Gaming industry group iDEA Growth was working through preliminary advertising standards when The New York Times dropped its series of articles on sports betting earlier this year.
That “created a lot of problems” with regulators and led to some proposed “draconian regulations,” iDEA founder and general counsel Jeff Ifrah told LSR.
The group released its Responsible Advertising Code last week with five main pillars for its US sports betting and iGaming members:
- Comply with state law
- Promote gambling only to those of legal age
- Limit college and university advertising
- Promote responsible gambling
- Implement and monitor code compliance
Did you read sports betting terms and conditions?
Gambling ads should cater to all and assume not everyone is reading terms and conditions, Ifrah said.
He noted a personal experience while in Arizona for the launch of sports betting. His son noticed a billboard of an operator offering $5,000 in free bets and asked why someone would not take advantage of that.
“Obviously I know the business so I said that’s not quite how it works, but when he said that it sort of resonated with me,” Ifrah said. “I was thinking, ‘This is how people read things.’”
Regulators reacted strongly to sports betting deals with colleges
The one NYT article that caused the largest headache was the one concerning sports betting companies striking partnerships with colleges, Ifrah said.
He soon heard from regulators in many states including Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts and New York who were afraid they had a crisis on their hands.
iDEA does not recommend banning those partnerships but makes it clear there should be no advertising on any college campuses or any school-operated radio or TV stations. It also bans name, image and likeness (NIL) deals with any athletes under 21.
Gaming Society, WNBA again partner for prediction game
The W Prediction Game from Gaming Society is live for the second season in a row.
The free-to-play game allows fans to make predictions on every WNBA matchup during the 2023 season. There is also live trivia during games and weekly competitions.
Gaming Society was cofounded by NBA legend Kevin Garnett. The company focuses on gamification and content to make “sports betting easy, inclusive and accessible to all fans.”
PBH stock picks up some lost ground
The PointsBet stock listed in Australia took a pounding after the company announced a sale of its US business to Fanatics for $150 million last Monday.
The stock opened Monday morning at A$1.98 but fell 31.1% combined over Monday and Tuesday as shareholders reacted. Both days included volume at more than four times PBH’s average.
The stock began its rally back on Wednesday, though, with volume closer to its average over the final three days of the week. It eventually closed Friday at A$1.55, up 14% from Tuesday’s A$1.36 close.
GLI acquires all shares of iTech Global
Gaming testing and certification company GLI acquired all outstanding shares of iTech Global, a laboratory focused on online gaming platforms.
Clients of iTech will benefit from GLI’s global network of labs and relationships with regulators around the world.
“The GLI Group shares our values and deep commitment to providing our customers best-in-class service and are exceedingly pleased with this investment,” iTech CEO Kiren Sreekumar said. “While iTech has achieved great success over the past many years, with the GLI Group’s support we are confident that iTech’s growth will be enhanced and thereby benefiting our customers.”
