Sugarhouse The Third Online And Mobile Sports Betting Brand To Launch In New Jersey
First online sports betting site operated under a partnership with Golden Nugget Atlantic City
Rush Street Interactive’s SugarHouse online and mobile sportsbook and casino has become the third major sports betting company to launch in New Jersey, opening its doors early Thursday morning Atlantic City time.
SugarHouse has teamed with Golden Nugget and Kambi to offer a large menu of sports wagering options, including singles, parlays, prop bets and futures.
Players at the SugarHouse Online Sportsbook & Casino can also place live wagers as the sporting action unfolds courtesy of a wide range of in-game betting offers, including instant bets such as result of current drive in football and current point in tennis.
The launch followed closely on Wednesday’s release of an Android sports betting app by Bwin-playMGM NJ Sports via a Borgata partnership (see previous InfoPowa report).
Having been first to market on August 1st, Kambi-powered sportsbooks now make up two-thirds of the online wagering options for players in New Jersey.
CEO Kristian Nylen did a little bragging Thursday, noting the speed to market in New Jersey that his company has achieved, and reminding anyone interested that Kambi had partnered with Rush Street Interactive to launch a Colombian online sports book in May this year.
Rhode Island Chooses IGT And William Hill As Sports Betting Partners
Contract includes sports betting technology and services
IGT and commercial partner William Hill U.S. have been selected by the Rhode Island Lottery to provide end-to-end sports betting technology and services for the state’s licensed video lottery and table game establishments, Twin River Casino and Tiverton Casino.
Sports betting operations are expected to go live at both locations by mid-November 2018. The initial term of the contract is for a period of five years from the date that the first sports wager is placed at either venue, and may be extended by mutual consent for two successive five-year terms.
“It’s an exciting time for the Rhode Island Lottery,” said Gerald Aubin, Rhode Island Lottery director. “With the introduction of legalized sports betting, we will leverage world-class resources and technology from IGT and William Hill to provide the best-possible sports betting experience for the patrons who visit our casinos.”
Renato Ascoli, IGT CEO, North America said Friday. “The combination with William Hill US uniquely positions us to provide the Rhode Island Lottery with a comprehensive, market-ready solution to maximize sports betting revenues and returns to good causes for the state of Rhode Island.”
Under the contract, a complete end-to-end sports betting service will be provided to the Rhode Island Lottery, utilising IGT’s sports betting platform, with William Hill providing sports betting operation and risk management.
U.S. Senator Intent On Closing The Stable Door After The (Sports Betting) Horse Has Bolted
Orrin Hatch laments lack of federal discussion about US legalised sports betting
InfoPowa readers will no doubt be familiar with the name Orrin Hatch, a US Senator from Utah who has featured fairly prominently in anti-online gambling legalisation initiatives in the past, and a politician who appears to believe that Congress should be overriding individual states’ rights when it comes to legislating on gambling issues.
Prior to the US Supreme Court’s striking down of the restrictive federal Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act in May this year, Hatch was among those who advocated federal rather than state level authority on whether to liberalise US sports betting beyond the four states covered by PASPA, opining that the power should rest with the US Congress, and intimating that he would introduce a federal proposal.
The Supreme Court decision giving legislative authority to individual states would appear to have pre-empted his plans, but reports in US media outlets this week indicate that the Senator is still intent on generating some federal involvement in the nascent US sports betting sector.
Reportedly supported by the National Football League, which fought tooth and nail to retain PASPA in the years when New Jersey was fighting liberalisation through US courts, Hatch again addressed the issue on the Senate floor Thursday.
He lamenting that his colleagues on Capitol Hill had shown little interest in taking the sports betting issue up, as evidenced by the postponement of a House Judiciary Committee hearing scheduled for June which was not re-scheduled.
Judging by his comments, Hatch is now approaching the fait accompli of liberalised sports betting on games as an integrity issue, and pledged to come forward with draft legislation creating some sort of federal framework in the near future.
His address lacked detail on how he envisages federal involvement and authority, but he will need to move quickly if his plans are to gain traction…the gambling industry from the American Gaming Association on down, along with many individual US states, has enthusiastically embraced the Supreme Court liberalisation, and companies in several states are already offering sports betting services.
One day after Hatch’s speech on the Senate floor, the American Gaming Association issued a comment, observing that federal oversight of sports betting had been “an abject failure” and recommending that the new, liberalised status quo of US sports betting be respected, leaving individual states to “decide what works best for their constituents.”
This could be the veteran senator’s last hurrah; he has revealed that he will not again seek re-election at the end of his current term, ending a 42-year political career.
Playtech Eyes U.S. Sports Betting Market
CEO points to strength of Playtech BGT Sports as a potential B2B solution provider for US operators
Playtech plc CEO Mor Weizer raised some interesting possibilities available to the company in a post-results press conference following the release of the group’s H1-2018 results Friday, suggesting that the burgeoning US sports betting sector could be of strategic interest in a B2B sense for subsidiary Playtech BGT Sports (PBS).
PBS operates Playtech’s sports betting platform, which is active internationally and most recently has become an important element in the Mexican regulated sports betting industry following the signing up of major local firm Caliente (see previous InfoPowa reports).
Caliente is respected as a major sports trader in both Mexico and US terms, offering as it does wagering on US sports markets, and Weizer briefed reporters on the implications of that for expanded Playtech activity in the United States, observing:
“In terms of the opportunity in the US, the capabilities of PBS position Playtech with a compelling offering. Playtech’s sportsbook is ready now and is already one of the largest traders in US sports due to our activity in Mexico, whose most popular markets are US sports.”
Weizer revealed that Playtech is in the process of applying for a New Jersey licence, but hinted that the company has wider US sports ambitions as well. He suggested that the PBS sportsbook solution is ideally suited to the situation in the US where gambling laws are the prerogative of individual states, resulting in state-by-state fragmentation of the sports betting market.
He noted that the PBS system is extremely scalable, and that a single casino operator wishing to enter the sports betting market in a particular state could use the PBS solution, which is easy to integrate, well-proven commercially and technically, and regulatory compliant.
He added that these qualities offer the potential to save the operator substantial outlay in development and all the other problems inherent in building a capable solution from the ground up.
With an international brand presence, a strong product and contacts in the US industry through previous initiatives in the region, Playtech would appear to be well set to increase its US activity.
However, as some observers have already pointed out, the sports betting market since PASPA was overturned earlier this year has been very busy as major companies hurry to build commercial, marketing and technology partnerships.
Real success may depend on how quickly Playtech is able to get into the US market in practical terms.
Second Pennsylvanian Casino Operator Applies For Sports Betting Licence
Greenwood Gaming’s Parx casino joins Penn National on expensive applications list
Greenwood Gaming and Entertainment subsidiary Parx Casino in Philadelphia has become the second Pennsylvania land operator to apply for a $10 million state sports betting licence, joining Penn National’s Hollywood Casino on the still sparse application list.
The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board confirmed receipt of the application Friday, along with a petition from the company to offer sports betting at the South Philadelphia Turf Club, an off-track betting facility.
Parx has already achieved the regulator’s green light to offer online casino and poker action, one of three such operators in Pennsylvania so far (see previous InfoPowa reports).
Media reports indicate that both Parx and Penn National hope to have their sports betting up and running by the northern hemisphere autumn, and the outcome of the PGCB’s October meeting will be anxiously awaited.
Parx has said that it has a plan to offer land-based, mobile and interactive sports wagering, although the land-based product will take precedence over the online and mobile elements of the strategy, which may only be available late in the year or early 2019.
Senate Democratic Partyleader Releases Suggestions For Federal Involvement In U.S. Sports Betting (Update)
Sen. Chuck Schumer joins Sen. Hatch and Rep, Pallone in calling for federal government regulatory participation
Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer has added his voice to those of Senator Orrin Hatch and Rep. Frank Pallone in calling for more federal involvement in the burgeoning US sports betting industry following the recent overthrow of PASPA (see previous InfoPowa reports)
On Wednesday, Senator Schumer published a memo outlining several suggestions for the industry, according to ESPN reports.
In it, he suggests that the sports leagues provide all official data to sports books and also have a hand in deciding what bets are acceptable. Schumer would also like to see an age minimum of 21 years for bettors and for anyone taking sports bets to avoid advertising aimed at under age people or with the potential to endanger vulnerable problem gamblers.
Citing the integrity of the various sports leagues, Schumer says it’s important for the federal government to help lay out the framework for all parties.
“As a New York sports fan – especially my Yankees and Giants – and a senator, my priority in the wake of the Murphy v. NCAA decision is making sure the integrity of the games we love is preserved, that young people and those suffering from gambling addiction are not taken advantage of, and that consumers that choose to engage in sports betting are appropriately protected,” Schumer said.
“With the Supreme Court’s ruling, it’s incumbent on the federal government to take a leadership role and provide the necessary guidance to prevent uncertainty and confusion for the leagues, state governments, consumers and fans alike.”
Three states — Delaware, New Jersey and Mississippi — have begun taking bets since the Murphy v. NCAA decision in the Supreme Court which liberalised sports betting by striking down the federal Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act..
Fanduel Group In New U.S. DFS-Sports Betting Partnership?
But mystery surrounds almost immediate withdrawal of press release
Industry observers are speculating on the abrupt withdrawal of a press release issued this week by US media company Minute Media. The release originally reported that sportsbook and DFS operator FanDuel Group has formed a partnership with the media company with the objective of launching a fan-powered sports betting and daily fantasy sports information website under the title The Duel.
However, within a day Minute Media issued the following statement to a wide range of publications that had carried the story:
“Minute Media requests that their press release NewsItemId: 20180829005151 entitled “FanDuel Group and Minute Media Team Up to Launch The Duel, a Fan-Fueled Content Platform for Fantasy Sports and Sports Betting” be killed. The release was issued prematurely by Minute Media.”
The original release promised a wide range of crowd-sourced articles, as well as various video and audio content, designed to educate visitors about the markets. It noted that FanDuel would be working with Minute Media to build on its initial success in the newly liberalised US sports betting market, quoting FanDuel CEO Matt King, who said:
“FanDuel is founded on the idea of bringing fans closer to the sports they love, and now, together with Minute Media, we’re letting fans into the press box. We want to give fans a designated platform for all sports and fantasy content, and The Duel is part of our broader efforts to do so.”
Minute Media president Rich Routman added: “With the recent changes to the US sports betting market, there is no better time to be making this strategic move. The fantasy and sports betting industries have been on the rise for quite some time, and the opportunity to shake things up by leveraging authentic fan voices is an opportunity that Minute Media and FanDuel are collectively excited about.”
Opposition Mounts To Federal Interference In U.S. Sports Betting (Update)
AGA says that Sen. Chuck Shumer’s suggestions for federal involvement are a “non-starter”
The ink was barely dry on Sen. Chuck Schumer’s memo Tuesday calling for federal involvement in the newly liberalised US sports betting market, when the American Gaming Association weighed in with some pointed language.
The Association’s senior VP of public affairs, Sara Slane said Wednesday:
“Federal oversight of sports betting was an abject failure for 26 years, only contributing to a thriving illegal market with no consumer protections and safeguards. New federal mandates are a non-starter.
“The casino industry is working with stakeholders to ensure the proper protections for consumers, and the integrity of bets and sporting contests are included in state policy, universally implemented by all operators in those states, and overseen by effective state and tribal gaming regulators.”
The sports leagues, which have vigorously opposed all attempts to overturn the restrictive federal Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act, have modified their stance since the US Supreme Court struck down PASPA in favour of individual states deciding on their own gambling laws.
Following the ruling, some leagues have attempted to persuade individual states legalising sports betting to give them an “integrity fee” cut of the action, a move which has not always met with success.
The sports leagues have been quick to endorse Sen. Schumer’s “suggestions” that federal involvement and guidance on sports betting is necessary (see previous InfoPowa report).
Their support is understandable, given that Schumer wants to ensure that only official league data should be used, enabling the sports properties to benefit from a potentially lucrative new revenue stream.
A joint statement by the NBA basketball league, Major League Baseball and the PGA Tour expressed strong support for Schumer’s ideas and encouraged the US Congress to move on his proposals, whilst a similar statement from the NFL and the National Collegiate Athletic Association applauded the Schumer initiative in “supporting federal legislation to protect the integrity of our games following the Supreme Court decision.”