SBC Americas

This week SBC hosted an online day of panels dedicated to digital innovation in affiliation. The event covered a range of topics, including the role affiliates play in promoting responsible gambling and ensure their operations do not market to underage or vulnerable populations.

SBC’s own Content Marketing Manager Maria Tsnompilantze moderated the panel on the subject, which consisted of:

Better World Casinos Founder Floris Assies
Linked Data Media CEO and Founder Gjorje Ristikj
WagerWire Co-Founder Travis Geiger

Ristikj summarized the dilemma that faces affiliates as they try to generate revenue and be a good partner while still promoting responsible play.

Affiliates must balance profits and problem gambling awareness

“[Marketers] have a constant ethical dilemma between profits and promoting responsible gambling. On the one hand, we are required to encourage responsible gambling. On the other hand, we are business entities, so we are driven by the need to increase our revenues an..

Underdog Fantasy is continuing to make improvements to its daily fantasy sports platform.

The New York-based company has agreed to a partnership with digital fraud protection company Sift to improve the efficiency of transactions and protect users from fraud.

Sift, which uses machine learning, will help Underdog identify stolen payment methods. As a result, Underdog will reduce fraudulent chargebacks that impact the platform’s legitimate users.

“Sift’s industry expertise and innovative use of machine learning allows us to instantly identify and block emerging fraud threats without creating hurdles for our players,” said Underdog COO and CFO Dustin Cooper. “This partnership will help us further ensure our players can trust that Underdog will give them a fun, fair, and secure environment to increase their enjoyment of sports.”

Underdog landing a deal with Sift comes as daily fantasy sports operators face regulatory scrutiny. Several states, including Michigan, have taken a stance on ..

Obtaining the required personal financial information is the greatest barrier licensed betting & gaming operators face when onboarding players and the industry fears that mandatory affordability checks will make the situation worse, a new SBC study, commissioned by IDnow, has concluded.

The finding emerged as part of the SBC Media Challenges in Compliance Survey, which saw senior compliance representatives from operators in Europe, North America and Latin America share their thoughts on the major issues they face. The full report will be published in February 2024.

One of the survey’s questions was, “at what stage do you currently see the biggest drop-off rates in the onboarding process?” Just over 50% of respondents identified ‘Document Submission – Personal Financial Information’ as their most significant problem area.

The scale of the reluctance of players to share financial documentation was emphasized by the other answers to the question. The second and third most common drop-o..

EPIC Risk Management has celebrated 10 years of operations by undertaking a “significant rebranding” with a new corporate identity and logo.

The safer gambling consultancy firm will now be known as EPIC Global Solutions, reflecting the worldwide presence it has built after expanding into the Americas in the last few years.

It stated the rebranding was necessary to reflect its “commitment to being the trusted global partner in providing solutions for gambling harm prevention”.

Alongside the rebranding, the firm will aim to increase the scale of its global operations.

“We are excited to unveil our new brand identity, which we believe better reflects our values and mission and the territories in which we work, ” said Paul Buck, EPIC Global Solutions Founder and CEO.

“This rebranding effort represents a significant milestone for our company, ten years since our inception, and we look forward to continuing to serve our partners with the same level of excellence they have come to e..

The National Council on Problem Gambling has linked with 66 lottery corporations to warn Americans about the dangers of problem gambling for minors.

Each year, the NCPG and lotteries team up for the Gift Responsibly campaign, trying to reduce the number of lottery products bought as gifts for minors over the holiday season.

Throughout December, the organizations will work to educate communities on the risks associated with minors engaging with lottery products and raise awareness of the importance of responsible gaming among those of legal age.

The campaign also collaborates with the International Centre for Youth Gambling Problems and High-Risk Behaviors at McGill University, which provides research and statistics to support the efforts.

Jeffrey Derevensky, Director of the International Centre for Youth Gambling Problems and High-Risk Behaviours, said: “With the growing social acceptability and opportunities available for gambling on an international level, it is important to ..

Massachusetts Gaming Commission (MCG) Chair Catherine Judd-Stein has expressed her concern that there is a low take up of responsible gambling tools from consumers in the state.

Judd-Stein raised these concerns as operators reported their Q3 report to the commission, updating the regulator on its revenue and approach to other initiatives such as DEI, RG and lottery engagement.

When DraftKings reported that fewer than 0.1% of users were using time limits, 2.3% used deposit limits, 0.13% used spending limits and 0.4% used wager limits, the regulatory Chairwoman was not happy and requested the operator work to improve those figures.

Judd-Stein pleaded: “Our Director of Research of Responsible Gaming has been concerned that the patrons just are not utilizing them.

“I really thank you for this slide because it speaks to that. Right. We can all think, collectively, as we move forward, how can we get our consumers in Massachusetts to really take advantage of these tools, and the only ..

When thinking about player protection, orthodoxical thinking may err towards preventing players from using gaming platforms. After all, therein the game lies potential dangers for the player.

But Dr. Mary Donohue, CEO of the Digital Wellness Center, has other ideas. She has developed a new platform titled MyStride Positive Play, a gamification tool to help rebalance the dopamine levels in players’ brains to prevent risky betting patterns.

The tool, to be integrated into betting and casino apps, interrupts a player’s gaming activity to provide another game that is not tied to real money, in a bid to rebalance the player’s dopamine levels.

Dr. Donohue, who works out of Toronto, knows all too much about how problem gambling can impact victim’s – and their family’s – lives.

Speaking with SBC Media on the Player Protection Day series of webinars, Donohue outlined how the inspiration for the MyStride Positive Play platform came from a painful experience too close to home.

“I observ..

The New York State Gaming Commission has announced the formation of a voluntary self-exclusion register to protect players across the state.

Developed in association with the Responsible Play Partnership, the New York Council on Problem Gambling and the New York State Office of Addiction Services and Supports, the self-exclusion program will allow players to ban themselves from any gambling activity.

Those placed on the register will be barred from all gaming establishments across the state and from gambling on any platform including sportsbooks.

NYCPG Executive Director James Maney said: “Assisting those in need of help through providing care and concern is at the core of what NYCPG does, and the launch of this new program exemplifies that care and concern by breaking down barriers.

“The new online notary services make it easier for individuals to complete remote VSE, while also connecting to one of our caring staff members who are knowledgeable about the process.”

The state ..

A trio of major leagues are uniting together for the release of a new responsible gambling campaign targeted at US bettors.

The NHL, NBA, and MLB released a new commercial spot on Tuesday that will debut during the NBA In-Season Tournament match-up between the Cleveland Cavaliers and the Philadelphia 76ers on Tuesday evening at 7:30pm ET.

Titled “Never Know What’s Next”, the spot was made in cooperation with the National Council on Problem Gambling (NCPG) as well as operators DraftKings, FanDuel, Fanatics, and ESPN Bet.

“Working with our fellow sports leagues, gaming operator partners, and responsible gaming partners gives added weight – particularly for young bettors – to this shared priority of making an impact on responsible gaming education across the United States,” said Scott Kaufman-Ross, NBA Senior Vice President Head of Gaming & New Business Ventures.  “Ensuring fans are aware of the inherent risk if they choose to bet and correcting the misconception that betting on sports..

As Penn Entertainment gets ready to push the launch button on ESPN BET, the network is ensuring that it becomes a thought leader in responsible gaming by partnering with UNLV on RG research.

Under the terms of the agreement, ESPN will be the founding donor of a new body of UNLV research that will leverage the knowledge of the International Gaming Institute to develop a program to support responsible gaming policies.

The study seeks to develop a program dedicated to researching, educating people and advising companies on sports betting and the intersection that it has with media companies. This is particularly important as ESPN’s brand is the face of Penn Entertainment’s re-launched sportsbook.

“We are thrilled to have ESPN’s support for research, education, and innovation in the responsible, sustainable representation of sports betting in the media,” commented Brett Abarbanel, IGI Executive Director.

“The growth of betting and gambling subjects in US media have exploded in the ..