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Interactive

US – Pennsylvania to open online gaming licensing process in April

By - 15 March 2018

Pennsylvania is on course to launch its online gambling market before the end of 2018, although lottery tickets will be available online in the next few weeks.

The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board has announced that beginning on April 16, 2018, and for a period of 120 days, licensed Pennsylvania Casinos can petition the Board for an “Interactive Gaming Certificate.”
If approved, a Certificate Holder may be authorised to offer interactive gaming in three categories: peer-to-peer interactive games where players compete directly against other players, like poker, non-peer-to-peer interactive games where players compete against the dealer’s hand, which simulate table games and non-peer-to-peer interactive games which simulate slot machine.

With this announcement, the Board’s process of issuing Interactive Gaming Certificates will begin. In the first 90 days, only existing Pennsylvania casinos may petition to offer all three categories at an authorization fee of $10m. From 91t o120 days, existing Pennsylvania casinos may petition to offer one or more categories; at an authorization fee of $4m per category. At the conclusion of the 120-day period, the Gaming Control Board may authorise a qualified gaming entity to file a Petition with the Board for an Interactive Gaming Certificate upon a finding of suitability.
Act 42 of 2017 allows for a total of 13 Interactive Gaming Certificates for each type of online gaming for a total of 39 certificates.

The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board announced that license applications for entities interested in offering fantasy sports contests are available.

No indication has yet been made on how many skins will be allowed per license. Skins are the front end of the gaming platform that allow different brands sites to use the same gaming software. In New Jersey, Golden Nugget has led the market by combing three skins onto its platform, its own brand along with Betfair Casino and PlaySugarHouse.

888 CEO Itai Frieberger said recently to the Gaming Board: “Since multiple brands will be associated with a single licensee (as opposed to allowing the online operators with those brands to make an independent offering to players in the state), a diversified offering backed by additional marketing spend and associated with reputable brands will increase overall profit for licensees and the overall size of the internet gaming market.”

Pennsylvanians will be able to play the lottery online by May. Pennsylvania Lottery Executive Director Drew Svitko said. “In coming months, we’ll launch an iLottery online gaming platform and new types of draw games that will help us to modernize our business and generate new funds to benefit older Pennsylvanians.”

iLottery games will offer players located in Pennsylvania a new way to play and win from a mobile device or computer. The Lottery is also recruiting retailers to offer Keno, a new draw game scheduled to begin sales in May. Virtual sports monitor games, expected to launch in June, will show simulated sporting events that depict the outcome of random computerized drawings. Traditional draw games, scratch-offs and Fast Play games will not be sold through iLottery at launch, but will continue to be available at more than 9,400 retail locations.

“Adding iLottery games, Keno and virtual sports monitor games will help us to remain competitive in a rapidly changing business climate, but lottery games sold at retail will remain the foundation of our business and generate the majority of funds to benefit older Pennsylvanians,” Mr. Svitko added.

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