Industry News
The legal dispute between MGM Resorts International (MGM) and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) could be close to a resolution. According to a Joint Status Report from February 28, the FTC is withdrawing its Civil Investigative Demand (CID) to MGM seeking information about the September 2023 cyberattack, which triggered system-wide outages and cost MGM an estimated $100 million.
FanDuel parent Flutter Entertainment reported earnings on Tuesday, highlighting the app’s continued expansion, increased customer engagement, and plans for new state launches. FanDuel closed the year as the top US operator in both sports betting and casino, holding a 43% share of online sports gaming revenue and 26% of online casino revenue. With new product innovations and expansion plans underway, the company aims for further growth in 2025.
With the NCAA Tournament acting as one of the biggest single sports betting events, an organization is using it to help better understand problem gambling. The National Council on Problem Gambling announced last week that March is Problem Gambling Awareness Month. In a release, the NCPG said this year’s theme is “seeking understanding” as one of the year’s biggest sports betting events gets ready to begin.
Florida
New legislation in Florida suggests harsher consequences for unlicensed online casino gaming and sports betting. The new penalties would apply not only to the people or companies running unauthorized gambling sites but to individual gamblers using them as well. If Florida enacts the proposals, the reinforcement of tribal exclusivity could serve to pave the way for the future expansion of the Seminole compact to include iGaming.
Hawaii
Hawaii became the surprise of the legislative season as a sports betting bill advanced past the House on Tuesday. Lawmakers passed House Bill 1308 on Tuesday by a 35-15 vote. It’s the farthest a Hawaii sports betting bill has made it in the Aloha State. While the sports betting legislation moves on to the Senate, it still has an uphill battle before the session concludes on May 2.
Nevada
The Nevada Gaming Control Board issued a cease-and-desist order Tuesday to KalshiEX LLC, requiring the company to stop offering prediction markets akin to Nevada sports betting by March 14. The order said Kalshi violates Nevada law despite event trading being legal at a federal level, regulated by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission.
New Jersey
BetMGM will be laying off 83 employees at its headquarters in Jersey City, with the moves going into effect on May 27, according to a public notice filed with the New Jersey Department of Labor. The move comes as BetMGM has struggled to keep up with sports betting market leaders DraftKings and FanDuel, not just in New Jersey but around the US.
While there is plenty of opposition to Gov. Phil Murphy’s proposal to raise NJ sports betting taxes, at least one lawmaker sees the positives. Sen. John McKeon said he supports Murphy’s tax increase, which was included in a recent budget proposal. The budget nearly doubles both the tax rate for NJ sports betting and online casino gambling from 13% and 15%, respectively, to 25%.
New York
On Tuesday, Senator Joseph Addabbo introduced a bill that would prohibit sweepstakes casinos in New York. For several years running, Sen. Addabbo has consistently pushed for the regulation of online casinos in the Empire State. This year, his renewal of that effort came alongside a promise to address the sweepstakes casinos that have recently become popular as an alternative to legal real-money options.
