Month: December 2021

Golden Lady Casino, Casino4u, Spin Samurai, Axe Casino, Lucky Dreams, Comet Room, Paradiso Room, No Deposit Friend, No Deposit Bonus Blog, Casino-On-Line, Online Casino Australian, Casino Shortlist, Australia Casino and Aus Casinos were all found to be in breach of the Interactive Gambling Act of 2001, ACMA said.

As such, ACMA requested internet service providers in Australia to block access to all of the websites. 

ACMA began making blocking requests in November 2019 and since then it has successfully blocked 375 websites it said were operating in Australia illegally.

Over 150 illegal services have also pulled out of Australia since the ACMA started enforcing new illegal offshore gambling rules in 2017.

“Website blocking provides a valuable opportunity to alert the public to illegal gambling services through the messaging that appears when there is an attempt to access the site,” ACMA said.

“ACMA is reminding consumers that even if a service looks legitimate, its unlikely to have important customer protections. This means Australians who use illegal gambling services risk losing their money.”

Last month, ACMA issued its first blocking orders against offshore lottery websites, after it ruled both We Love Lotto and Red Fox Lotto were operating in the country illegally.

Also last month, ACMA issued a formal warning to Tabcorp after the operator accepted online in-play bets on a US college basketball game.

ACMA launched an investigation into Tabcorp after receiving a complaint and found that the operator had taken 37 in-play bets during the game on 3 January this year.

Online in-play betting on an event during play is prohibited in Australia under the Interactive Gambling Act 2001 and, as such, ACMA ruled Tabcorp broke the law.

The group will pay an initial $20.0m at closing, consisting of $15.0m in cash and $5.0m in newly issued, unregistered ordinary shares, with the remaining $7.5m to be split over two payments of $2.5m and $5.0m due on the first and second anniversaries of the closing, respectively,

Gambling.com said the purchase would expand its US presence, with plans to leverage RotoWire’s existing audience, content library, talented workforce, media partnerships and trust with US sports fans to accelerate its business in the US online sports betting market.

The group added that combining Rotowire with its digital expertise and technology platform will help to drive substantial, incremental affiliate revenue in the sports betting sector.

Read the full story on iGB North America.

The executive said her lawyers were preparing a response to the claims made by PlayUp, which were used to secure a temporary restraining order against Mintas in the United States District Court for Nevada. 

Its filing contained a number of allegations, claiming the executive “threatened to damage [PlayUp’s] reputation to gaming regulators, commercial and business trading partners, and customers” and “threatened to ‘burn PlayUp to the ground’”. 

In addition, it alleged Mintas had warned a potential acquirer, cryptocurrency exchange FTX, of “systemic issues” that lead to the proposed $450m deal collapsing. 

However Mintas responded by saying “all claims mentioned in the filings are wrong.”

She said she remained a major shareholder in PlayUp, and had invested seven-figure sums in the company.  

“It makes no sense that I would have made any of those comments that are quoted in the filing or tried to destroy a deal to sell PlayUp as I would have benefitted from that as well as all other shareholders,” Mintas told iGB. 

Referring to the collapse of the FTX sale, Mintas pointed out that the operator was in possession of an email from the exchange outlining the reasons for the deal being rejected. She pledged to submit this to the Nevada court.

She added that the terms of the restraining order prevented her from commenting in full, but highlighted the work carried out to build up the business since being appointed US CEO in July 2020 as evidence of her commitment to the company. 

Mintas said she had built up the business “from scratch”, as its only US employee for one and a half years of that period. During that time, she built up a strong team, oversaw the brand’s launches in Colorado and New Jersey, and secured market access for additional states. 

This ultimately has led to PlayUp being called “the sleeping giant” in the industry. “My hard work has created a valuation of over $400m alone because of the US market,” she said. 

“If someone tries to prevent you from speaking to the US regulators, that says everything,” Mintas added.

The temporary restraining order has set Mintas a deadline of 13 December to respond, with PlayUp then required to file its response by 15 December, ahead of a hearing in a Las Vegas court the next day.

BGC members such as Flutter, Bet365 and William Hill, have joined the project along with members of the Advertising Association and Lotteries Council. Tech platforms such as Google, Twitter, Meta and Snap have also agreed to contribute.

The forum will look build on the commitments made in the Sixth Industry Code for Socially Responsible Advertising, which demands that operators ensure all sponsored or paid for social media adverts are aimed at people aged 25 and over – unless it can be proved the adverts meet a standard of age targeting verified by an agreed upon third party.

The code also comes with a requirement that gambling ads which appear on search engines must make emphasise that these products are for those aged 18 and above. The adverts in question must also include safer gambling messages.

Michael Dugher, chief executive of the BGC, said: “I am delighted that the BGC has been able to co-ordinate the Adtech Forum, which I’m sure will come up with new ways of protecting young people and the vulnerable online.

“Since being set up two years ago, we have worked tirelessly to drive up standards and promote safer gambling, and this is proof of our determination to go even further.”

The BGC recently called on the government to put child protection at the “front and centre” of the upcoming Gambling White Paper.

The body itself has taken its own responsible gaming strides since being founded in 2019. These include the introduction of a social media code of conduct for football clubs and gambling websites, and its members implementing a whistle-to-whistle ban on gambling ads during football matches.

Stephen Woodford, chief executive of the Advertising Association, added: “We welcome the proactive work by the gambling industry with tech platforms and advertising bodies. It is essential that gambling ads online and in social media meet the highest standards of social responsibility.”

The website is designed to educate amateur and seasoned gamblers on how to further understand the industry.

It will focus on reviews of both land-based and online sportsbooks in the US, including reviews of properties and their associated banking and loyalty program options.

The Game Day Casino also features information and updates on regulated gaming states, casino video content and news about bonuses and promotions in the US.

“As The Game Day continues to experience almost daily growth and engagement focusing on the sports and the sports betting sector, it is a natural extension for us to delve further into the traditional gaming space, further enabling us to offer partners and sponsors additional opportunities to reach target audiences and new customers,” said Matt Heiman, chief executive of The Game Day.

“The Game Day Casino is for the casino player as The Game Day sports brand is for the sports enthusiast and gambler. The platform offers current and potential gamblers an easy-to-digest source of information needed to bet confidently online or in person.”

Earlier this month The Game Day secured $4.5m in funding during its Series A funding round.

The business did not reveal the identities of the investors but did confirm that the round featured a number of leading sports media and online gaming investors, as well as seven returning investors.

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In a blog post today (13 December), Grant outlined the operator’s progress in increasing customer safeguards, following the UK Gambling Act review’s launch in December 2020.

He said the operator welcomed the review, and had not been “idly tinkering round the edges in the hope that the status quo can be maintained”.

“We have been looking at meaningful ways we can enhance customer protections – not just because it is the right thing to do, but also because it is vital for the sustainability of our industry,” he explained.

This was evidenced through its “Affordability Triple Step” system, which aims to take a risk-based approach informed by individual customers’ needs and circumstances.

The first step of this system begins at customer registration, where spend limits are allocated to each customer, while the second step involves continued monitoring through Flutter’s safer gambling controls. If these fail to flag a person experience gambling harm, the final step is implemented- a backstop that prevents losses from growing.

“We know that blanket measures are blunt instruments that will fail to tackle the issue,” Grant explained. “Each customer’s circumstances are different, which is why we need to take a risk-based approach to safer gambling and affordability.”

In the last 12 months the company’s responsible gambling initiatives have also addressed young people, specifically those under the age of 25. Grant pointed out that this age group had a higher risk profile, resulting in measures that would “cut right to the heart of their potential vulnerability”.

This has resulted in Flutter implementing net deposit limits of £500 per month for customers aged 25 and below. This is to come into force early in 2022.

At the time, Flutter stated that its own research had helped to implement the scheme, revealing that 78% of 18-24-year-olds polled supported the restriction.

A number of safer gambling restrictions have already been implemented in Ireland, emphasised Grant, including a ban on credit card usage in retail and online gambling and a whistle-to-whistle ban on gambling advertising pre-watershed.

“Again, we have been clear that we will not wait for regulation where there is clear evidence to act,” he said. “And as we continue to evolve for the benefit of our millions of customers, we remain committed to driving meaningful change across the industry.”

Crown says that “good progress” has been made on implementing the reforms outlined in the Bergin Report, which deemed the company unsuitable to operate a casino in Sydney’s Barangaroo region. These requirements included paying a AU$22.5m settlement to New South Wales Independent Liquor and Gaming Authority (ILGA).

Crown CEO Steve McCann said: “It’s fair to say that the reform programme was well and truly under way before I joined Crown, and we have invested a lot of time and effort since then to continue on that path. I firmly believe the business has turned a corner and has been materially de-risked over the last 6 months.

“We have seen significant progress on our remediation plan, we’ve had a significant overhaul of the senior leadership and board, we’ve had continued challenges through Covid-19 in terms of lockdown, but today we have all three resorts open and operating.”

Crown was also subject to an investigation from Victoria’s Royal Commission, which also deemed the operator unsuitable to operate a casino in the region. Meanwhile in Western Australia, an enquiry has been extended until March 2022 following a request from commissioners for more time to carry out their investigations.

Crown has developed a remediation plan to tackle the issues raised by various regulators. The plan focuses on key areas such as culture, responsible gaming, risk management, junkets, and VIP and significant players. In addition to an anti-money laundering and counter terrorist financing plan, a change to Crown’s senior management was also recommended.

2021 has seen Dr Ziggy Switkowski named as the company’s new chairman, Simon McGrath hired as chief executive of Crown Sydney, and Danielle Keighery appointed chief corporate affairs officer and brand officer.

McCann made the statement at Crown Sydney, which he said should be open for gaming activity in early 2022. The venue is currently open for non-gaming activities.

Crown attests that the resort’s two gaming areas are ready for opening on a staged basis, subject to a determination of suitability by ILGA.

The staged opening is dependent on current staffing levels, with Crown planning further recruitment for gaming related roles.

The two gaming areas expect to have 160 table games and 70 electronic table games in operation by the time the floors are open to the public.

The hotel portion of the resort has been operational since November, welcoming 1300 employees during the novel coronavirus (Covid-19) pandemic.

All three of Crown’s domestic venues – Perth, Sydney and Melbourne – have reopened in some capacity with mandatory vaccination policies in place for customers.

Compared to the second half of 2020, Melbourne experienced a 75% increase in main floor gaming revenue and a 65% increase in non-gaming revenue for the two week period that ended on 5 December, while Perth saw an 8% increase in gaming revenue and a 31% increase in non-gaming revenue.

Crown has seen an increase in revenue derived from domestic business since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic. 100% of revenue came from local customers in 2021, up from 87% in 2020. Revenue from the company’s VIP programme fell to 0% this year, down from 13% last year.

Crown has subsequently been the subject of a takeover proposal from private equity firm Blackstone, who values the company at approximately AU$8.46bn. Having rejected the offer due to a lack of compelling value, Crown has since invited Blackstone to make another proposal.

On the Blackstone bid, McCann added: “We do now have an offer. We’ve made it clear that we don’t think that the offer is compelling value. We’ll be looking at every alternative to try and maximise value, but the very first step is getting open in Sydney and making sure the market can see the value of these fantastic assets and get trading up post pandemic.”

The licence will enable ESA to distribute its range of mobile gaming products to licensed operators in Greece, including its portfolio of EasySwipe-branded HTML5 mobile-first titles.

ESA also holds certifications in Portugal, Italy and Colombia, as well as a supplier licence issued by the Malta Gaming Authority.

“Receiving our Greek licence is another exciting moment for us in our step towards our global expansion,” ESA chief executive Zorica Smallwood said. “The Greek market has huge potential and we’re eager to see how our titles are received by both operators and players.

“It is another important milestone for us this year as we’ve gone from strength to strength.” 

ESA is the latest supplier to secure a new licence in Greece, following BGaming earlier this month.

Yggdrasil, SoftSwiss, iSoftBet and Oryx are among the country’s other recent licensees.

The process to obtain a licence in Greece opened in October 2020, one year after Greece’s parliament passed reforms to its gambling law in October 2019. Two types of supplier licences were made available – one to offer online betting technology and another to offer online games of chance.

The new regulatory system requires operators and suppliers to abide by strict operating conditions. Online slots – which an earlier draft of the regulations had sought to ban – are capped at €2 per spin, with a three-second spin minimum and a maximum win of €70,000 per round.