February 2024

February 2, 2024

Georgia senate passes amended online sports betting bill

The Georgia senate has voted through a bill that would legalise online sports betting in the Peach State, but with an added requirement for a constitutional amendment approved by voters.

Senate Bill 386 was filed last week, seeking to regulate online sports wagering in Georgia. It has moved through the senate quickly and was approved yesterday by a vote of 35-15.

However, this was not before senators added the amendment, which requires the support of 38 senators for the bill to pass. The amendment allows proceeds of betting to be directed to other purposes including needs-based scholarships.

Following senate approval, the sports betting bill now progresses to the Georgia house of representatives for further discussion.

What is in the Georgia sports betting bill?

Key language in SB386 includes that the bill would cover online sports wagering. Players would need to be at least 21 to bet and physically located inside Georgia.

The Georgia Lottery Corporation would assume responsibili..

February 1, 2024

Mississippi House clears online sports betting bill

The Mississippi House of Representatives has passed a new bill that will propose legalising online sports wagering in the Magnolia State.

House Bill 774 would extend the current Mississippi sports betting market to also allow for online wagering. At present, players can only wager at retail facilities at land-based casinos, under laws passed in 2018.

Backed by eight state representatives as sponsors, HB774 entered into the House earlier this week. The bill was approved by a vote of 98-14 and will now move to the Senate.

Key language in the bill includes all 26 land-based casinos in Mississippi being permitted to launch online sports betting. Casinos will only be able to partner with one licensed platform to offer wagering; this would be in addition to any existing retail sportsbook.

The bill did not reference an application fee for licences. However, it did state the renewal fee for a manufacturer’s licence would be $1,000 and a seller’s or distributor’s licence $500.

Tiered tax ..

February 1, 2024

Mississippi House to consider another online sports betting bill

The Mississippi House of Representatives has passed a new bill that will propose legalising online sports wagering in the Magnolia State.

House Bill 774 would extend the current Mississippi sports betting market to also allow for online wagering. At present, players can only wager at retail facilities at land-based casinos, under laws passed in 2018.

Backed by eight state representatives as sponsors, HB774 entered into the House earlier this week. The bill was approved by a vote of 98-14 and will now move to the Senate.

Key language in the bill includes all 26 land-based casinos in Mississippi being permitted to launch online sports betting. Casinos will only be able to partner with one licensed platform to offer wagering; this would be in addition to any existing retail sportsbook.

The bill did not reference an application fee for licences. However, it did state the renewal fee for a manufacturer’s licence would be $1,000 and a seller’s or distributor’s licence $500.

Tiered tax ..

February 1, 2024

Endeavor to integrate IMG Arena into Openbet

Endeavor has announced it will integrate its sport betting brand OpenBet with its data business IMG Arena under the OpenBet banner, creating a full sports betting ecosystem for operators.

Global sports and entertainment company Endeavor announced the move on Thursday. Endeavor aims to leverage the expertise of OpenBet’s betting technology with IMG Arena’s data.

IMG Arena will operate under the OpenBet banner, offering its data to operators, media outlets and other rights holders.

Jordan Levin, chief executive of OpenBet, will spearhead the company, reporting to Endeavor president and chief operating officer Mark Shapiro. Freddie Longe, former IMG Arena president, will remain with the business as a strategic advisor during the transition period.

In the announcement, Shapiro stated this move was in the works for a while following Endeavor’s acquisition of OpenBet. The September 2022 deal was worth $800m (£633.4m/€740.3m).

“When we acquired OpenBet in 2022, we envisioned a holistic ..

February 1, 2024

Macau’s January revenue of MOP19.3bn nearly breaks post-Covid record

Macau generated MOP19.3bn (£1.9bn/€2.2bn/$2.4bn) in revenue in January, its second highest figure since reopening following the Covid-19 pandemic.

Only Macau’s October 2023 revenue number of MOP19.5bn surpassed the first month of 2024, a strong start to the year and with the Chinese New Year just around the corner.

January’s GGR was a hefty 67% increase on the same month last year, while it was also a 4.1% hike on December 2023.

Despite the figures, Macau’s January GGR still fell 14.4% behind the MOP22.1bn recorded in the final January before the pandemic started.

Macau’s Covid recovery expected to continue

Macau’s response to the devastating Covid-19 lockdown has been impressive, with 2023’s cumulative gross income of MOP183.1bn a 333.8% year-on-year increase. While that is still just 59.8% of the final full year before Covid, the growth seen since the easing of lockdown restrictions is expected to continue.

macau has flourished since the easing of most lockdown restrictions in ..

February 1, 2024

The UK in 2024: Can the sports betting industry be saved?

After a turbulent 2023, the UK outlook for 2024 is not positive. While GGR might have been up by nearly 10%, this has been largely attributable to online casino.

Despite arguably being the world’s most famous market for sports betting, the UK is now in its most difficult position in recent history.

David Brown, a UK bookmaking industry veteran since 1976, and ex-trading director for William Hill, Coral and LadbrokesCoral, is certainly worried.

“I’ve been in the industry for 47 years and this is the most pessimistic I have ever been over the health of the UK sports betting market,” he states.

2023’s earnings: A sign of things to come

bet365 posted a £61.2m loss during its 2022-23 financial year despite increases in revenue

Earnings reports throughout 2023 have arguably precipitated this decline.

What should have been a record-breaking period – first the 2022 World Cup and then a packed holiday season of horse racing – instead became grim reading.

Bet365, the UK’s largest on..

February 1, 2024

PointsBet reports record net win of AU$69.9m for Q2 FY24

PointsBet has recorded a record net win quarter of AU$69.9m (£36.2m/€42.5m/$46.1m) for its Q2 financial year 2024.

Total net win for Q2 was AU$59.5m, up 3% on the previous year. PointsBet put this down to continued improvements in promotions efficiency, with marketing expense 33% lower than the previous year.

Having gone live in Ontario when the market launched in April 2022, PointsBet reported a total net win of $10.5m in Canada, again a record quarter.

Total handle across all operations was AU$976.4m, down 4% on the previous year. Gross win also fell to AU$94.4m from Q2 FY23’s figure of AU$97m.

Igaming saw significant growth, with a net win of AU$6.4m, up 119% from the previous Q2’s AU$2.9m. This was attributed to its integration of the platform provider Strive, which it says will “increase game and promotional offerings”.

In its report, PointsBet pointed to Strive’s key benefits. These include “enhanced acquisition of casino-first customers”, which will deliver higher gross win..

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Monthly Archives: February 2024