Industry News of the Day for August 7, 2023

iDEA Growth Member News

• Legal Sports Report: DraftKings Stock Bumps Up Following Positive Second Quarter
  • DraftKings saw its stock jump 5.84% Friday after the company reported strong second-quarter earnings and improved end-of-year guidance. The stock rose as much as 15% during normal trading Friday before settling down. DKNG saw more than 4 times its average daily volume at 44.9 million.

Industry News

• Bonus.com: TransUnion Report Finds US Gamblers 2-3 Times More Vulnerable to Fraud Than Non-Bettors
  • A new TransUnion report found that US gamblers are almost twice as likely as non-bettors to fall victim to financial fraud. The risk is three times higher for high-value players, who deposit $500 or more monthly. The report also found bettors of all types are more willing to trade personal information for potential gain. As a result of this heightened risk, operators must implement robust fraud prevention strategies, the report said.

• SBC Americas: NFL Tells Rep. Titus To Crack Down On Offshore Sportsbooks
  • Several after Nevada Rep. Dina Titus penned a letter to the league asking for more transparency in the gambling policy, the NFL has fired back asking Titus to do more to address offshore gambling. Titus wrote the NFL in June setting a July 15 deadline for the league to provide a series of answers about how it handles gambling and its players and staff. The letter followed news that a growing number of players were being suspended for betting on NFL games.

• Covers: WynnBet Launches New Sports Betting App In Six States
  • WynnBet has launched a new sports betting app, which allows users to wager using a single platform across all states the operator has gained market access. The new WynnBet app is currently live in six jurisdictions, which include Arizona, Colorado, Indiana, Louisiana, Tennessee, and Virginia.

Arizona

• PlayAZ: National Trend Of Tribal Casino Success Reflected In Arizona
  • Tribal casinos are seeing tremendous success and growth across the US. That trend is evident in Arizona. The 24 casinos in Arizona owned and operated by tribes accounted for $123.6 million in tax contributions in fiscal year 2022-23, a state record, according to the Arizona Department of Gaming. In the most recent quarter, $38.4 million was paid to the state from casino revenue generated by casinos operated and owned by tribal nations.

Iowa

• PlayIA: Iowa’s Ferentz Calls For Improved Education In Face Of Gambling Scandal
  • Iowa University head football coach Kirk Ferentz is approaching the ongoing illegal gambling probe of student athletes at Iowa and Iowa State true to form. He sees illegal gambling as an opponent that needs a game plan to beat it. He spoke about it at Big 10 Media Day on July 26 before players were named and charged this week. Ferentz is calling on the NCAA to improve its education process concerning players betting on sports.

Kentucky

• Gaming Today: Ten Brands With Sportsbook Operations Now Filed To Do Business in Kentucky
  • At least 10 national brands with sportsbook operations – including one that recently sold its US operations to a competitor – have registered as legal business entities in the Commonwealth of Kentucky. That indicates a potentially healthy field of competition when sports betting launches in the state next month.

North Carolina

• NC Sharp: DraftKings Teases North Carolina Sports Betting Launch In Earnings Report
  • DraftKings, one of the nation’s premier sports betting providers, announced its intentions to launch in North Carolina on Thursday in its second-quarter earnings news release. In the release, DraftKings laid out the path ahead for its expansion of online sports betting in the US: “Kentucky, North Carolina, Vermont, and Puerto Rico have authorized mobile sports betting and collectively represent approximately 6% of the U.S. population,” the news release said.

Rhode Island

• PlayUSA: Rhode Island Senate President Says Online Casino Revenue Will Make Huge Difference
  • Money mattered when it came to Rhode Island’s surprise legalization of online casino this year. Rhode Island Senate President Dominick Ruggerio told PlayUSA there soon will be a hole in the budget from federal pandemic funds. And he sees online casino revenue as a way to help fill that hole. “The funding is drying up from the money that the feds have given us during the COVID virus and we have to supplement that income with something,” Ruggerio said.

West Virginia

• PlayWV: New Caesars Palace Online Casino Set To ‘Build Market Share’ In WV Market
  • Caesars Entertainment launched its new West Virginia online casino app earlier this week, officially upping the ante on its iGaming investment in the Mountain State. The website for the new Caesars Palace Casino WVreads, “New online casino. Same iconic palace.” The app features a full-scale casino separate from its sportsbook product, which has an combined casino with limited offerings.