Land-based casino regulation

June 28, 2024

State of the Union: Big fine in Philly, Caesars NYC plans and more

Welcome to iGB's State of the Union, a look at the biggest North American sports betting stories we've covered over the week and briefs on others we found interesting.

Live! Philadelphia fined $100,000

The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board this week issued a $100,00 fine to Live! Philadelphia for taking sports bets over the phone. At the PGCB meeting, it was revealed that more than $287,000 in wagers were taken by phone. Of the bets, three were taken via text message and lost and the bettor never laid down the funds.

Live! Philadelphia representatives told the PGCB that it had terminated the employees who took a total of 15 bets via phone or text message. In addition, all have also been placed on the involuntary exclusion list. Live! Philadelphia also now bans personal phones for sportsbook employees while at work and lowered its surveillance notification threshold to $10,000.

Caesars proposes Times Square makeover

Caesars Entertainment has plans to plant trees, improve..

June 11, 2024

How senate redistricting could make Alabama more gambling friendly

A seemingly unrelated legal battle playing out in a federal courtroom could have an impact on the future of gambling in Alabama. The case, centred on the potential redrawing of state senate districts in Montgomery and Huntsville, may hold the key to whether the state legalises casinos, sports betting, or lottery in 2025.

The backdrop for this potential shift lies in the narrow defeat of gambling legislation in the Alabama senate in April. The bill fell short of passage by a single vote.

Proponents of the legislation, which included both Democrats and Republicans, argued that casinos would generate significant tax revenue for the state, create jobs and boost tourism. The Public Affairs Research Council of Alabama previously reported analysis that showed that gambling could lead to $749m in annual state revenue. Other reports put the total at as much as $1.2 bn.

On the other hand, opponents, primarily on moral grounds, expressed concerns about the potential social ills associated with..

May 20, 2024

Weekend report: NY casino hurry-up bill, NCAA harassment report, new places to bet

IGB takes a look at what happened in gambling news over the weekend.

NY casino process: Let’s get a move on!

New York State Senator Joe Addabbo and Assemblyman Gary Pretlow dropped a bill that would speed up the current NY casino timeline. Regulators earlier this year said they would award licences for three downstate casinos by 31 December 2025. The bill would require bids to be filed by 31 July and the New York State Gaming Commission to award licences by 31 March 2025. The bill outlines 17 areas applicants must address from capital expenditure to proposed partnerships to workforce training, demographic plan and “harmony”.

The New York Post reported that a shortened timeline could help out certain parties and hurt others. Addabbo’s district borders Aqueduct, which is the location for the Resorts World bid. Pretlow’s district is near the Yonkers race track.

On the flip side, Steve Cohen’s Citi Field NY casino proposal would benefit from a longer runway. That project needs legisl..

May 7, 2024

Ohio regulator considers extending licence runway; Arkansas casino application opens

Tuesday (7 May) marks the final day for comments on a rule change that would extend the deadline for Ohio licensees to launch. But the Ohio Casino Control Commission is considering extending the runway.

Currently, licensees have one year to go live from when a licence was issued. For local or retail entities, it’s not always easy to go from concept to launch in 12 months. According to the Business Journal, Phantom Fireworks is among those pressing against the deadline set by the Ohio regulator. Licensed as a Type B operator, which is brick-and-mortar only, the company does not yet have a definitive location for its sportsbook.

The proposed rule change would allow the OCCC executive director the latitude to extend the deadline on a case-by-case basis. Should the executive director determine that the licensee is making progress toward launch, he would have the option to give it more time.

HOF, Muirfield haven’t launched

The Ohio regulator launched legal sports betting on 1 Januar..

April 30, 2024

Missouri lawmaker trying again to marry VLTs and wagering gets plenty of pushback

A Missouri hearing with no vote on Tuesday (30 April) again revealed opposition to marrying legal video lottery terminals with sports betting. This time around, it wasn't Senator Denny Hoskins carrying the bill, but House Minority Leader Crystal Quade.

HB 2835 likely won’t get far. Assigned last week to the special committee on innovation and technology, the bill got its first hearing with opposition from casinos, a convenience store association and the home docks, or locations where gambling boats sit .

There were also references that the senate has plans to adjourn early. One lawmaker suggested it may adjourn on Tuesday. If that happens, current bills would stall and lawmakers would have to wait to see if there will be a special session. The senate has not yet approved a budget.

Quade’s bill would allow for statewide mobile wagering and renames and defines video lottery terminals as “mechanical amusement machines”. The machines currently operate in a grey market. They are ..

April 5, 2024

State of the Union: A look at the week that was in North America

Welcome to iGB's State of the Union, a look at the biggest North American sports betting stories we've covered over the week and briefs on others we found interesting.

Queens casino controversial among politicians

Businessman Steve Cohen’s plan to build a casino in Queens adjacent to the Mets’ Citi Field earlier this week got the endorsement of a city councilman, but a state senator said Cohen has not been “open and transparent”, according to the New York Post.

State Senator Jessica Ramos, who appears to back a Genting Resorts World project, took issue with Cohen’s lobbying strategy. Any downstate casino will need legislative approval in Albany. Cohen is partnered with Hard Rock in his proposed venture.

Queens Councilman Francisco Moya told the NYP that “If we fail to seize this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, we ensure that the area around Citi Field remains underutilised parking lots for the foreseeable future; and we permanently stymie the future growth potential of Q..

February 26, 2024

Affordability checks: Everything you need to know

With parliament to debate the introduction of affordability checks today (26 February), here’s everything you need to know about the proposals so far.

The long-awaited release of the Gambling Act white paper in April was the most transformative review of UK gambling in 18 years. It marked a key landmark in how the market will be regulated in the future – with affordability checks a key part of that discussion.

The government has already introduced some measures, such as the establishment of stake limits for online slots. However, other resolutions are also being worked upon as the UK government and the Gambling Commission (GC) looks to ease concerns over gambling harms in the country.

The strongest industry response to these proposals has been towards the potential implementation of affordability checks. They have met fierce opposition from operators and trade bodies.

With parliament set to debate financial checks this week, let’s take a look at how we got here.

White paper’s rele..

February 16, 2024

Alabama gambling bills passed by the house

Alabama voters are a step closer to deciding whether sports betting will be legalised in the state after a bill was passed by lawmakers.

The Alabama house passed two bills on Thursday which envisage the expansion of commercial gambling in the state.

Bills HB151 and HB152, both sponsored by Representative Chris Blackshear, must still be passed by the state’s upper house. The former, as a constitutional amendment, also requires confirmation by the public and would be added to the ballot in November.

Governor Kay Ivey, who would then have to approve both bills, said in a statement on Thursday that the bills “in their current form” have her support.

“The proposal passed by the house will clean up and crack down on the rampant illegal gambling and will give Alabamians the opportunity to have their say on regulated, limited forms of gaming,” Ivey said.

What the gambling bills include

On Thursday, HB151 was passed 70-32 by the House, with HB152 passed 67-31. The House Economic Developme..

January 24, 2024

Road to ICE 2024: White paper opens up opportunities for land-based casinos

On the road to ICE, iGB will prep you for the biggest show of 2024 with this new series covering the latest developments since 2023's show.

In April 2023, the UK government finally released the long-awaited 2005 Gambling Act review white paper. The 260-page document outlined critical updates for the industry, focusing on bringing it into the digital age.

As such, many of the policies in the white paper were based on the public now having 24/7 internet and smartphone access. But it also contained a number of alterations for land-based venues, such as permitting casinos to offer sports betting at their premises.

Specifically, the government said it would allow “casinos of all sizes” to offer sports betting on their premises. Previously, only casinos licensed under the 2005 Gambling Act could offer sports betting.

The white paper put forward policies that would enhance player protection in land-based venues

Land-based stipulations protect players

Generally, the land-based speci..

January 3, 2024

Episode 25: Predictions for gaming regulation in 2024

The World Series of Politics is back from its festive break with the lowdown on what sort of regulatory progress the gaming industry can expect in 2024.

Happy new year listeners! Brendan Bussmann and Brandt Iden are back to discuss a Festivus miracle in Brazil, as well as setting out their predictions for US sports betting growth and whether 2024 will finally be the breakthrough year for US igaming.

brazil has the potential to be huge, but integrated resorts are not part of the mix

We come back after Brazil sports betting and igaming finally makes it over the finish line, giving the industry an early Christmas present. The market has potential to be huge, Brendan Bussmann says, especially after the 18% tax rate was cut to 12% of GGR.

There’s one thing missing, he adds. Integrated resorts are not part of the mix. This could bring billions in revenue into the local economy and, after the sports betting saga, we know Brazil isn’t one for rapid progress.

Regulatory predictions for 20..

December 22, 2023

Netherlands minister Weerwind announces new plans to counter problem gambling

The Netherlands minister for legal protection, Franc Weerwind, has announced new measures that he hopes will protect players from problem gambling.

Weerwind’s letter comes in response to “worrying and undesirable developments” in the Netherlands’ gambling industry. With the evaluation of the Remote Gambling Act not expected until 2024, Weerwind has decided to push on with the government’s new plans before then.

The new measures, announced on Thursday, include providers being required to contact players who have set a deposit limit of €350 (£303/$386). Operators should inform such players of the risks of gambling in such high amounts.

As reported by CasinoNieuws, Weerwind’s other proposals involve exhibiting financial amounts in euros and pushing for further research on overarching gaming limits.

In October, Weerwind announced a multi-year digital resilience campaign programme to combat fraud associated with online gambling.

In his letter, Weerwind said: “Everyone who wants to do s..

December 20, 2023

MGA publishes performance report for H1 2023

The Malta Gaming Authority (MGA) released its Interim Performance Report for H1 2023 on Tuesday 19 December.

The report studies the MGA’s achievements over the first half of the year, as well as the performance of the Maltese gaming industry as a whole.

The MGA conducted 14 compliance audits over H1, as well as 85 desktop reviews. The regulator handed out nine administrative penalties, with a total financial penalty of €124,400 (£107,697/$136,345).

The MGA also carried out 11 Compliance Examinations on behalf of the Financial Intelligence Analysis Unit (FIAU). During the same period, the FIAU imposed administrative penalties on three licensees based on violations discovered during examinations carried out in previous years. In total, these amounted to €599,420.

The MGA gave their assistance to 2,216 players who requested help, while 40 responsible gambling website checks were carried out. It issued 16 observation letters to highlight potential areas for improvement.

The MGA issued..

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Tag: Land-based casino regulation