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by Andrew Tottenham, Managing Director, Tottenham & Co
With the impending Supreme Court of the United States opinion regarding whether the States have the right to offer sport betting, and whether Congress overstepped its powers with PAPSA in 1992 in limiting the number of States that can do so, many States are pre-emptively lining up to legalise online sports betting. I thought therefore I would write a short piece outlining what our politicians might want to think about before they take the plunge and allow online gambling of any kind within their jurisdictions.
There have been many attempts to size the US sports betting market; this will be fairly necessary knowledge, in the event the States are given the right to offer sports betting. Some of the extant estimates are obviously spurious, because they do not understand the difference between the total amount bet (handle) and the total amount won (gross profits.) Some legislators just don't understand the difference. You should read some of the debates. They're hilarious.
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by Luke Haward, CDC Gaming Reports
There have been several leaks from the UK's current self-exclusion systems exposed recently, be they the Multi Operator Self Exclusions Scheme (MOSES) used by many existing high street bookmakers across the land or the unique self-exclusion arrangements set up by each licensed provider of online gambling options. Both have come under fire recently. We'll explore some emerging apps and products which attempt to put the power back in the hands of the consumer, regardless of where they are playing.
The live bookies came under criticism after an undercover BBC report into self-exclusion schemes found that only one out of seventeen betting shops in Grimsby tested by self-excluding reporter Rob Cave actually acted on self-exclusion information to prevent him from repeat play. The Association of Bookmakers was quoted as saying "We accept that the current self-exclusion scheme is not without flaws... we are continually developing improved systems." Admittedly, the betting shop's staff could not have been expected to identify Cave by sight as a problem player, but the story still raises questions.
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Luke says:
Word is that the lack of uptake by big operators in Poland's newly liberalized sports betting market is down to a prohibitively high tax rate on turnover (a whopping 12% as defined by the Finance Ministry) rather than the usual gross gaming revenue. Virtually all other forms of gambling in Poland are still almost the sole province of the state-owned Totalizator Sportowy; only online betting and promotional lotteries are permitted to private operators. For now, it seems that the operators who showed some initial interest in the market, such as 888 and Will Hill, are opting to steer clear. The classic industry argument applies: since consumers can still usually access unlicensed foreign operators, better to set a tax rate which attracts and works for operators and incentivizes them to apply for licenses. This aids both overall tax revenue and the ability for a government to maintain responsible standards for the gaming activity taking place within its borders, and is an adjustment we may come to see in Poland's new age of liberalized sports betting.
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Luke says:
This one is fascinating - a direct neuroscientific link between gambling and anxiety. Apparently, the part of the brain which can involve affective disorders is also related to our assessment of risk and involves the same part of the brain which relates to our perception of and attitude to risk. This makes perfect sense to me, and it would be interesting to see how it differs across different types of gambling. Risking greater amounts or making more inherently risky ventures with funds we use for our existence, is always a potentially stressful matter. This is true of all forms of gambling, even +EV forms such as my own preferred game of poker. It's still wagering money on short-term high variance outcomes. If we don't keep a good eye on how we're doing mentally in our relationship to wagering, we can come unstuck pretty easily. If we weather it well and make good decisions, and encourage others to do so, it can be a healthy process which leads to a better and stronger character. If we ignore the issue, it can be our undoing and can erode our character, or the quality in how we steer the courses of our lives.
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Luke says: Poker Listings have sold the Battle of Malta poker tournament event to Casino Malta, while retaining a marketing role in proceedings. The tournament saw over 2,000 entries last year, and with a doubled guarantee of €1,000,000 this year - for the same entry fee, €550 - looks set to be huger than ever in 2018. It is this move to Casino Malta which has enabled the guarantee boost, as they now have room to cater for all the bums on seats a seven-figure purse will likely attract: as the largest casino venue in Malta, they are well equipped for such an event.
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Luke says: Some interesting claims and counterclaims in this article, which segues from discussing the confirmed repeat venue of the Czech Republic's King Casino for this year's WSOP Europe to an examination of the controversies surrounding the casino's owner, Leon Tsoukernik, particularly the now-infamous heads-up No Limit Hold-'em poker match which took place last year at the Aria in Las Vegas. Tsoukernik lost $3 million in loaned wagers to high stakes pro player Matt Kirk that night and has, so far, only paid $1 million on the loss. The situation has seen suits and countersuits, the most recent being Tsoukernik's $10 million counterclaim against Kirk and the Aria for damaged reputation and allegedly conspiring to keep him drinking and in the game. Fascinating stuff.
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Andrew says:
Melco has confirmed plans to open its temporary casino in Cyprus later this year, although no firm date has been given. Melco and Hard Rock were part of the consortium that, in 2016, won the exclusive license to build and operate a 550-room integrated resort on the island, although Hard Rock pulled out in 2017 to concentrate on its project in Cataluña. By winning the license, Melco was given the right to open a central temporary casino and four satellite slots-only casinos in other parts of Cyprus. The main resort, City of Dreams Mediterranean with a budget of €550 million is expected to break ground later this year and be operational in late 2021.
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Andrew says:
At the other end of the spectrum, a new casino could soon be fully authorised in the Spanish city of Vigo. Vigo is on the Atlantic coast in the region of Galicia, in northwestern Spain, where the seafood is delicious and the splendid Albarino wine is made. Don't expect to hear much about this one. It's looking like the owners, Luckia Group, will invest between €5.5 million and €6 million.
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Luke says: Here's Malta, doing what it seems to do best these days, forging ahead as the European Ambassador of all things crypto. Now the Malta Gaming Authority has released a full published document giving guidance on how blockchain and gambling might best interact. The document tackles money laundering issues and consumer protection, and delineates a 'sandbox' regulatory environment, which sounds fascinating. The regulator itself will evaluate and grant approval for all utilizations of new cryptocurrencies in the business world, and state that the same conditions will apply to all types. All operators must use distributed ledgers, and plans for the risk management of projects must be in evidence. It all looks pretty solid, at least as far as anything built on air can be. Crypto is a little like the new electricity: nobody quite knows where it's going, it's maybe a little dangerous, and it's seemingly appeared out of nowhere. Malta, along with a scattering of nations, seek to embrace and work with this new elemental force within the legislative framework. It's seemingly the only sensible approach, given the reality of cryptocurrencies, but this will still take a great deal of work to accomplish.
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