THE AMERICAS
California’s online poker vote was postponed to discuss new ‘bad actor’ amendments; New York approved daily fantasy sports legislation but the attorney general says fraud lawsuits will continue; New York’s Senate approved online poker for the first time but the Assembly balked; DraftKings and FanDuel were said to be holding merger talks; New Jersey regulators said GVC Holdings’ grey/black market businesses weren’t a problem and PokerStars New Jersey failed to maintain its initial momentum; Canada’s sports betting bill got its second reading in Parliament; Loto Quebec’s online gambling revenue rose one-third last year while a Supreme Court ruling cast further doubt on Quebec’s IP-blocking plans; five Atlantic City casinos are facing a workers’ strike on July 1; the Massachusetts Lottery got a little closer to launching online sales; Rafi Farber warned investors that they were buying Churchill Downs stock at their own risk; UNLV’s Daniel Sahl revealed how innovation will lure millennials onto the casino floor; American Gaming Association CEO Geoff Freeman told Rebecca Liggero how protecting sports integrity will speed betting legalization and Lee Davy recapped all the action at the World Series of Poker 2016.
EUROPE, MIDDLE EAST and AFRICA
Betfred was fined over £800k for shoddy ‘know your customer’ procedures; Russia got its second licensed online sports betting site; Euro 2016 is expected to boost German sports betting market over €5b; Dafabet inked a Premier League shirt deal with Burnley FC; South African casino operators protested the government issuing a new casino license; Israel’s finance minister publicly opposed the government’s casino plans; attorney Justin Franssen explained why Netherlands gaming regulators can’t get out of the slow lane; iSport Genius’ Nathan Rothschild talked up the benefits of big data for sports betting operators and Paysafe’s Neil Erlick explained the need to incentivize consumers to get money onto sites.
ASIA and AUSTRALIA
Crown Resorts announced plans to spin off its international operations; the Philippine judge behind nuisance online gambling raids was ordered to stop issuing warrants; Vietnam busted a major football betting ring; China’s WeChat messaging service cracked down on Hongbao gambling pools; Travellers International delayed its Manila casino opening; Goa politicians came under fire for issuing a new/old casino license while Marahastra put illegal online lotteries on notice; digital marketing specialist Jaison Joseph explained how online rummy is evolving India’s gaming industry and Grid Logic Software’s Pariekshit Maadishetti said artificial intelligence could give online rummy operators an edge.
