Canada
Yahoo Stops Paid Fantasy Sports Contests in Connecticut
Yahoo has stopped conducting paid fantasy sports contests in the Connecticut fantasy sports marketplace in response to the state’s new law that requires any sports gambling or fantasy sports operator to first reach a cooperative agreement with either the state lottery or one of its two sanctioned tribes. All free Yahoo Fantasy Sports experiences will continue to be available to Connecticut residents.
“As part of Yahoo Sports, we have delivered fantasy sports games to users since 1999. From the beginning, our fantasy sports offerings have been designed and built with the goal of engaging and delighting our users. We want users to play on Yahoo with their friends and colleagues, enjoy their user experiences, and continue to use the Yahoo platform for these and other offerings. As of 2021, we have millions of people playing fantasy sports on Yahoo,” the company said.
“We applied a similar user-centric focus when we first launched Yahoo Daily Fantasy in 2015. We were the first operator to proactively adopt many of the regulatory consumer protections that are now standard in the industry. From the beginning, we’ve supported regulations that put the customer first while creating a robust and competitive market for operators.
“Overall, Yahoo supports common sense paid fantasy laws and regulations that: a) clearly differentiate between paid and free offerings; b) create rules that are technologically feasible, commercially reasonable, and appropriate for the specific offering; and c) promote a competitive environment so that users have choices. Unfortunately, the fantasy sports legislation that passed in Connecticut is lacking in both (b) and (c).
“The current legislation tethers the operation of fantasy sports to a local ‘master wagering licensee.’ While that makes sense for sports betting, fantasy sports are a separate and distinct product from sports betting. No other state that has passed fantasy legislation has required tethering. The tethering requirement makes operating in Connecticut economically unviable for Yahoo and smaller fantasy operators and startups. This reduces customer choice, further deepening a moat around only the largest operators that can afford to operate under this model. These kinds of barriers to entry are harmful to consumers, who will now have less choice when it comes to where they can participate in paid fantasy contests.
“We will gladly work with the state of Connecticut to evolve the existing legislation, and look forward to one day being able to offer our paid fantasy products to the great residents of Connecticut.”
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Canada
Court Decision Upholds iGaming Ontario’s Model
iGaming Ontario has welcomed the decision of the Ontario Superior Court, which found that iGaming Ontario’s model is consistent with the Criminal Code and that iGaming Ontario is conducting and managing igaming in the province.
“We have always been confident in our model and are pleased that the court has ruled in our favour, and that Ontarians can continue to play with confidence in our regulated igaming market,” said Martha Otton, Executive Director of iGaming Ontario.
“Ontario’s model meets the requirements and contributes to the public good by protecting players, their data and their funds, while helping to fund priority public services in Ontario, and bringing well-paid, high-tech jobs and economic development to Ontario,” Otton added.
In dismissing the application brought forward by the Mohawk Council of Kahnawà:ke (MCK), the Superior Court found that iGaming Ontario is the “operating mind” behind Ontario’s competitive igaming market in accordance with the conduct and manage requirements of the Criminal Code.
iGaming Ontario will continue to conduct and manage igaming as it has since the launch of the regulated market on April 4, 2022.
Bragg Gaming Group
Bragg Gaming Appoints Renowned iGaming Executive Neill Whyte as Chief Commercial Officer
Bragg Gaming Group, a global iGaming technology and content provider, announced that Neill Whyte has been appointed as Chief Commercial Officer (CCO), effective 1st May 2024, establishing a new global commercial structure at the Company and bolstering its leadership team.
Whyte brings over 18 years of experience in the iGaming sector, most recently in the role of Chief Commercial Officer at Digital Gaming Corporation’s (DGC), B2B iGaming Division. After joining DGC in early 2020, he was responsible for the commercially successful launch and growth of its content distribution business in the US.
Prior to joining DGC, Whyte held multiple positions in the gaming industry including as Head of Business Development at Isle of Man-based iGaming specialist Apricot Investments, as Board Member at Swedish iGaming product and Lottery content distributor Genera Networks, and in various senior roles over eleven years at leading iGaming content supplier Microgaming, including as Head of Product Channels.
In his new role with Bragg, Whyte will be tasked with leading the Company’s global commercial teams to drive growth across all of the Company’s product verticals which include proprietary online casino content from its Atomic Slot Lab, Indigo Magic and Wild Streak Gaming studios, exclusive content from content partners, HUB a leading casino content aggregation platform, Fuze player engagement, as well as its award-winning player account management (PAM) platform and turnkey solutions.
Matevž Mazij, Chief Executive Officer at Bragg, said: “I am very pleased to be announcing today the appointment of Neill Whyte as Chief Commercial Officer at Bragg. His iGaming product and market knowledge, together with his record in driving growth from developing successful and mutually beneficial commercial partnerships are exceptional.
“As we leverage our broad content and product portfolio to grow in existing and new markets, including in the United States, Canada, Latin America and Europe, Neill’s unique combination of knowledge, skills and experience in this sector are a perfect fit for our ambitions at Bragg.”
Neill Whyte, Chief Commercial Officer at Bragg, said: “It’s an honor to join Matevž and the wider teams at Bragg already in place across North America, Europe and in India. I have been impressed with the depth and quality of the content, product and technology offerings at Bragg, and its ability to rapidly adapt, certify and deploy this content and technology in newly regulated markets is a distinct advantage.
“We also have a huge opportunity to grow our footprint with our existing customers in markets in which we are already established. Our content and product roadmaps are second to none, and I’m planning to get on the road in the coming weeks and months to meet the team and our customers and to start building for the next stage of mutual growth. I can’t wait to get going.”
Canada
IGT to Launch Cloud-based iLottery Solutions for Atlantic Lottery in Canada
International Game Technology PLC announced that its subsidiary, IGT Global Solutions Corporation, has signed a five-year contract with the Atlantic Lottery Corporation (Atlantic Lottery), to implement high-performing features and exciting new games for players in Atlantic Canada. As part of the agreement, IGT will deploy its advanced cloud-based remote game server (RGS) and at least 16 digital instant games each year. The contract will run through April 2029 and includes five, one-year extension options.
“As the largest digital instant market in Canada, Atlantic Lottery is pleased to partner with IGT and offer our players dynamic digital instant games from IGT’s comprehensive content portfolio. Additionally, the scalability of IGT’s cloud-based RGS will enable us to modify our digital instants library in real time, provide our players with best-in-class experiences and continually enhance our iGaming offer,” Robert LaLonde, iGaming Director at Atlantic Lottery Corporation, said.
“Partnering with the Atlantic Lottery to deliver IGT’s cloud-based RGS and engaging digital instant games is an exciting opportunity for our iLottery business. We look forward to helping the Atlantic Lottery further grow its business and reach new players in the region with our reliable RGS technology and top-performing iLottery games,” said Srini Nedunuri, IGT Senior Vice President, Global iLottery.
IGT’s RGS platform will enable the Atlantic Lottery to access to IGT’s vast portfolio of digital instant games and content, spanning a variety of player-favorite themes, play styles, omnichannel games, popular licensed content, and award-winning progressive jackpot games. The platform provides cross-channel branding across retail and digital, supports a range of jackpot and prize pool configurations, offers various bonusing tools to enhance player engagement, and is designed for optimum performance and scalability.
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