Industry News of the Day for October 21, 2020

iDEA Growth Member News:

• Sports Handle, 10.20.20 – Simplebet Appears Ready To Transform In-Game Sports Betting Through Innovative Artificial Intelligence (FanDuel)
  • Startup aims to redefine in-game sports gambling with automated market mechanics for micro betting.

Industry News:

• PlayUSA, 10.20.20 – PlayUSA Rewind: Betting Hot Spot New Jersey Tapped For 2025 NCAA Tournament
  • Our last bit of news deals with Illinois sports betting and remote registration.
• Legal Sports Report, 10.20.20 – Analysis: How Free Bets, Bonuses Can Prop Up US Sports Betting Revenue
  • Pennsylvania last week became the latest state to enjoy record sports betting handle in September. But the state’s unique reporting system also helped to reveal just how frothy the current market is.

Overall Industry News:

• Gambling Compliance, 10.21.20 – Tribal Casinos Suffer Wave Of Cyber Attacks (subscription paywall)
  • The fact that cyber criminals recently targeted and closed four tribal casinos should have significant implications for the industry, the former chairman of the National Indian Gaming Commission (NIGC) warned on Tuesday.

Federal News:

• US Bets, 10.20.20 – DFS Players, Operators Brace For Impact Of Latest IRS Tax Ruling
  • Building on a July 23 memorandum that declared daily fantasy sports (DFS) to be a form of gambling and thus subject to a federal tax, last Friday the IRS published another memo, dated Sept. 14, that confirmed “The amount paid by a daily fantasy sports player to participate in a daily fantasy sports contest constitutes an amount paid for a wagering transaction” under Section 165(d).

Sports League News:

• iGB North America, 10.20.20 – NBA To Launch New Lottery Game With EquiLottery
  • Sports lottery games developer EquiLottery Games has brokered a deal with the National Basketball Association (NBA) to launch a new officially licensed game based on the outcome of the league’s matches.

Pennsylvania:

• Penn Bets, 10.20.20 – PA Survey Will Assess New iGaming’s Impact And Link To Problem Gambling
  • While the modernized gambling from Pennsylvania’s 2017 legalization of online forms of casinos, sports betting, and lottery play has been going on for more than a year, there’s a related aspect just getting underway now.

New York:

• Yahoo! Sports, 10.21.20 – NY Eyes Mobile Betting By Super Bowl As NJ Sets Wagering Records
  • New Jersey reported record sports wagering volume for a second consecutive month in September, with operators retaining $45.1 million. By comparison, New York experienced a -38.5% YoY decline in sports betting revenue (with operators earning just $1.4 million).

Maryland:

• Gambling Compliance, 10.21.20 – Governor’s Endorsement Helps But Maryland Sports-Betting Vote Too Close For Comfort (subscription paywall)
  • The U.S. gaming industry still hopes to win a sports-betting trifecta on November 3 as three states vote on ballot measures to legalize sports wagering.
• PlayVirginia, 10.20.20 – Hogan Gives A Thumbs Up To Maryland Sports Betting
  • The DMV could be a competitive sportsbook market after the governor of a neighboring state endorsed Maryland sports betting.

Washington, D.C.:

• Sports Handle, 10.21.20 – C.’s First Independent Sportsbook Prepping For Opening As Neighbors Resist
  • Shane August is finally on the cusp of opening the first independently owned retail sportsbook in the United States, but he’s got one more hurdle to get over — convincing his new neighbors that Las Vegas-style sportsbook won’t be the “wild, wild West and alleyways.”

Virginia:

• Richmond Times-Dispatch, 10.20.20 – Virginia Lottery Sales Surge, As Gaming Options Multiply
  • The Virginia Lottery is off to a fast start in the race for sales and profits in an unprecedented era of expansion for legal gaming opportunities in a state that traditionally had discouraged them.

Tennessee:

• SBC Americas, 10.21.20 – Tennessee Awards Affiliate License To AmericanGambler.Com
  • Betting affiliate network AmericanGambler.com has achieved its eighth US affiliate approval in less than a year with the granting of a license to operate in Tennessee which becomes effective next month.
• WSN, 10.20.20 – Tennessee On The Clock For Anticipated November 1 Sports Wagering Debut
  • The state of Tennessee seems to be in “two-minute warning” mode now in preparation to begin legal sports wagering by November 1, if not potentially a day or two sooner.

Nebraska:

• Gambling.Com, 10.20.20 – Nebraska Voters Have Chance To Approve Casinos At Race Tracks
  • Nebraskan voters are set to determine the state’s gaming future when they take to the polls on Nov. 3.

Arkansas:

• Gambling.Com, 10.20.20 – Arkansas September Sports Betting Up 292% As Books Reopen
  • With all three sportsbooks in the state open and the return of the NFL and college football, Arkansas posted its biggest sports betting handle since the coronavirus shutdown.

Mississippi:

• Gambling.Com, 10.20.20 – Mississippi September Sports Betting Shows 29% Increase
  • Mississippi sports betting saw another substantial increase in handle September, up 29% over August and 37.9% percent over September 2019.