Compliance Updates
Arkansas Casino Seeks iGaming Approval
An Arkansas casino is seeking approval to operate an iGaming app, allowing people within the state to go online to play casino games such as slots, blackjack, craps and more.
On March 13, Carlton Saffa, Chief Market Officer for the Saracen Casino Resort in Pine Bluff, wrote to Arkansas Racing Commission Chairman Alex Lieblong asking for a change in the rules to allow Internet casino gambling, which is often referred to as iGaming or iCasino platforms.
On Monday, Saffa told Gambling.com he hopes to appear before the Arkansas Racing Commission on May 6 seeking approval to offer iGaming. The Arkansas Racing Commission regulates all gambling matters in the state including horse racing and casino games.
iGaming Doesn’t Hurt Bricks-And-Mortar Casinos: Saffa
Nationwide, only a half dozen states from Michigan to Connecticut offer Internet casino gambling. Arkansas would be the first in its region with iGaming, permitting users who want to log onto a computer or download an app to play traditional casino games for money. Other states in the region already offer sports betting.
In his March 13 letter to state regulators, Saffa said estimates indicate Internet casino gambling from the Saracen Casino Resort alone would generate an additional $12 million in taxes annually for the state. Internet casino gambling, or iGaming, generally raises more tax revenue than sports betting in states that have both.
However, in some states without iGaming, casino operators have fought legalization, contending customers won’t visit a bricks-and-mortar casinos and spend money at restaurants and on other amenities including entertainment and lodging if they can log onto cellphones or computers and gamble from anywhere. In his letter to state regulators, Saffa pointed to research showing iGaming doesn’t cannibalize bricks-and-mortar casinos but instead gives them ‘a lift’.
State Rule Change Required
Arkansas already allows online poker, though that has not been made available to consumers, Saffa said. He said the ability to allow iGaming would require the Arkansas Racing Commission to amend a rule to include Internet casino games in addition to the currently legal online card games such as poker.
“A solution exists by amending ARC Rule 5, which already authorizes online poker, to include other types of table games and slots,” Saffa told Gambling.com on Monday. “Doing so would provide significant tax revenues to government and, just as important, ensure that operators be held accountable by the government. Given that we have seen online operators in the fantasy sports space ignore cease and desist demands from the state, merely attempting to police the matter is not a workable solution.”
Saffa recently made a similar argument on the topic of unregulated gambling, telling Gambling.com on The Edge he opposes a ban on college player props bets, saying, “Sunlight is the best disinfectant.”
“People in Arkansas are already gambling in online casinos and those companies are not regulated or taxed by the Arkansas Racing Commission,” Saffa said Monday. “Those companies are not held to the standards the people of Arkansas set forth for operators to include that a customer must be 21.”
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.
Compliance Updates
Supremeland Gaming Continues U.S. Expansion With Supplier License Approval In Michigan
Supremeland Gaming, Inc., the emerging brand in American iGaming, has gained approval for a Supplier License in Michigan, marking the company’s fourth U.S. state approval following the successful acquisition of interim approvals in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and West Virginia.
Supremeland Gaming is approved to operate under this license and is now authorized to offer its cutting-edge innovation to the Great Lakes State. Their continued expansion underscores its commitment to pushing the boundaries of innovation in the iGaming industry.
Rickard Öhrn, CEO of Supremeland Gaming, said: “With approvals already in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, and West Virginia, our entry into Michigan underscores our dedication to serving players nationwide. We are excited about the opportunities this new market brings and look forward to delivering innovative, engaging, and responsible gaming solutions to the rapidly growing U.S. iGaming community.”
Supremeland’s game portfolio has garnered international appeal since its debut in November 2023. The innovative brand produces first-class games, including Red Panda Rising™ and its global debut, Munition Mine™, for which its subsidiary, Powderkeg Studios, is shortlisted at the CasinoBeats Game Developer Awards.
Compliance Updates
Greyhound Advocates Applaud Gov. Ned Lamont for Signing Bill to Outlaw Dog Racing
The largest greyhound protection group in the world thanked Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont for signing a bill to outlaw greyhound racing, calling the new law a victory for everyone who cares about dogs.
“The end of dog racing in Connecticut has finally come because of the hard work of dedicated lawmakers on both sides of the aisle. Greyhound advocates everywhere applaud Governor Lamont’s enthusiastic stand against this cruel industry. Connecticut now joins 42 other states that have already rejected this outdated and inhumane form of gambling,” said GREY2K USA President and General Counsel Christine A. Dorchak.
Greyhound racing is now illegal in 43 states, and only continues to exist at two tracks in West Virginia. After dog racing gradually declined for decades, Florida voters outlawed the activity in 2018 by a vote of 69% to 31%, closing twelve operational racetracks. A bill to prohibit gambling on greyhound racing nationwide was introduced in the 117th Congress and earned the support of 105 cosponsors and more than 250 humane groups, anti-gambling organizations, and local animal shelters.
All mainstream animal protection groups oppose greyhound racing due to animal welfare concerns. At the last two remaining dog tracks in West Virginia, state records indicate that 666 greyhounds were injured in 2022 including 218 dogs that suffered broken bones and five greyhounds that died. Thousands of dogs also endure lives of confinement at West Virginia tracks, kept in cages barely large enough for them to stand up or turn around for long hours each day.
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