Sports betting Archives

October 4, 2022

Italy avoids turnover tax on betting

Italy’s new legislative decree on sports betting – which will not contain the tax on turnover that had been proposed – is set to come into force on 28 October, having been published in the country’s official gazette.

Under these new rules, the tax on retail betting revenue will be 20%, while for online it will be 24%.
Previously, Italy had considered introducing an additional 1% turnover tax instead, but this plan was scrapped.

The law will also introduce a €1 minimum bet, while winnings for any fixed-odds bet will be capped at €50,000.

These new rules will come into force on 28 October, which will be 30 days after their publication in the Official Gazette. They will cover any fixed-odds bets on events other than horse racing, including non-sporting events approved by the Italian Customers and Monopoly Agency.

Italian sports betting in recent years has been heavily impacted by the introduction of a total marketing ban in 2019. This ban, referred to as the “dignity decree”, has bee..

October 4, 2022

Following the numbers on free-to-play

There’s no shortage of businesses in the free-to-play space, but Tally’s focus on data – perhaps influenced by its top executives’ time spent outside of gambling – makes it stand out. Fresh off a $4m funding round led by Acies Investments, Daniel O'Boyle speaks to CEO Brad Vettesse and COO Rupert Huelsey about the business.

There are some tried-and-tested business models for free-to-play betting-related games to bring in money without taking any real bets.

Some products offer paid unlockables, such as features or extra credits, which players can use real money to access.

Brad vettesse

Others exist as as entertainment in itself, usually used as a way to keep players coming back to betting sites, acting more as a piece of acquisition or retention software for operators.

But perhaps not enough attention has been given to the typical business model of most free-to-use products and services these days: gathering customer data.

So, is this type of data still a mostly untapped reso..

October 3, 2022

Virginia halts sports betting handle decline in August as spending hits $284.7m

Consumers in Virginia wagered $284.7m (£254.2m/€291.2m) on sports during August, preventing a fifth straight month of handle decline in the US state.

The monthly total was 55.8% higher than $182.7m in August 2021 and also 7.0% up from $266.0m in July of this year, which was the fourth consecutive month in which consumer spending had fallen.

Adjusted gross gaming revenue, which is defined as total bets minus winnings, bonuses and promotions and other authorised deductions, was also up by 260.9% from $8.7m in August 2021 to $31.4m this year.

This figure, the Virginia Lottery said, was also 46.7% more than $21.4m in July this year.

Consumers in Virginia won $247.7m from sports betting during the month, while $1.1m in bonuses and promotions were issued to players. In addition, the Virginia Lottery accounted for a further $4.24m in other deductions.

Total tax collected from sports betting activity in August was $4.5m, with $4.4m allocated to the General Fund Allocation and $111,853 the..

September 30, 2022

Light & Wonder completes $800m OpenBet sale

Light & Wonder has completed the sale of its OpenBet sports betting platform to Endeavor, three months after the initial planned closing date and for $400m less than was first agreed.

Endeavor – a sports media business that owns IMG Arena – will pay $750m in cash for OpenBet, plus 2.3 million Class A shares, worth $50m.

The sale forms part of a general streamlining of the Light & Wonder business, formerly known as Scientific Games. It also sold its lottery arm – which retained the Scientific Games name – in October of last year to private equity group Brookfield Business Partners.

The sale also follows the exit of Barry Cottle as Light & Wonder chief executive, with Matt Wilson serving in the role on a temporary basis until a full-time replacement is found.

Wilson said the new business can now focus on growth, now that it has a more clear focus on gaming, whether land-based, online or social.

“With the completion of the OpenBet divestiture and our now streamlined organisation, Li..

September 30, 2022

RI sports betting bounces back in August as revenue hits five-month high

The Rhode Island Lottery reported year-on-year growth within the state’s sports betting market in August, while revenue reached its highest monthly total since March 2022.

Revenue for the month amounted to $3.0m, which was 172.7% higher than $1.1m in August of last year and also 3.5% up from $2.9m in July this year.

Of this total, $1.6m was attributed to online betting activity, while $1.4m came from retail sports betting via sportsbooks at the Twin River and Tiverton Casino land-based sites.

Twin River was the more successful of the two casinos, bringing in $866,413 in revenue for the month, while the Tiverton casino generated $504,225 from sports wagering.

In terms of handle, player spending in August reached $27.7m, up 15.4% from $24.0m in August 2021 and also 9.9% higher than $25.2m in July of this year.

Consumers spent $17.9m betting online during the month, as well as $9.9m at land-based sportsbooks. Twin River processed $6.1m in retail bets and the Tiverton Casino $3.8m.

F..

September 30, 2022

Dutch market an early success, but true battles are ahead

iGB op-ed: Daniel O’Boyle says that the first year following the Dutch market launch has been an overwhelming success in channelisation terms, but tinkering with the formula could put all of that at risk.

In terms of the actual act of getting sites online and ready to take customers’ bets, the launch of the Dutch online market was a bit of a mess.

A technical hitch with self-exclusion scheme Cruks meant that sites were not permitted to launch on 1 October as expected, going live a day later instead. This, of course, followed a number of other delays for a variety of reasons.

But if we’re talking about the general performance in the months after opening up, the Dutch market looks to have been a success.

The country exceeded its three-year channelisation target within year one. Figures released today by regulator de Kansspelautoriteit – one day before the first anniversary of that launch – reveal that 85% of Dutch players are gambling within the licensed market.

Much of the reason f..

September 29, 2022

Road to World Cup: Preparing your sportsbook product

With the World Cup kicking off in November, punters will be presented with a wealth of big games to bet on. With just four months to go, the period for preparation is getting shorter and shorter.

Operators need to ensure they are prepared for handling an influx of traffic, while maintaining the highest possible standards of customer experience. To succeed when competition for players is at its fiercest, sportsbooks need to ensure they have a stable, robust, scalable and flexible solution that performs under pressure.

In this webinar, sportsbook platform specialist BtoBet and a panel of experts explore how to make sure you’re match-fit for the tournament.

We discussed:

How a quality sportsbook is key for an operator to increase its growthThe relevance of machine learning-driven tools and the part they play in player engagementThe importance of market localisationCustomising front-end UXTailoring your content offering ahead of the World Cup

Check out other on demand videos here.

September 29, 2022

GAN debuts sports betting in US with Island View Casino launch

GAN has launched sports betting with Island View Casino in Mississippi, marking the first US deployment of GAN Sports since its acquisition of Coolbet in January 2021.

Consumers at the casino will be able to place sports bets at 20 internet-connected kiosks, while GAN will also roll out a “Bet the V” branded mobile sportsbook to complement the retail offering.

The mobile solution will be enabled by GAN’s GameSTACK Player Account Management (PAM) system for omnichannel sports betting via retail kiosks or mobile devices while on location at the casino.

GAN will also provide supporting marketing and customer services, while the deal will allow for the state-wide roll out of mobile sports betting, should Mississippi pass the relevant laws to expand wagering in the future. At present, consumers are only permitted to place mobile bets while on-site at a licensed casino.

The launch was made possible after GAN acquired Vincent Group, the parent company of operator Coolbet, for $175.9m in J..

September 29, 2022

Danish regulator cancels one of two injunctions against Tipwin

Danish regulator Spillemyndigheden has cancelled a money laundering injunction it issued against Tipwin earlier this year, but left a second injunction against the operator in place.

In June, the regulator said it had reported Tipwin to local police and issued injunctions over failings in the anti-money laundering efforts undertaken at its retail betting shops.

The regulator said the business had breached two different sections of the Danish Money Laundering Act: Section 7, which deals with risk assessments, and Section 8, about policies and practices for staff to detect possible cases of money laundering.

However, after what Spillemyndigheden described as “careful consideration”, it cancelled the injunction that related to Section 8. It said that, as Tipwin’s staff that should have been responsible for these practices were outsourced, the operator did not commit a failing here. However, it did note that the failings would be covered by a different section of the Act: Section 24.

U..

September 28, 2022

Elys granted approval for DC nightclub sportsbook

Gaming technology provider Elys Game Technology has been granted approval by Washington DC local government for a white-label joint venture with the Ozio Lounge, a Mediterranean-themed nightclub.

The business formerly known as Newgioco has agreed to launch a joint venture with District Hospitality, the club’s operator, and will trade under the BetDupont LLC name. The agreement has an initial term of three years from the date the licence is issued – with inbuilt provisions for two anticipated extensions of two years each.

The deal is subject to regulatory approval from the DC Office of Lottery and Gaming (DCOLG) – and would be the third white label retail sportsbook opened by the business in the city, having engaged in similar deals with the Grand Central Restaurant and Sportsbook, which has been completed and the Cloakroom Gentlemen’s Club, which is awaiting regulatory confirmation.

Elys executive chairman Michele Ciavarella placed the deal in the context of the business’ wider US s..

September 28, 2022

DAZN eyes betting expansion with Eleven deal

Worldwide sports platform DAZN Group has entered an agreement to acquire the global sports media businesses of Eleven Group to support its betting expansion plans.

Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed, but DAZN said the purchase would expand its live sports streaming capabilities in markets around the world and add approximately $300.0m (£281.5m/$314.1m) in revenue per year to its business.

DAZN said that should the acquisition go ahead, the addition of Eleven to its business would support its wider plans to grow its betting operations.

In recent months, DAZN has made a series of announcements supporting its betting business. Last month, the company soft launched the beta product of the DAZN Bet sports betting venture in the UK.

First revealed in April, DAZN Bet is powered by technology from Pragmatic Play, and is being led by Mark Kemp, formerly chief executive of BoyleSports.

The move into the world of betting came after DAZN last year hired Shay Segev – formerly chief..

September 28, 2022

How lotteries can leverage their scale in sports betting

Across the globe, state lotteries have opportunities to move into sports betting, but doing so will create new challenges that only a few may be capable of addressing. How can they go about creating a thriving sportsbook? By Jari Vähänen

On a global scale, lotteries are a diverse group of companies. There are huge differences between the operators, with very few unifying features.

Jari Vähänen

Broadly speaking, the common thing that binds them is their exclusive right to run lottery games. Yet when looking at the World Lottery Association’s membership, not all companies even have this monopoly position. However, in this article, I will focus on lottery companies that operate at scale, namely state lotteries.

Lotteries as a monopoly

The term “state lotteries” refers to the fact that these companies were originally under the direct control of the state and sold lottery games. Most lotteries originally sold scratchcards and lotto (or draw-based games). It is only in the past three d..

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Tag: Sports betting