Tag: Online casino

Kenyan government orders all operators to close for election day

Operators in Kenya have suspended their services today (9 August) in line with a directive that ordered them to cease activity to allow citizens to vote in the 2022 Kenyan general election.

The order was handed down by Kenya’s Betting Control and Licensing Board (BCLB).

It took force at midnight today, and will end at 5pm.

A number of operators released statements about the order. Sports betting brand SportPesa placed a statement on its website which read, “Thank you for interacting with SportPesa. Our services are currently unavailable in compliance with BCLC’s directive to suspend all gaming operations to enable you to vote.”

“Our services will resume immediately after 5pm on Tuesday 9th August 2022.”

Betsson-owned sportsbook and online casino operator Betsafe released a similar statement.

“Our gaming services will be suspended from Monday midnight until Tuesday 5:00pm,” it read.

“During this period, you will not be able to place bets or transact. We apologise for the inconven..

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Novibet makes progress towards launches in NJ, Mexico and Ontario

Novibet has announced three major milestones in North America, securing market access in New Jersey and Mexico, while also submitting a licence application in Ontario.

In New Jersey, the operator has secured market access through a partnership with Caesars Entertainment – which, as a land-based operator, can offer three online betting “skins”.

Under the agreement, Novibet will be able to offer its services via Caesars’ licence for ten years.

Novibet already has market access in the state of Pennsylvania, also for 10 years, and plans to launch in both sites next year.

Elsewhere, the operator also secured market access in Mexico through a partnership with Big Bola Casinos, a major land-based operator in the country. It plans to launch in the country before the end of this year.

Finally, the operator has submitted its licence application in the Canadian province of Ontario. If approved, it plans to launch in Ontario in the fourth quarter of this year.

“The expansion of our icasino ..

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RSI still on track for long-term earnings goals despite higher Q2 losses

Rush Street Interactive (RSI) said it still expects to achieve its longer-term earnings targets despite posting an increased net loss and negative adjusted earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) during the second quarter and first half.

Speaking after the business published its results for the two operating periods, RSI’s chief executive Richard Schwartz said that the operator continues to move towards becoming profitable.

Schwartz said RSI experienced profit across six of its markets during the second quarter of its 2022 financial year, with the states of New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Illinois and Michigan, along with Colombia in South America, being profitable in the quarter. In addition, West Virginia also turned profitable after only four full quarters of operation in the state.

“We are continuing to build a global business,” Schwartz said “With the recent launches in Ontario in Canada and Mexico, we are now live in a total of four countries. This give..

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GB gambling revenue drops in June as almost all sectors struggle

Gross gambling revenue in Great Britain dropped by 13.6% month-on-month in June, new figures from the Gambling Commission show, as almost all types of gambling experienced a significant decline.

The regulator published data based on reports from operators making up 80% of the GB online gambling market and 85% of the retail betting shop market, building on its earlier online-only reports launched in 2020. As such, the absolute figures reported do not include the entire market within these verticals.

Month-on-month, online gross gambling yield was down by 13.2% to £370.2m in June. The total was also a drop of 20.0% from the highest monthly total of the year, recorded in January. Revenue was, however, higher than March, when sports betting revenue experienced a sharp drop that was likely related to special officers around the Cheltenham Festival.

At the same time, revenue from retail bookmakers was down as well, by 5.6% to £181.7m.

Revenue from almost every single gambling vertical wa..

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Gaining altitude or experiencing turbulence?

Robin Harrison talks to the local operators and lobbyists involved in the early stages of the Netherlands’ regulated igaming market.

Online gambling regulation in the Netherlands was discussed as far back as 2009 yet only launched in October 2021.

And the operators licensed were different to what the industry had expected. The local incumbents, Nederlandse Loterij (NLO) and Holland Casino, were among them as were international brands such as Bet365 and Tombola.

A host of high-profile names were conspicuous by their absence. The likes of Entain, Betsson, 888 Holdings and Kindred Group pulled out, having passively accepted bets from local consumers.

This led to a “deluge” of players coming to Holland Casino, according to director of digital transformation Jeroen Verkroost.

“We were over the moon but completely understaffed and had to shift from first to fifth gear almost immediately, which came with some teething problems,” Verkroost recalls.

Sam Depoortere, business director for N..

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Holding back the tide

René Jansen, chair of Dutch regulator de Kansspelautoriteit (KSA), speaks to Daniel O’Boyle about the challenges involved in fighting on two fronts since the country launched its regulated online gambling market. On one hand he’s keeping the unlicensed market at bay, on the other he’s working to ensure the licensed sector moderates its advertising

After eight years of anticipation, it could have been difficult for the launch of the Netherlands’ online gambling market to fulfil expectations.

For Jansen, chair of regulator de Kansspelautoriteit (KSA), the launch did indeed live up to what he anticipated.

“It’s been a success in several aspects,” he says.

But going as expected is only a good thing if the predictions are optimistic. And it’s hard to miss the fact that one aspect of the market launch went exactly as Jansen predicted, in exactly the wrong way.

Advertising turmoil

In May 2021, the KSA chair warned of an advertising “bombardment” when the legal market opened.

Looking at..

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Bet-at-home announces layoffs as it abandons in-house platform

Bet-at-home will replace its existing proprietary platform with the EveryMatrix tech stack, while the Germany-based operator also announced up to 45 job losses as a result of the outsourcing.

The EveryMatrix solution will include a sportsbook, casino platform, player management, payments module and affiliate software, with the deal to cover all the markets in which Bet-at-home is currently present.

“Selecting EveryMatrix as our platform provider will further allow us to keep providing the best service to our 5.5 million registered players while enhancing our operations in key markets,” Bet-at-home chief executive Marco Falchetto said.

“This partnership will boost not only sports, but also casino. With this partnership, a new and exciting phase of bet-at-home development can begin.”

EveryMatrix group chief executive Ebbe Groes added: “Bet-at-home has dominated the sports betting vertical in several European markets and we’re delighted to further contribute to their success.

“This..

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XLMedia’s new focus on US betting pays off as H1 EBITDA exceeds $10m

A renewed – and acquisition-powered – focus on US sports betting helped drive XLMedia’s revenue up 39.2% to $44.5m, while earnings grew beyond $10m.

Since the prior year’s results, XLMedia changed the structure of the divisions within the business, as part of a wider restructuring effort.

Rather than a single sports betting vertical, the business split revenue related to betting into US sports and European sports. It was the US sports division that generated the vast majority of XLMedia’s revenue, with $30.2m, which was more than five times the total recorded in H1 of the previous year.

Much of this came from recent acquisitions such as Sports Betting Dime and Saturday Football Inc.

“The opening of new regulated markets and the signing of new media partnership agreements has allowed the US Sports business to capitalise on the full US sports calendar, in particular the Super Bowl, and deliver strong growth in H1 2022,” the XL board said.

The European Sports division, meanwhile, br..

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Internet Vikings goes live in Iowa

Swedish igaming hosting business Internet Vikings has announced the launch of operations in the state of Iowa.

The roll-out means Internet Vikings will now be able to work with licensed operators in the state and support them with their igaming offerings.

Iowa marks the latest US state in which Internet Vikings has launched its igaming hosting operations, with the business also operating data centres in Arizona, Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee and West Virginia.

Further data centre launches are planned in a number of other states including Connecticut, Mississippi and Virginia.

“Our primary goal is to provide the support which others require in order to keep moving in this often-unpredictable industry,” said Internet Vikings founder Rickard Vikström, who was this month appointed as the new chief executive of the business.

“The US is our focal point, and with many customers in other compliant states, we are proud..

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Internet Vikings goes live in Iowa

Swedish igaming hosting business Internet Vikings has announced the launch of operations in the state of Iowa.

The roll-out means Internet Vikings will now be able to work with licensed operators in the state and support them with their igaming offerings.

Iowa marks the latest US state in which Internet Vikings has launched its igaming hosting operations, with the business also operating data centres in Arizona, Colorado, Illinois, Indiana, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Tennessee and West Virginia.

Further data centre launches are planned in a number of other states including Connecticut, Mississippi and Virginia.

“Our primary goal is to provide the support which others require in order to keep moving in this often-unpredictable industry,” said Internet Vikings founder Rickard Vikström, who was this month appointed as the new chief executive of the business.

“The US is our focal point, and with many customers in other compliant states, we are proud..

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Michigan online gambling revenue declines for third consecutive month in June

Online gambling revenue in Michigan amounted to $136.9m (£114.0m/€133.8m) in June, an increase on last year but the third consecutive month of decline in the US state.

Gross internet gaming and sports betting receipts from commercial and tribal operators were up 19.9% from $114.2m in June 2021, but 14.9% lower than $160.9m in May of this year.

Internet gaming gross receipts were 36.2% higher year-on-year at $121.5m. Sports betting gross receipts amounted to $15.4m, down 38.4% on last year, despite a 14.8% year-on-year increase in handle to $270.0m.

Total adjusted gross receipts, which account for promotional spending, were $114.4m, with $109.4m from igaming and $5.0m sports wagering.

Licensed operators submitted $22.8 million in taxes and payments to the State of Michigan during June including $22.5m in igaming taxes and fees and $328,954 worth of sports betting taxes and fees.

The Michigan Gaming Control Board (MGCB) also noted that aggregate igaming adjusted gross receipts reach..

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Italy’s online sports betting revenue dips in May, while casino holds steady

Italy's igaming revenue declined to €276.4m in May from April’s €292.2m, mostly due to a dip in online sports betting.

Online sports betting revenue continued its downward trend, dropping below the €100 million mark for the first time since October 2021. This is compared to €153.5 million from May 2021. This drastic year-on-year drop is partially explained by restrictions that were in place on the retail sector in May last year, prompting more customers to bet online.

However, retail sports betting also suffered a sudden decline on a month-on-month basis after a period of stability, coming down from €83.5 million in April to €66.4 million in May.

In contrast to the betting figures, casino revenue ticked slightly upwards to €161.8 from €155.1 million. As a result, the igaming revenue product split swayed heavily away from sports betting, taking up only 35.3% of the market in May as opposed to 40.7% in April.

The drops in market share that the biggest four online casino operato..

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