Industry News of the Day for April 21, 2023

By iDEA | April 21, 2023

iDEA Growth Member News

  • Gambling News: Entain Posts Strong First Quarter Results with Revenue Up 22%
    • The global sports betting, entertainment and gaming group, Entain, released its latest trading update, outlining a strong performance of the company for the first quarter of 2023. The group released its report for the trading period between January 1 and March 31, 2023, pointing to a significant growth in net gaming revenue (NGR), complemented by an increase in active customers.

Industry News

  • Legal Sports Report: BetMGM Focused On Improving Sports Betting Product With Profitability In Sight
    • Satisfied with its iGaming position in the US, BetMGM is focused on its sports betting product. During Entain’s Q1 earnings call Tuesday, CEO Jette Nygaard-Andersen detailed several strong growth metrics for BetMGM, which Entain owns in a joint venture with MGM Resorts. The primary metric Nygaard-Andersen highlighted was that Q1 BetMGM net gaming revenue hit $470 million, up 76% year-over-year.
  • Sports Handle: Criminal Intent: How Bonus Abuse Is Identified And Investigated
    • When you think about sports betting, the words “ringleader,” “dark web,” or “fraudsters” don’t necessarily come to mind. But those words offer a window into bonus abuse, an identity-theft type of fraud unique to the digital world. “Someone will go onto the dark web and buy 100 stolen identities for $15,” GeoComply’s Senior Director of Risk Services Danny DiRienzo told Sports Handle.

Illinois

  • PlayUSA: Illinois Sports Betting Supplier Fees Bill Meets Resistance
    • A bill to lower exorbitant Illinois sports betting renewal fees for suppliers faced backlash Wednesday in the House Gaming Committee. The Illinois sports betting legislation passed in 2019 set the initial supplier licensing fee at $150,000 for the first four years. But suppliers must continue paying $150,000 annually. Chris Nybo, a lobbyist representing the gaming trade association iDEA Growth, presented the discrepancy as a drafting error. That argument worked in the Senate, where SB 323 passed 55-1 on March 29.

Kentucky

  • PlayKentucky: Hoping For NFL Launch, Kentucky Already Writing Sports Betting Regulations
    • Although the bill legalizing sports betting in Kentucky won’t go into effect until June 28, state regulators are already working on drafts of sports betting regulations — with the lofty goal of launching by the NFL season. That revelation came at the start of Tuesday’s meeting of the Kentucky Horse Racing Commission.

Massachusetts

  • PlayMA: Fanatics CEO Michael Rubin Walks Back Sportsbook Expectations For 2023
    • Fanatics Sportsbook is still expected to launch in Massachusetts in 2023. However, it will be part of a smaller handful of 2023 sports betting launches than Fanatics CEO Michael Rubin originally projected. At this week’s CAA World Congress of Sports in Los Angeles, Rubin said he expects Fanatics Sportsbook to be live in 12-15 states by the start of the NFL season.

New Jersey

  • SBC Americas: New Jersey DGE Expands RG Rules And Will Hire FT
    • New Jersey’s sports betting regulations have always been held up as something of a gold standard when it comes to US markets, but the state continues to update, innovate, and improve its regulatory efforts. Such is the case with Thursday’s announcement that the Department of Gaming Enforcement (DGE) along with New Jersey Attorney General Matthew Platkin will be expanding both its responsible gambling rules and its infrastructure.

Ohio

  • OH Bets: Select Group Of Bettors Beta Testing Fanatics Sportsbook
    • A hand-picked group of Ohio sports bettors is getting an opportunity to be among the first in the nation to test drive the new mobile wagering platform from Fanatics Sportsbook. A company spokesman confirmed this week that a “small group” of Ohio customers has joined those in Tennessee who began beta testing in March. The company built its proprietary, in-house platform based on Amelco source code and has plans to beta test the platform for several months.

Ontario

  • CDC Gaming Reports: Ontario’s Igaming Market Sees 50-Plus Percent Increase Every Quarter In Year One
    • On April 4, iGaming Ontario executive director Martha Otton told an audience of industry attendees at a Canadian Gaming Association event that the province hosted $35.5 billion in total wagers over the igaming market’s first year. That solidified Ontario as one of the North America’s largest igaming jurisdictions. Today, iGaming Ontario made those numbers official with the release of a fourth-quarter and full-year market-performance report for the province.

Texas

  • PlayTexas: Pro Sports Teams Make One Last Bid For Texas Sports Betting Legislation
    • Leading Texas pro sports teams have sent an open letter to Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and House Speaker Dade Phelan to encourage their endorsement of legislation to legalize online sports betting. In the state Senate, the odds are heavily stacked against sports betting legislation. As a result, last week the top executives of 11 major sports franchises put additional pressure on Patrick as leader of the Senate to get them to pass the initiative before the end of the current session.
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