Boiling Point
Boiling Point
Tension within the Maine Gambling Control Unit has bubbled to the surface with investigators signing a letter of no-confidence in Executive Director Milton Champion.
The Bulletin Board
NEWS: Maine Gambling Control Unit in turmoil. Investigators unanimously sign a letter of no confidence in the executive director.
LEGAL and REGULATORY UPDATES: Ohio iCasino bill stands little chance; Efforts in Arkansas; Quote of the Week.
NEWS: BetRivers Poker is coming to Pennsylvania.
BEYOND the HEADLINE: Interest in online poker is on the rise.
NEWS: No shortage of casualties in the Colorado sports betting market.
AROUND the WATERCOOLER: A story in two tweets.
STRAY THOUGHTS: A cannibalization forcefield.
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Maine Gambling Control Executive Director Under Fire
Like Chancellor Valorum in the Phantom Menace, Maine’s top gambling regulator has been hit with a letter of “no confidence” signed by all nine state investigators, who claim he has created a “toxic work environment.”
The letter reads in part:
“As Public Safety Inspectors and MSEA-SEIU Local 1989 members, we must make it known that Milton Champion has repeatedly shown a lack of respect for our legal rights and processes spelled out in our union contract, has retaliated against us individually and as a group, and has created a deeply dysfunctional and toxic workplace environment.”
According to the Bangor Daily News, the complaints stem in part from: “Champion pulled the nine inspectors earlier this year from monitoring the state’s two casinos in Bangor and Oxford for irregular activity on Sundays and Mondays, and inspectors said the change removed holiday and overtime pay. Additionally, the state employee union has filed pending grievances that allege Champion has created a retaliatory environment.”
Champion has received support from employees within the Maine Gambling Control Unit, half of whom signed a letter of support on Friday.
Champion’s tenure as the executive director of the Maine Gambling Control Unit has been peppered with controversy.
He was suspended for one week in July 2023 for an inappropriate tweet and criticized by lawmakers who believe Champion has held up retail sportsbooks at the state’s two commercial casinos.
Maine is one of the “states to watch” on the online casino front, but the dysfunction within the Gambling Control Unit will likely make a very difficult lift nearly impossible.
Legal and Regulatory Updates: Ohio’s iCasino Bill; Efforts in Arkansas; Quote of the Week
Outgoing Ohio lawmaker introduces iCasino bill: An online casino bill (that is a gift to the industry) was filed in Ohio, but don’t expect this one to go anywhere. “I really do think this is a long way off from truly getting legalized in Ohio, but I think it’s time we start the process,” State Sen. Niraj Antani told Play USA. “We’ve been talking about starting the process for over a year now. Someone has to kickstart it, and I think it’s time to go.” Antani is term-limited and will leave the legislature at the end of the year. STTP NUGGET: Keep an eye on the first-of-its-kind language that limits affiliates to five licenses. I’m curious where that came from and if it will appear elsewhere.
Saracen Casino's efforts to legalize online casino gambling in Arkansas: Saracen Casino is making its intentions very clear; it wants state regulators to authorize online casino gambling. "We actually hope to make this case to the Arkansas Racing Commission, and it would exactly mirror what we did with sports betting. Because, with sports betting, we said, 'let's go from the four walls of the casino to the four borders of Arkansas," said Carlton Saffa, Saracen's chief marketing officer.
My look at Arkansas as an online casino candidate for Casino Reports
Quote of the Week: “I’m the face of this, and my opponent tried to use it against me. I still won 83-17. So just stop. Nobody is getting beat in their primary over letting voters vote on this issue. So many people they think will care about this either want it or don’t care at all.” ~ Georgia State Rep. Rep. Marcus Wiedower on championing online sports betting in the state.
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BetRivers Poker in Soft-Launch Phase in PA
This story is another exclusive from Pokerfuse, which reports that “Rush Street Interactive (RSI) is conducting a closed soft launch of its BetRivers Poker platform in Pennsylvania.”
Pokerfuse spoke with Doug Harbach, a spokesman for the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board (PGCB), who relayed information about the closed soft launch. According to Harbach, the soft launch period will last a few days, followed by a full launch, assuming nothing goes wrong. Pokerfuse’s Nick Jones cautioned that a full launch may still be weeks away.
When it officially launches in Pennsylvania, BetRivers will be the fifth online poker site available in the state and the first new US online poker platform since PokerStars returned to New Jersey in 2016.
BEYOND the HEADLINE: Don’t Call it a (Poker) Comeback
With online casino legislation stalled, there is a renewed interest in online gambling’s little engine that could: Poker. I’ve had several conversations about poker in the past few months and haven’t felt this level of interest in the game since the mid-2010s.
Per Eilers & Krejcik Gaming’s (a newsletter sponsor) August Online Casino Monitor:
“Poker has been the forgotten vertical in U.S. online gambling, with GGR down 5% to $103mm in the 12 months through Jul-24. But recent news flow hinted the market leaders were looking at poker with revived interest.”
Also on the poker front, DraftKings recently launched Electric Poker and Clubs Poker, a new sweepstakes poker site launched in July. Given the current landscape, I expect more social and sweepstakes poker sites to emerge in the next 12 months.
Colorado Sports Betting Highlights a Changing US Market
A really interesting tweet from Ryan Butler explains the shifting landscape in the US sports betting market in a single image:
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Around the Watercooler
Social media conversations, rumors, and gossip.
One problem with celebrity endorsers/influencers is that you don’t know precisely what they will post or say.
Take this tweet from Shannon Sharpe:
Several people quickly pointed out the issue with the phrasing, and the tweet was edited to the more banal:
Stray Thoughts
It’s hard to reconcile the industry’s claims that skill games, DFS 2.0, and sweepstakes are cannibalizing their offerings with the notion that online gambling (so long as it is legal) won’t cannibalize other forms of gambling.
Without getting into the “is there cannibalization” debate, there is apparently a legal forcefield that prevents cannibalization. Cannibalization will be the focus of this week’s feature column.