Industry News of the Day for June 26, 2023

Industry News

• Legal Sports Report: DraftKings, Fanatics Scrapped Secret Merger Years Before PointsBet Deal
  • Fanatics declined to comment on a report that it “secretly held merger” talks with DraftKings two years ago. According to two unnamed sources in a New York Post report, in early 2021, DraftKings and Fanatics were in “deep talks” on a 50-50 merger with each company valued at $24 billion. The report comes a week after DraftKings revealed it was making a late $195 million bid to purchase PointsBet‘s US assets, topping a $150 million proposal from Fanatics made about a month earlier.

• PlayUSA: Class Action Lawsuit Against Fliff In California Could Have Broader Implications
  • The judge and venue for a class action lawsuit recently filed in California against social sportsbook Fliff could play a key role in the case. Seven months after California Indian tribes spent more than $200 million to defeat online sports betting Prop 27, the case against Fliff is set in the heart of Indian Country in front of the first Native American to serve as a federal district judge in California. The lawsuit alleges that Fliff operates an illegal online sportsbook under the guise of a free sweepstakes contest, violating the federal Wire Act, California’s Unfair Competition Law and anti-bookmaking laws.

• The Tuscaloosa News: Letter Details Why Alabama Fired Baseball Coach Brad Bohannon For Role In Gambling Scandal
  • Alabama athletics announced it had initiated the termination process for former coach Brad Bohannon on May 4, and the letter notifying Bohannon reveals more details why. The Tuscaloosa News obtained the letter Tuesday in an open records request. Athletics director Greg Byrne sent the letter to Bohannon and wrote that the letter served “as notice of the University of Alabama’s decision to initiate the process of terminating your Employment Contract for cause.”

New Jersey

• PlayNJ: NJ Gambling Bills Would Rein In Ads, Prohibit Sports Betting Deals With Colleges
  • As the New Jersey Legislature gears up for its summer break, one lawmaker is making a push for legislation that would impose restrictions on certain advertising practices and business agreements within the gambling industry. Sen. Joe Cryan, D-Union, is sponsoring two bills, S4020 and S4021, which aim to regulate NJ sports betting advertising and college partnerships involving gambling operators.

Ohio

• PlayOhio: Starved For Cash, Ohio Already Wants To Double Sports Betting Tax Rate
  • There’s an old saying that goes, “Laws are like sausages. It’s better not to see them being made.” Lawmakers in Columbus apparently couldn’t wait six months before grinding the Ohio sports betting law into small particles, mixing it with non-meat ingredients and stuffing it into a sub mucosa of an animal intestine. OK, that sounds kind of gross (that’s why we prefer not to watch). But lawmakers are currently debating Ohio’s sports betting tax rate and certain aspects of where revenue will be distributed.

Ontario

• iGB North America: Videoslots To Launch Online Casino In Ontario
  • Videoslots.com has announced it will launch its online casino in Ontario after securing a license in the Canadian province. Players in the province will have access to content from providers such as Pragmatic Play, Play’n GO, Evolution, Light & Wonder, Pariplay and Greentube. Users will also benefit from customer engagement features such as Battle of Slots, Clash of Spins and Wheel of Jackpots.

Rhode Island

• PlayUSA: Rhode Island Ensures That 2023 Isn’t A Wash For Online Casino Expansion
  • When 2023 began, it was a fresh year full of hope and promise for the expansion of legal real-money online casinos in the United States. About five months in, that shiny potential had been trampled and left for dead in most of the country. On Thursday, however, Rhode Island Gov. Daniel McKee revived the desecrated aspirations by signing a bill that legalizes online casino play in the state.

Vermont

• Sports Handle: Vermont Regulators Aiming For Go-Live By End Of Year In Competitive Market
  • When New Hampshire lawmakers legalized sports betting in 2019, it appeared the intent was for bettors to have a choice of who they would bet with. But after the state lottery reviewed bids, it granted DraftKings a monopoly on both retail and digital betting in exchange for a 51% cut of revenue.

West Virginia

• PlayWV: WynnBET Launches Online Sportsbook and Online Casino in West Virginia
  • West Virginia online gaming just got a new figure, as WynnBET launched both its online sportsbook and online casino in the state on Thursday. The WynnBET sports betting and casino app are both available separately for download in West Virginia. This is the 11th state where WynnBET is operating its sportsbook and/or online casino products.