Fast-growing geolocation technology services provider Xpoint added another partner to its roster of geolocation partnerships after signing an agreement with online sports betting and casino platform operator BET99.

Xpoint Verify to Enhance Customer Safety

As a provider of geolocation and compliance services to the sports betting, iGaming and fantasy sports markets in North America, Xpoint will provide Canadian-based operator BET99 with its Xpoint Verify product to ensure a safe, secure and fraud-free customer engagement for the operator.

Commenting on the agreement, Paul Nyzuk, chief technology officer at BET99, outlined that Xpoint is the perfect choice for a geolocation and geoverification services provider, offering more data points that can be used to detect fraud and “offering more data than other major geoverification services.”

“The partnership also fits with BET99’s mandate to leverage innovative technologies to deliver an online betting experience like no other,” Nyzuk concluded.

Following the partnership, Xpoint Verify is now live with BET99 in Ontario as the product has been embedded within the operator’s sports betting and online casino gaming platforms, allowing Ontario players a higher level of security in their engagement with the operator.

Growing List of North American Partners

Marvin Sanderson, chief executive officer of Xpoint, was delighted “to add the Canadian market-leading sports betting platform” to Xpoint’s “growing list of live partners” and help the operator continue with its rapid progress in expanding their brand’s reach in North America.

“As we expand our North American footprint, we’re building more tools and systems specifically designed to help our partners utilize their location-based data for fraud analysis and micro geofencing services,” Sanderson added.

Providing two geoverification technology products, Xpoint Lite and Xpoint Verify, Xpoint has already partnered with a number of operators in Canada and the US and is one of only two geolocation technology services providers holding a vendor license in New Jersey.

Among the list of its recent partners are fantasy sports platform Underdog Fantasy which inked an Xpoint Lite deal last week, Toronto-based sports, esports and casino operator Rivalry which hired Xpoint as its geolocation and compliance partner in November, iGaming operator PlayStar, and others.

To engage with sports fans in Canada, BET99 announced a partnership deal with former Toronto FC soccer player Sebastian Giovinco ahead of the FIFA 2022 World Cup. The agreement expanded BET99’s roster of popular sports personalities adding to the names of UFC Hall of Famer Georges St-Pierre, Toronto Maple Leafs’ young star Auston Matthews and two-time Olympian Alysha Newman.

Last month, BET99 became the latest member of the International Betting Integrity Association (IBIA), willing to contribute to the organization’s efforts to protect sports integrity to the benefit of both consumers and businesses.

Gaming technology and services provider Scientific Games was awarded a new, five-year contract by Atlantic Lottery to continue serving as the lottery’s primary instant game partner.

Five More Years

The new contract with Scientific Games will ensure Atlantic Lottery players in the provinces of New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia and Newfoundland and Labrador continue to enjoy the supplier’s high-performance Scratch’N Win games

Commenting on the development, president of Americas & Global Instant Products for Scientific Games, John Schulz, approved of the “strong business approach” displayed by Atlantic Lottery in its choice to collaborate with an instant games provider “that uses analytics and insights to support continued growth across the entire game portfolio.”

“We are honored to continue our good work together to entertain Atlantic Lottery players in New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Nova Scotia, and Newfoundland and Labrador,” Schulz concluded.

Instant games form one part of Atlantic Lottery’s product offering as the operator established itself as one of the most innovative in Canada, also enticing players with numbers games and sports betting, while returning all of its profits to the provinces to provide funding for essential services such as health care, education, infrastructure and others.

Multi-Faceted Partnership

On behalf of Atlantic Lottery, vice president of Lottery and Living Lab at Atlantic Lottery Maureen Wojick explained that the operator “solidified its long-term partnership with Atlantic Lottery” after proving its value in “delivering strong and responsible sales growth” for the lottery’s Scratch’n Win games and helping the lottery top its previous year by 9.8%.

“We are focused on using the company’s analytics and insights to create a Scratch’N Win game portfolio that continues to drive performance while entertaining our players with exciting games,” Wojick added.

Dating back to 1983, the partnership with Scientific Games provides Atlantic Lottery with its integrated central gaming and iLottery system empowering the operator to offer draw, instant-win, sports betting, online casino and digital instant game content across both retail and digital channels.

In addition, Scientific Games is providing the retail technology that powers Atlantic Lottery’s self-service kiosks in New Brunswick and Newfoundland and Labrador, as well as the operator’s player account management and subscription services.

Last month, Atlantic Lottery and Scientific Games announced a retail modernization project that will bring the tech supplier’s Wave point-of-sale technology across the lottery’s network of nearly 3,000 retailers to enhance the player experience.

Responsible for more than 70% of global sales of instant lottery games, Scientific Games is the world’s largest creator of instant games and primary provider to nine of the top 10 lotteries worldwide.

City Bet Club, a service tipping punters on the shrewdest sports betting selections on the market, believes that the now-concluded World Cup tournament has been one of the most favorable events for gaming operators ever. According to the club, some of the surprising outcomes of the event provided bookmakers with significant margin-win.

The Event Was Favorable to Bookmakers, City Bet Club Believes

City Bet Club said that the World Cup in Qatar has been one of the most profitable events for sports betting operators. The club noted that bookmakers consistently got higher revenues than expected, which it attributed to some surprising results, such as Japan’s victory over Germany, Tunisia’s upset of France and Saudi Arabia’s victory over Argentina, the eventual winners of the event.

In addition, many matches during the knockout stages went into extra time after the 90-minute mark, which further benefitted operators. City Bet Club expects operators to report significant revenues following the professional soccer event.

Despite its favorable expectations, City Bet Club emphasized that turnover in the knockout stages of the tournament may be lower. The club explained that this prediction is based on the surprises in the earlier stages of the tournament and the high number of lost bets which must have impacted customers’ finances.

David Brown Spoke about the Event

David Brown, City Bet Club’s co-founder, elaborated on the club’s views on bookmakers’ performance. He noted that the aforementioned reflections are based on the expertise of the club’s team and his personal familiarity with the industry.

Taking my personal industry experience of every tournament since Argentina 1978 into account, this is by far the most bookie-friendly competition in terms of results that I’ve ever known.

David Brown, co-founder, City Bet Club

Brown noted that some analysts believe that “like for like” turnover has declined from the levels recorded in the 2018’s event in Russia. He noted that this metric may have been affected by the results and timing of various matches. In addition, it will likely affect compliance hoops bookies and gamblers must go through, Brown said.

City Bet Club’s founder concluded that the next big soccer event is the Premier League. He appealed to sports fans who wish to make the most out of their bets, prompting them to use City Bet Club’s services. According to Brown, the club is the pro punter insight players need to have an edge over their peers.

We complete this research so that our members don’t have to, and we can’t wait to keep fueling a high level of sports betting engagement in the new year.

David Brown, co-founder, City Bet Club

Speaking about operators and World Cup bets, bet365 just posted some insightful data about punters who cashed in on certain betting markets.

The Maryland Lottery and Gaming Control Agency (MLGCA) approved the $146,000 BetMGM settlement during its meeting last week, imposing the largest financial sanction in its history.

Beta Site Configuration Error

BetMGM was slapped with a fine for accepting mobile wagers before the official market launch and essentially operating without a license. Six out of the seven MLGCA members voted to approve the sanction while one believed the violation merited a license withdrawal.

The violation of Maryland’s Sports Wagering Law appeared on November 16 – five days before the operator’s soft launch and seven days before its full launch on November 23 – after a technical failure in the beta website allowed people located in Maryland to place bets.

BetMGM accepted without a license 146 mobile wagers over the three hours before the violation was discovered and voided all but one in which the bettor had managed to withdraw the winnings. People who had their wagers voided got their money back.

Speaking before the MLGCA, Rhea Loney, chief compliance officer at BetMGM, said that the operator had acted immediately upon discovering the issue and requested its geolocation provider to block further bets from Maryland, as well as with the regulator while launching a technical investigation.

And while Rhea implied it was a technical failure that had led to the breach of the law, BetMGM’s director of technical governance, Roman Rubas, told commissioners that it was a configuration error that linked the beta site to a page where they could place wagers instead of a landing page.

“So it was human error, not technical malfunctioning,” asked Commission Chair Randolph Marriner.

Rubas confirmed it was a configuration error and then told the commission that BetMGM acted to put internal processes in place and prevent the same thing from happening again and requested its geolocation provider to block wagers from jurisdictions that have not launched mobile wagering yet.

Temporary License Suspension

The fine imposed was the largest ever levied by the regulator but one MLGCA member questioned whether the punishment was large enough for a business operating without a license.

Commissioner Harold Hodges wanted the regulator to send a stronger message by suspending BetMGM’s license until the regulator looks into it and voted against the settlement.

“This appears to be an inadvertent mistake,” commented Marriner on the transgression, arguing that the sanction is large enough to have a system-wide preventive effect.

“We treat this very seriously. Where $146,000 might not sound like a lot of money, it’s a lot of money,” he concluded.

The MLGCA denied Hodges’ request to reschedule the settlement vote for a later date and voted to approve the settlement, allowing both parties to avoid the inconvenience and expenses related to a formal hearing.

Wynn Macau Spending Big

Wynn Macau announced it’s planning an investment of MOP17.8 billion (approximately $2.22 billion) in the special administrative region (SAR). A big piece of these investments is going to be focused on expanding revenue through non-gaming enterprises. This is a general trend that’s expected, as the SAR announced that broadening their non-gaming portfolio is going to be a new requirement for approved concessionaries, such as Wynn Macau.

The biggest piece of this investment – MOP16.5 billion (approximately $2 billion) – will go towards non-gaming diversification and growth in international markets, a report by Inside Asian Gaming (IAG) says. The report had Linda Chen – vice chairman, chief operating officer and executive director – and Craig Fullalove – chief financial officer and senior vice president – sharing more details about the company’s plans moving forward.

The company’s efforts in expanding its non-gaming operations include plans for introducing a new theater, an official Wynn Event and Entertainment Centre, amusement attractions, an international gastronomy venue, and much more. As far as broadening its international presence, the plans rely on the brand’s well-established premium position. The upcoming operation in the United Arab Emirates was also outlined.

Sweeping Changes in Macau

The new concessions were announced at the tail end of November, with the Macau government signing the documents for the 10-year concessions last Friday. Wynn Macau is one of the six concession holders, joined by Galaxy Entertainment Group, Sands China, MGM China Holdings, SJM Holdings, and Melco Resorts & Entertainment. The sentiment behind the latest news surrounding Wynn Macau is probably going to be echoed throughout headlines about the other concessionaries as well.

The new gaming laws in the SAR had already started a wave of changes and adjustments in the operators’ businesses. Wynn – alongside the others – underwent a capital restructuring in order to comply with the new requirements for a minimum of MOP5 billion (approximately $624.34 million) in registered capital, up from the previous requirement of MOP200.1 million (approx. $25 million). The other operators have had to do the same.

The requirements for expanding non-gaming business were topping the list of other requirements that the new concessionaries were subjected to, alongside creating separate gaming zones for Chinese and foreign visitors. So, although the license allocation process saw the list of concessionaries unchanged, the SAR is currently in the process of transforming its business landscape to accommodate the lessons learned from its pandemic experience.

As news continues pouring in about what plans operators have in store to diversify their portfolios, many are being increasingly optimistic about the SAR’s tourism business and potential economic revival.

FansUnite Entertainment, а British Colombia-based sports betting and entertainment company announced that it successfully acquired a sports gaming supplier license from the Ohio Casino Control Commission. As a result, the company will be able to launch its offerings in the state, supplying local companies with gaming solutions.

FansUnite Forays into Ohio

Ohio recently legalized sports betting and is preparing to officially launch its sports betting market on January 1, 2023. According to analysts, sportsbooks in the Buckeye State would collectively generate a sports betting handle of around $8.8 billion during the first year of operations.

As Ohio makes a foray into the sports betting sector, FansUnite will become the official gaming supplier of betr, a micro-betting sports company owned by Betr Holdings. Thanks to its new license, however, FansUnite will be also allowed to power other sports betting operators with its solutions.

This exciting news follows another favorable development for the company, with the company receiving a gaming-related supplier license from the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario. While FansUnite announced its plans to offer gaming products in Ontario almost a year ago, it has now officially grabbed a license that will allow it to foray into the Canadian province.

FansUnite’s expansion is in line with the company’s strategy to conquer more regulated jurisdictions with its betting content.

Burton: The New License Is a Major Milestone for FansUnite

FansUnite’s chief executive officer, Scott Burton, spoke about the new license. He said that it represents an important milestone for the company’s US strategy and overall business-to-business operation. Burton said that Ohio will likely quickly cement itself as a big hub for sports wagering.

The state of Ohio is the latest jurisdiction to legalize sports betting and as a major sports hub, we expect it to generate significant gaming revenues for our B2B clients and our live activation team at Betting Hero.

Scott Burton, CEO, FansUnite

Burton added that the new license will allow his company to launch in Ohio from day one, providing it with an edge over some of its competitors. The CEO concluded that as FansUnite secures more B2B agreements, it will continue pushing for launches in more sports betting markets.

FansUnite is a globally-operating sports and entertainment company that excels in the production of legal iGaming and sports wagering solutions. Its unique Chameleon platform, named so for its flexibility, offers a full suite of solutions for the casino, sports and esports betting sectors.

FansUnite also has its own betting brands, including the McBookie and VamosGG brands in Scotland and Brazil.

In other news, Underdog, one of the fastest-growing fantasy sports companies, also secured a license to operate in Ohio.