NYGC Greenlights Mobile Sports Betting Protocols

This week, the New York Gaming Commission has made some progress on the long-awaiting mobile sports wagering expansion as the state tries to legalize online betting on sporting events. On Monday, the commission unanimously passed a set of online sports betting regulations, meaning that the platform is now one step closer to coming into the Empire State.

The state’s legislature has opted for the gaming expansion as a way of bringing additional revenue for the local budget. In April, Governor Cuomo announced that mobile sports betting is officially included in the budget plan, thus sparking the process of finding two platform providers and four gaming operators to lead the initiative.

Approved in a Quick Manner

The before-mentioned set of regulations were included by the New York State Gaming Commission in the 130-page Request for Applicants. This outlines the model of operations for the state’s selection of mobile sports betting licensee. On Monday, the commission approved the set of protocols in a quick and unanimous voting session.

New York Gaming Commissioner Chair Barry Sample was not present at Monday’s meeting due to being already committed to a different arrangement. Commissioner John Crotty and  Mr. Sample were not counted for a quorum, but still, four other commissioners attended the meeting and unanimously approved the gaming rules rather quickly as the meeting lasted only 10 minutes.

New York Gaming Commission Acting Executive Director Robert Williams explained that the rules include provisions on mobile sports betting requirements, integrity protections, accounting, and financial stats requirements, and anti-money laundering plans. The approval of the rules comes only a few days after the commission released a document with information on the submissions of all six applications.

One of the bids packages is submitted by FanDuel Sportsbook, which also includes industry giants DraftKings, BetMGM, and Bally Bet. In the proposal, the union of companies offers a 50% tax rate on gross gaming revenue. According to estimations, this will bring almost US$600 million to the state in tax revenue during the first year of mobile sports betting. And at the end of year three, the union projects US$1.3 billion in state tax revenue.

Request for Applicants

After a slight delay, the gaming commission officially released its Request for Applicants on July 9, 2021. Candidates for the platform provider and operator positions had a 30-day period to file in their proposed bids packages. The commission now has 150 days to assess all candidates and chose the winners. The decision can also be made before the 150 days period of time.

Jay-Z Wants to Join

Reports coming from the New York gaming industry claim that the rapped Jay-Z wants to join the mobile sports wagering expansion of his home state. The artist who is also the founder of Roc Nation LLC plans on combining forces with sports merchandising company Fanatics Inc. The rumors also suggest that Jay-Z will join Fanatics Betting & Gaming’s new board of directors, as he will serve as vice-chairman.

Source: “Appendix A: Draft Regulation Part 5330”, Gaming.NY.Gov, August 16, 2021