Gambling in the USA
Gaming Americas Weekly Roundup – January 17-23
Welcome to our weekly roundup of American gambling news again! Here, we are going through the weekly highlights of the American gambling industry which include the latest news, new partnerships and new appointments. Read on and get updated.
Latest News
United Esports and the DFINITY Foundation have announced that independent game developers now have the opportunity to bring their dream game to life by applying to the first-ever game development competition series, with a $10 million prize pool, Achievement Unblocked. The revolutionary new series will be hosted by award-winning esports commentator Mitch “UberShouts” Leslie and is set to premiere in late 2022.
Alberta Gaming, Liquor & Cannabis (AGLC) is improving access to its Self-Exclusion Programme. As of January 10, patrons who wish to enroll or renew their agreements within AGLC’s Self-Exclusion Programme can do so through a virtual process instead of the previous requirement of going through an in-venue gaming facility or AGLC office.
PlayAGS announced selected preliminary financial results for the fourth quarter and full year ended December 31, 2021 in conjunction with the Company’s intention to explore a refinancing of its outstanding revolving credit facility and term loan credit facilities.
Unibet has launched a new themed live-dealer game created by Evolution Gaming. The game is called “Eagles Live Dealer Black Jack”.
fuboTV Inc. has announced that it has acquired exclusive rights to the English Premier League in the Canadian market for the next three soccer seasons beginning in 2022/2023. The terms of the deal were not disclosed.
JCM Global has installed the largest sports betting screen in Oregon at the Three Rivers Casino in Florence. The 200sq.ft LED wall is the centerpiece of Three Rivers’ recently opened sportsbook.
CR Vasco da Gama, in partnership with Chiliz, the leading blockchain providers for the sports and entertainment industry, have announced that they will launch a $VASCO Fan Token on the Socios.com app.
Nuvei Corporation has announced that it has been granted approval by the New York State Gaming Commission to process payments with recently licensed digital sports betting platforms launching in the state.
The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board (PGCB) has awarded Parx Casino’s holding company a license to open a mini-casino in Shippensburg Township, Cumberland County.
Crypto investment firm Mechanism Capital has launched “Mechanism Play,” a $100 million fund dedicated to play-to-earn gaming.
Partnerships
Playtech has strengthened its partnership with Banijay Brands, part of the international content producer and distributor Banijay, after being granted exclusive rights for use of The Million Dollar Drop brand in the US and retaining its rights for Deal or No Deal Bingo for a further five years.
The National Basketball Association (NBA) and BetPlay, the market-leading multi-channel sports betting operator, announced a multiyear partnership that makes BetPlay the Official Betting Partner of the NBA in Colombia.
DraftKings Inc. and the Tulalip Tribes of Washington announced an exclusive market access partnership that will bring the DraftKings retail sportsbook experience to the state of Washington.
New Appointments
Churchill Downs Incorporated (CDI) has promoted Ben Murr to president of online gaming and its TwinSpires sports betting brand. In this role, he will be responsible for the overall strategy and operations of these businesses.
Pragmatic Play has expanded its Latin American team with the addition of Javier Samel as new Argentina Country Director.
Gambling in the USA
Zula Casino Kicks Off its Spectacular 1-Year “Zula-versary” with a Month of Events and Promotions
Zula Casino launched its online social casino in the US exactly a year ago delivering more. More games. More rewards. More free-to-play entertainment through a personalized experience. Zula Casino marked its one-year launch by crossing the 1000 casino-game threshold – a milestone that positions it among the top platforms nationwide.
The month-long birthday bash intends to go over the top to give back to its amazing player community that helped make this first year so incredible. With its advent calendar format, players can unlock a special surprise each day ranging from a “Win-a-Vacation” event, a carnival event, free spins and new exclusive games, and a prize pool of over 25 billion Gold Coins (GC) plus 150,000 Sweeps Coins (SC) to be given out throughout the month. Over this period, Zula Casino will run other special events, including surprise happy hours with special coupons, various social media contests, and special giveaways.
“We’re incredibly proud of the player experience we’ve built over the last 12 months. The platform has garnered a substantial and loyal pool of players, and it’s not just because we offer one of the largest game selections from leading global providers, but also the exclusive experiences we’re providing, and the platform’s continued evolution with enhanced promotions, personalization, and seamless user experience,” said Tamar Laypan, Program Manager of Zula Casino.
Zula Casino has added over 1000 games across all categories over the past 12 months, including slots, jackpots, fish, table, plinko, megaways, crash, hold and win, tumble games, and more. These additions include top games like Big Bass Vegas and Fire Stampede, as well as branded exclusives like Gold Gold Gold 5000, supplied by Booming Games, and Sweet Bonanza 1000 by Pragmatic Play. With recent additions, Zula Casino now boasts 25 game providers, including Relax Gaming, Habanero, Evoplay, Pragmatic Play, RubyPlay, Gamzix, Let Us Entertain You Inc., to name a few.
Zula Casino flourished in a tough and highly competitive market, launching its proprietary-integrated platform in September of last year. With an average TrustPilot score of 4.6 and almost 9K reviews, the online social casino is among the highest-rated free-to-play sites in the market.
Zula Casino was also previously shortlisted for the prestigious Global SBC Awards in the category of “Rising Star in Casino”.
Diana Goode
NCPG Welcomes Diana Goode to the Board of Directors
NCPG has announced the appointment of Diana Goode to the National Council on Problem Gambling’s Board of Directors. Diana, who has served as the Executive Director of the Connecticut Council on Problem Gambling (CCPG) since May 2018, brings over 25 years of nonprofit leadership experience to this role.
In her time with CCPG, Diana has championed initiatives that address problem gambling and promote responsible gaming across Connecticut. Additionally, she has played an active role on the NCPG Affiliates Committee, contributing valuable insights from her years of experience.
Before joining CCPG, Diana held executive roles in nonprofits focusing on poverty alleviation and financial literacy in Connecticut. Her academic credentials include a degree from Dartmouth College and an MBA in Finance and Marketing from the University of Connecticut. She resides in the Greater Hartford area, where she remains deeply engaged in her community.
Diana will serve an interim appointment in the Affiliates seat on the NCPG Board of Directors until Spring 2025.
Gambling in the USA
Gaming Executives Positive on Current Business Conditions, Cautious on Future Growth Expectations
Overall Balance Sheet Health, Access to Credit Continue to Improve
In the face of slowing revenue expansion, gaming industry leaders continue to hold an overall positive view of the current business situation, with a notable improvement in credit conditions, according to the latest American Gaming Association (AGA) Gaming Industry Outlook.
The majority of respondents (88%) view the current state of the gaming industry as either good or satisfactory. Meanwhile, executives have a more conservative outlook on future business conditions, with respondents split on whether they expect conditions to improve over the next three-to-six months (3% net positive) and many expecting a decrease in customer activity (28% net negative).
“After years of very strong consumer gaming spending growth, expectations around customer activity over the next three to six months have cooled considerably,” said AGA Vice President of Research David Forman. “Still, gaming businesses remain well positioned, with executives touting strong balance sheets and more viewing access to credit as easy than restrictive for the first time in two years.”
Gaming Executive Panel
Since Q1, gaming executives’ sentiment has shifted, with a greater number of respondents now expecting a decline in customer activity over the next three to six months (28% net negative, up from 4% net negative in Q1). Despite this, panelists foresee improvements in overall balance sheet health (34% net positive).
Additionally, more executives reported access to credit as easy (19%) rather than restrictive (3%) for the first time in two years, and fewer cite interest rates as a major limiting factor than in the spring.
Hotel (56%) and food and beverage facilities (56%) continue to be the main and growing focus of capital investment among operators, followed by live entertainment (28%) and casino floor slots (22%).
Meanwhile, gaming equipment suppliers now believe their pace of capital investment and game sales will decelerate (13% net negative).
These expectations are impacted by evolving macroeconomic challenges, with uncertainty of the economic environment vaulting to the top of executive concerns (56%, up from 34% in Q1), followed by state regulatory concerns (31%), and inflationary or interest rate concerns and geopolitical risk (both 34%).
The Current Conditions Index
The Current Conditions Index for Q3 2024 was 97.3, which is consistent with real annualized contraction of 2.7 percent. The Current Conditions Index measures real economic activity in the industry, as measured by gaming revenue, employment and employee wages and salaries.
The Future Conditions Index
The Future Conditions Index, a leading indicator of changes in industry conditions, measured 98.9 in Q3. This indicates an environment in which real economic activity in the gaming sector, after controlling for underlying inflation, is expected to moderately decrease over the next six months (1.1% annualized rate).
-
gaming2 years ago
ODIN by 4Players: Immersive, state-of-the-art in-game audio launches into the next generation of gaming
-
EEG iGaming Directory8 years ago
iSoftBet continues to grow with new release Forest Mania
-
News7 years ago
Softbroke collaborates with Asia Live Tech for the expansion of the service line in the igaming market
-
News6 years ago
Super Bowl LIII: NFL Fans Can Bet on the #1 Sportsbook Review Site Betting-Super-Bowl.com, Providing Free Unbiased and Trusted News, Picks and Predictions
-
iGaming Industry7 years ago
Rick Meitzler appointed to the Indian Gaming Magazine Advisory Board for 2018
-
News6 years ago
REVEALED: Top eSports players set to earn $3.2 million in 2019
-
iGaming Industry7 years ago
French Senator raises Loot Boxes to France’s Gambling Regulator
-
News6 years ago
Exclusive Interview with Miklos Handa (Founder of the email marketing solutions, “MailMike.net”), speaker at Vienna International Gaming Expo 2018