeing Openbet and possibly Amaya with a view to an acquisition move. The reports noted that Playtech has an expansion strategy, along with a cash pile of $600 million and easy access …