Welcome Back My Friends
To the show that never ends. We're so glad you could attend, come inside, come inside... I am of course talking about G2E, which kicks off today.
The Bulletin Board
NEWS: A Look at G2E 2024: From Keynotes to the topics that will be front-and-center (and the topic that will be ever-present below the surface).
WEEKEND CATCHUP: DraftKings pulls the plug on DFS in UK; Universal self-exclusion initiative; Sporttrade’s big news; Jontay Porter scandal update.
NEWS: ESPN Bet is starting to show signs of life, but analysts still have questions.
NEWS: Group sues gray game suppliers using 1798 Kentucky gambling law.
AROUND the WATERCOOLER: ESPN Bet ads hit the airwaves.
STRAY THOUGHTS: The NCAA says what we already know about prohibitions.
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G2E Week: The Who, What, Where, When, and Why
It’s G2E week, and while I’m at home running the newsletter and my consulting business, most of the gambling world will be at the Venetian Expo in Las Vegas, running around from meeting to meeting, trying to catch the occasional conference session, and on the lookout for the next big product or company.
Keynotes
MONDAY AFTERNOON: Monday’s education tracks (the showroom floor opens on Tuesday) will close with a keynote on the next generation in tribal gaming, featuring:
Mark Trahant, Editor-at-Large, ICT
Ernest Stevens, Chairman, Indian Gaming Association
Reid D. Milanovich, Chairman, Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians
Shannon Holsey, President, Stockbridge-Munsee band of Mohican Indians
Dr. Buu Nygren, President, Navajo Nation
TUESDAY MORNING: The first full day of G2E will kick off with CNBC’s Contessa Brewer guiding a discussion between Peter Jackson, Group CEO of Flutter Entertainment plc, and Bill Hornbuckle, CEO and President of MGM Resorts International, as they examine “the current economic landscape, gaming’s expansion into new markets and verticals, and business challenges and opportunities ahead.”
WEDNESDAY MORNING: Wednesday will begin with a second discussion, this time between Jason Robins, Co-Founder and CEO of DraftKings, and Derek Stevens, Owner and CEO of Circa Resort and Casino. Rachel Nichols will moderate the discussion, “addressing current evolutions in sports betting and casino gaming as well as what’s next for the industry in Las Vegas and nationwide.”
Keeping Your Ear to the Ground
The Changing Landscape: A quick look at the sessions shows how much G2E has changed over the last decade. Once dominated by land-based casino discussions, iGaming and sports betting will dominate the G2E discussions in 2024.
Here is a look at the most common tags for G2E sessions:
Regulation - 24
Sports Betting - 22
The Lab - 21
Future of Gaming - 20
iGaming - 18
Tribal Gaming - 17
Operational Experience
Advocacy/DEI - 11
Responsible Gaming - 9
Identifying the Unofficial Topic: I always say that a new theme runs through just about every session, and I suspect that this year, that theme will be sweepstakes and other gray games.
Further Reading
This is a column I wrote in 2022 for people heading to G2E for the first, second, or even fifth time. I cover everything from scheduling your days and meetings to handling three-plus days in Vegas without it turning into a Todd Phillips movie to spotting the next big thing. I also talk about how Monday is the calm before the storm, and Thursday is the hangover-recovery day.
Richard Schuetz warns that during all the cheerleading you’ll hear this week, there is an opportunity to get “the house” in order.
A great look at the G2E schedule by Covers.com’s Geoff Zochodne, who writes, “The speaking schedule for this year's Global Gaming Expo in Vegas suggests expansion remains a focus for the industry.”
Weekend Catchup: DraftKings Exits UK; Universal Self-Exclusion; Sporttrade’s Big News; Jontay Porter Scandal
DraftKings ends DFS operations in the UK: Suffice it to say, daily fantasy sports never caught on in the UK. Per iGaming Business: “DraftKings has closed its UK daily fantasy offering as of today (4 October), in an effort to "optimise its business". Users of the app this morning received emails notifying them the product was being pulled from the market with immediate effective.”
The Coalition for Fantasy Sports and idPair Launch RG Initiative: Fantasy sports operators have accomplished something sports betting operators have not: a universal “self-exclusion solution between Coalition members - PrizePicks, Underdog Fantasy, Betr, and Dabble - allowing individuals to choose to simultaneously self-exclude across all members’ platforms, regardless of their location.”
Sporttrade announces Susquehanna investment: Newsletter sponsor Sportrade announced it has added strategic investor SIG Sports Investments Corp - part of Susquehanna International Group of Companies. As Chris Grove said on LinkedIn, “There's news, there are milestones, and then there are true inflection points. Today, Sporttrade announced a true inflection point for the company: A partnership with Susquehanna International Group group company SIG Sports Analytics.”
Guilty plea in Jontay Porter sports betting scandal: One of the coconspirators in the Jontay Porter betting scandal has pleaded guilty. Per the AP, “Long Phi Pham, also known as Bruce Pham, pleaded guilty to conspiring to commit wire fraud, admitting that he schemed to con sports betting companies.” Pham and three other men placed wagers, knowing Porter planned to withdraw from games due to illness. Pham is looking at up to 20 years in prison. His sentencing is slated for April 25, 2025.
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Is ESPN Bet Showing Signs of Life?
ESPN Bet may not be making waves, but there are ripples.
Jefferies Equity Research analyst David Katz recently noted that ESPN Bet “continues to gain momentum as it successfully converts non-bettors from the ESPN ecosystem.”
According to Katz, the growth isn’t due to ESPN Bet pulling customers away from competitors. Instead, ESPN Bet is growing the overall market and converting ESPN users to bettors.
As David McKee of CDC Gaming Reports highlighted: “Not only did 32 percent of 302 “avid sports bettors” surveyed by Jefferies use ESPN Bet, 92 percent of them placed their first wager with it.”
That is incredibly important because, on the negative side, the Jeffries focus group was unimpressed with the UX, breadth of bets, and odds offered. Once the promotional offers were exhausted, users returned to other sportsbooks.
There is also some positive news coming out of New York, where ESPN Bet recently launched.
As Action Network’s Chris Altruda reports:
That’s a good but not spectacular start. However, given the comments from the Jeffries focus group, how long ESPN Bet will retain those customers may depend on whether they are new or existing bettors.
If it’s the latter, ESPN Bet's grip on these bettors will likely last as long as the bonus money flows. If it’s the former, ESPN Bet must keep these customers happy and hope they don’t test the waters elsewhere.
The Jeffries team notes that ESPN Bet’s New York launch could be good for DraftKings and FanDuel.
“Furthermore, we continue to see that the top two players will be minimally impacted by ESPN Bet and, instead, could gain from a growing market as the apps for both DKNG and FanDuel offer superior experiences,” the Jeffries team said. “It appears that users who primarily wager on ESPN Bet are already members of the ESPN ecosystem, suggesting it has been difficult for PENN to convert sports bettors that use other apps, which does not detract from the bull case on other operators.”
200-Year-Old Kentucky Law Strikes Again
A centuries-old Kentucky law that allows anyone to seek losses from illegal gambling led to PokerStars reaching a $300 million settlement with the state. Now, the law is once again being invoked, this time against gray machines.
“A new lawsuit filed Thursday… targets companies tied to what are known as “gray machines” — cash payout games resembling casino slots that have proliferated in gas stations and stores around Kentucky in recent years.
“Under Kentucky’s 226-year old Loss Recovery Act, a person has six months to file a lawsuit to recover funds they lost from an illegal gambling wager. Once these six months pass, any other Kentuckian can also file a lawsuit to recover up to three times the funds this other person lost to illegal gambling, going back five years.”
The Loss Recovery Act reads in part:
“If any person loses to another at one (1) time, or within twenty-four (24) hours, five dollars ($5) or more, or anything of that value, and pays, transfers or delivers it, the loser or any of his creditors may recover it, or its value, from the winner, or any transferee of the winner, having notice of the consideration, by action brought within five (5) years after the payment, transfer or delivery. Recovery may be had against the winner, although the payment, transfer or delivery was made to the endorsee, assignee, or transferee of the winner. If the conveyance or transfer was of real estate, or the right thereto, in violation of KRS 372.010, the heirs of the loser may recover it back by action brought within two (2) years after his death, unless it has passed to a purchaser in good faith for valuable consideration without notice.”
A similar lawsuit, citing the Loss Recovery Act, was filed against Bovada last year:
“Woods is the named plaintiff in a lawsuit filed August 8 against Morris Mohawk Gaming Group, Alywin Morris, Calvin Ayre, and Harp Media BV… The lawsuit filed in the Eastern District of Kentucky seeks class certification and alleges that there is at least $5 million in damages at stake.”
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Around the Watercooler
Social media conversations, rumors, and gossip.
Carrying on from the entry above, ESPN Bet is ramping up its advertisements and leveraging its personalities now that it is live in New York:
Stray Thoughts
I thought everyone already knew this, but apparently not: Prohibition doesn’t work.
Example #3,656,399:
“Prohibitions are ineffective at stopping unwanted gambling behaviours and there is little evidence to suggest that current prohibitions have effectively prevented student-athlete gambling.”
That was the finding of the NCAA Committee on Competitive Safeguards and Medical Aspects of Sports. This epiphany raises the question: Why is the NCAA pushing for collegiate prop betting bans?