News: FanDuel Keeps Investing In Responsible Gaming With New Tool
Real-Time Check-In is latest example of FanDuel committing to RG efforts. Roundup: Flutter completes acquistion of stake in Brazilian operator; news about athletes and gambling in NBA, MLB, NFL.
Quick note: I’ll be at SBC in Florida this week; feel free to email me here, find me on LinkedIn, fill out the contact form on my site, etc., if you want to meet. I’m also moderating a panel on Thursday at 11 am:
Critics like to say sportsbooks never prioritize responsible gambling over commercial interests. It’s clear that’s not universally true, with a new rollout from FanDuel.
The US sports betting leader unveiled its “Real-Time Check-In” program, a responsible gaming technology that should have a real impact on making people think about their spending at FanDuel. The announcement came on Wednesday at SBC Summit Americas
How does it work?
If a customer tries to make a deposit that is somehow inconsistent with their established deposit pattern, Real-Time Check-in will do the following:
Prompt the user to review the deposit.
Allow them to lower the deposit amount.
Set a deposit limit if they choose to do so.
Ask them if they want to review their spending habits with FanDuel’s My Spend Tool.
Here’s a video demonstrating how it works:
Jill Watkins, Senior Commercial Director of Responsible Gaming, broke down for me how the model behind Check-In works:
“Real-Time Check-In, at its core, is a machine learning model that gives us these predictions. And how that works is on a daily basis, the model will run for every customer in our sportsbook and casino database in US states, as well as in Ontario. That's where we're currently live. It will spit out a deposit prediction for that day, and that allows us to be able to factor in seasonality and factor in just the sheer fact that people will change their behavior. Someone will deposit differently today than they might during a Sunday of the NFL playoffs.
And we want to make sure that the predictions are as accurate as possible for that individual customer. So to do that, we've trained the machine model using deposit data, wagering data, bonus data, and withdrawal data, to read them all across to have a view of what someone's deposit amount is. And when we have that deposit amount, then in the background at all times when a customer is depositing, we effectively do the calculation in real time, to ensure that the amount that they're attempting is below the amount that we have predicted.
And that’s when FanDuel will give the user options on the RG front, if the deposit is higher than expected.
It’s just one of a number of RG efforts at FanDuel and elsewhere that I think flies in the face of the idea that sportsbooks don’t care about RG. FanDuel is creating friction in some users’ deposit processes, which is meant to make gambling more sustainable both for the user and for FanDuel over the long haul. It’s not something you would see if FanDuel were hellbent on extracting every last dollar out of every customer as quickly as possible.
Add Check-In to other FanDuel efforts, and it’s pretty hard to argue that they aren’t taking the issue of RG seriously:
My Spend, a personalized responsible gaming dashboard for users.
Trusted Voices: Conversations About Betting, helping parents and families to talk about gambling.
The Comeback with Craig Carton, a show which tells stories in problem gambling.
“Last year, we introduced FanDuel MySpend and found that providing those personalized insights into a customer's activity helps them better manage their activity on the platform. Over half of our users used MySpend and users who use MySpend were significantly more likely to set deposit limits for themselves,” Cory Fox, SVP for Public Policy and Sustainability, told The Closing Line. “That's an unlock moment for us, because it shows us that we can be successful if we put tools in front of them and show them individualized information.”
In any event, today’s announcement is an advance for legal online gambling in the US. Hopefully more operators in gaming — not just in legal, regulated sports betting and online casinos — keep moving in this direction.
Ifrah Law has been at the center of advancing iGaming in the U.S., shaping groundbreaking legislation, leading precedent-setting cases, and guiding clients that span the iGaming ecosystem through every phase of their business journey. Learn more at IfrahLaw.com.
Gambling news roundup
Flutter Entertainment announces completion of NSX acquisition (press release): Flutter Entertainment the world’s leading online sports betting and iGaming operator today announces that it has completed the acquisition of an initial 56% stake in NSX Group (“NSX”), a leading Brazilian operator of the Betnacional brand for cash consideration of approximately $350m. … Peter Jackson, CEO, commented: “I am delighted to welcome NSX – the operator of leading Brazilian sports betting and iGaming brand, Betnacional – to the Flutter portfolio. The transaction demonstrates Flutter’s powerful optionality as an ‘and’ business and aligns perfectly with our strategy for value creating M&A. The combination of NSX’s extensive local expertise, alongside our existing Brazilian business and the advantages of the Flutter Edge, creates a compelling
opportunity to capitalize on the exciting runway of future growth in Brazil.”
Warriors' Draymond Green fined for questioning refs' integrity (ESPN): “Golden State Warriors star Draymond Green was fined $50,000 by the NBA on Wednesday for ‘making an inappropriate comment that questions the integrity of game officials’ during a 102-97 loss to the Minnesota Timberwolves in Game 3. Green's fine was for a comment made after he had fouled out, referring to the point spread of 5.5 points among sportsbooks for Game 3, sources told ESPN's Shams Charania. He fouled out with 4:38 remaining in the game and the Wolves leading 84-82. Cameras caught Green on the sideline mouthing the 5.5-point spread during a timeout with the Wolves leading 102-94 with 15.2 seconds remaining.”
Decision on ineligibility status after death impacts Rose, others (MLB): “Major League Baseball removed Pete Rose and 16 other deceased individuals from the permanently ineligible list on Tuesday, Commissioner Rob Manfred announced. Manfred’s decision comes in the wake of Rose’s death last Sept. 30 at the age of 83 and in response to a petition from Rose’s family. In reinstating Rose, Manfred also reinstated the following individuals who have passed away while on the permanently ineligible list, including: Eddie Cicotte, Happy Felsch, Chick Gandil, Joe Jackson, Fred McMullin, Swede Risberg, Buck Weaver, Lefty Williams, Joe Gedeon, Gene Paulette, Benny Kauff, Lee Magee, Phil Douglas, Cozy Dolan, Jimmy O’Connell and William Cox. Rose had voluntarily accepted a permanent place on baseball’s ineligible list on Aug. 24, 1989, after then-Commissioner A. Bartlett Giamatti reviewed a report by lawyer John M. Dowd documenting Rose’s betting on MLB games -- a violation of MLB’s Rule 21 -- in 1987, when he was serving as manager of the Cincinnati Reds.”
The decision by MLB would allow for the two most famous examples of betting on baseball — Rose and “Shoeless” Joe Jackson of Chicago “Black Sox” fame — to be eligible for the Baseball Hall of Fame.
Ex-Iowa State QB Hunter Dekkers, banned by NCAA for sports betting, signed by New Orleans Saints (The Athletic): “Hunter Dekkers, who lost his NCAA eligibility for betting on his own team in college, was signed by the New Orleans Saints as an undrafted free agent, the team announced Tuesday.
The Saints signed Dekkers after he participated in the team’s rookie minicamp on a tryout basis last weekend. The signing follows quarterback Derek Carr’s retirement. New Orleans also waived linebacker Anfernee Orji.”
Sports predictions could create a pathway to betting across the country (Business Insider, paywall): “Prediction markets are sucking up a lot of the oxygen in the room right now, five industry insiders said. These markets let users across the country put money on potential winners of certain sporting events. Consumers can go on a website like Kalshi to ‘predict’ who will win a series in the NBA playoffs, for example.”
I am one of those industry insiders!
Learn more about skill games at SBC Summit Americas
Toast will be at SBC Summit Americas, ready to meet and talk about real-time strategy-based skill games for the North American market and beyond. Toast is a B2B provider with several games already launched, and a new basketball game going live this month; teaser video below. The games are built for easy integration with any platform. For a demo or to learn more, email connect@playtoast.com.
NC Sports Betting Operators Pushing Back On Tax Hike (Legal Sports Report): “Sportsbook operators are sending notes to users in the Tar Heel State to contact lawmakers about the tax rate. The companies are warning of worse odds and fewer promotions. Meanwhile, Grover Norquist, president of Americans for Tax Reform, has also weighed in on the issue. ‘While this tax hike is targeted on a politically unsympathetic and convenient target, we’ve seen cautionary tales play out in other states that took a similar confiscatory approach to gaming taxation,’ Norquist wrote in a letter to the Senate last month.”
New Ohio iGaming Bills Drops in Senate (Sports Betting Dime): “A new Ohio iGaming bill has dropped in the Senate as lawmakers from the Buckeye State focus on new ways to increase gaming revenues. Sen. Nathan Manning (R-13) introduced SB 197, a bill to legalize iGaming in the state for licensed operators. The bill includes a hefty price tag for iGaming license and one of the highest proposed tax rates for states in the country. It’s the latest piece of legislation to raise Ohio gaming revenues, following a failed attempt from Gov. Mike DeWine (R) to double the sports betting tax rate in his proposed fiscal year budget.”
HG Vora Slams ‘Misguided Transformation’ In Penn Proxy Packet (Legal Sports Report): “HG Vora asked fellow Penn Entertainment shareholders to vote for its three director nominees in its proxy submission Tuesday evening.
The vocal shareholder began shouting about Penn’s online gaming segment less than two months after launching ESPN Bet in November 2023 with its latest sports betting partner, Disney. HG Vora then formally moved against the operator this past January for Penn’s “abject failure” in online gaming and nominated three directors. The proxy materials ask shareholders to vote for three directors nominated by HG Vora, though how many directors can actually be voted in is under dispute. HG Vora sued Penn to invalidate its ‘Board Reduction Scheme’which would only allow two directors to join.”
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