Mobile Wagering

Asian Recovery or More of the Same?

Posted on November 30, 2021

Heading into 2020, it looked as though the gaming world would continue on its track of expansion in Asia.  Macau was two years out from concession renewal. The Philippines was seeing strong growth in gaming and tourism.  Jurisdictions such as Cambodia, Vietnam and others were seeing strong growth in their existing facilities with new projects being announced along the way.

Yet, it was shortly after the start of that year that the world began to change, and change rapidly.  Macau initially shut down for two weeks, and the rest of the world soon followed with what still remains for many jurisdictions that are in Great Shutdown mode. Gaming revenue evaporated quickly. Timelines for expansion disintegrated. Concession renewals in Macau were put in limbo other than a two-year extension to put all of the concessionaires on the same timeline for renewals.  Heading into 2022, there are just as many uncertainties as portions of Asia finally began to reemerge rom nearly two years of lockdown.

 

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Opportunity Abounds: Sports Betting in Indian Country will evolve naturally and be profitable for the smartest operators

Posted on May 25, 2021

Since the repeal of PASPA (Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act) in May 2018 through the Supreme Court decision in Murphy v. NCAA, United States markets have pushed forward to legalize sports betting.

Thirty U.S. jurisdictions have legalized sports betting and more than 22 of those are now operational.  Many of the remaining states provide strong opportunities for tribal communities to take advantage of this expansion.

While opportunity abounds for tribes in sports betting, it’s about getting it right, not speed to market.  One of the main reasons PASPA was overturned was because of states’ rights issues.  Each state will take its own approach to how sports betting may fit into its existing gaming product.

In some cases, sports betting might not be incorporated at all.

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2020 Trends: Sports Betting

Posted on December 20, 2020

Since the repeal of the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act in May 2018, over half of the jurisdictions within the United States have legalized sports betting, and nearly 20 of these jurisdictions are conducting legal sports betting operations today.

Sports betting continues to grow with the emergence of new markets in states such as Tennessee (which launched at the beginning of November), as well as more established jurisdictions such as New Jersey (which is currently at a similar level to Nevada in terms of handle). All the while, new operators and brands are being introduced in the space, and new deals are being announced across the spectrum of sports among operators, teams, leagues, media and other stakeholders.

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A Sporting Chance

Posted on September 1, 2020

Esports has grabbed the attention of more than just the gaming industry, and for good reason.

The industry’s rapid rise has benefited from numerous omnichannel platforms that allow for unprecedented viewership and engagement from a diverse audience. With the “new abnormal” defined by Covid-19, esports has proven that media consumption is not just about what people can watch on the major networks. Instead, people are turning to streaming platforms like Twitch and YouTube for competitive-based content

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Free to Play

Posted on July 16, 2020

As the sports arena fell silent due to the coronavirus, a host of new sports and games sparked the curiosity of sports fans and bettors, such as esports, Belarusian soccer, Russian ping
pong, Taiwanese baseball, darts and more. However, the main professional leagues and other U.S. sports have moved to free-to-play (F2P) as a way to stay engaged with fans during this unprecedented and uncertain time.

F2P is an opportunity for players to engage with games and products for fun or practice, sometimes in real time. F2P offers the same entertaining gameplay offering bonus rewards or prizes found in real-money games while allowing game producers, brands, and operators to cultivate new customers.

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Reform to perform: Shutdown provides rare POGO opportunity

Posted on June 7, 2020

As the brick and mortar gaming world fell silent in response to the coronavirus, many online gaming operations continued throughout the pandemic. However, the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) and President Rodrigo Duterte also shuttered the Philippine Online Gaming Operators (POGOs) in the middle of March in response to the outbreak. POGOs have made a sizeable impact financially to the Philippines, with revenues increasing by more than 13% from 2018 to 2019.

In late April, the government began to hold conversations about restarting these operations and deeming them essential businesses as a way to help finance a government heavily hit by a revenue shortfall due to the pandemic. After a six–week break, they were allowed to restart these operations following the strictest guidelines issued by the government under the Enhanced Community Quarantine (ECQ). Restrictions included limitations on staff sizing (30%), shuttle services for employees, temperature checks, social distancing and masks for employees.

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Research Brief: PASPA U.S. Sports Betting Two Years Post Repeal

Posted on May 16, 2020

Two years ago, the Supreme Court of the United States made a historic decision in Murphy v. NCAA (National Collegiate Athletic Association), ruling on the constitutionality of the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (“PASPA”). In overturning PASPA, the Supreme Court allowed sports betting to spread across the country with active sports betting now in 18 states. There are eight other jurisdictions that are in the process to go live in the near future, including North Carolina, which is tribal; Tennessee and the District of Columbia, which have regulations completed; Washington, Virginia, and Puerto Rico, which are currently in the regulatory phase; and South Dakota and Maryland, where sports betting will be on the ballot this November.

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Research Brief: Japan’s IR Opportunity

Posted on April 26, 2020

Given these unprecedented and uncertain times, many questions continue to be raised as to how the process of integrated resorts in Japan may be affected by the ever-changing events surrounding the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. As seen by government actions around the globe, this virus has not only affected Japan, but the rest of Asia, the United States, the Americas, and the world. China is experiencing a second wave of the virus not only in Wuhan, which just recently updated its case counts, but throughout the country. This has extended over the past few weeks to other jurisdictions such as Hong Kong, which just extended its lock down by 14 days, and other parts of Asia that were not initially hot spots but have extended as conditions have changed.

Japan’s integrated resort selection process has come into the crosshairs between numerous issues including the virus, the now-2021 Olympics, the upcoming World Expo in 2025, and the microcosm of Japan’s political process. While tourism has been halted across the globe, Japan will once again be on a path to achieve the tourism goals set by Prime Minister Abe; goals which are achievable with the introduction of integrated resorts once the pandemic subsides. The robust opportunity remains available for Japan to reach these goals and bring in tens of billions of dollars in investment between the three licenses, as well as job creation and other economic benefits that go along with them.

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Regulated Sports Betting: A Nevada Perspective

Posted on April 6, 2020

This article discusses the impact Nevada has had on legal regulated sports betting for the past seventy years. First, an overview and history of Nevada’s sports betting regulatory framework will be presented; and, second, lessons learned and issues to consider for states wishing to embark on legalized regulated sports betting such as, integrity, why states and not the federal government should regulate sports betting, how tax rates and fees impact the legal and illegal markets, why technology is a critical component of legal sports wagering, why multiple avenues for consumer protection are essential, and finally how cooperation among all stakeholders is essential and will help create solutions to new challenges.

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Bouncing POGOS

Posted on January 16, 2020

Online gaming has been on the radar of mainland Chinese authorities over the last six months, as they seek to stop online operations in Asia. They are particularly focused on online gaming markets in Cambodia and the Philippines, which are suspected of targeting Chinese nationals.

In response to several compliance issues and concerns raised by Beijing, Cambodia has effectively shut down its online gaming operations. However, the Philippines and President Rodrigo Duterte, even after meeting with the Chinese President Xi Jinping, decided to keep its online gaming operations open. The market is thriving throughout the Philippines and looks to continue to grow under the regulatory structure of the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (PAGCOR).

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