50 PUBLIC GAMING INTERNATIONAL • MAY/JUNE 2024 selection will reach an entirely new era and makes the games available internationally. The cooperation starts with Svenska Spel in Sweden and the agreement includes supplying multiple games to approximately 4000 VLTs all over Sweden, with the first game to be released to players now. Germany: Lotto Bayern launches regulated online gambling Those interested in games from Bavaria who want to play online casino now have a legal option on the Internet. On the new online casino game portal, we offer state-of-the-art casino games. The first state, legal online game offer in Germany includes roulette live on two automatic cass. In addition, other playing options such as roulette, blackjack and poker against the bank are virtually available. In fulfillment of its public task from the State Treaty on Gambling and the Bavarian Implementation Act to the State Treaty on Gambling, the State Lottery and Casino Administration has developed an online gambling offer and is thus the first state provider in Germany to offer an online casino. Loterj, the Rio de Janeiro government body responsible for state lotteries, takes legal action to obtain an order from Anatel (National Telecommunications Agency) to block betting sites that do not have a state license. The GLI Group Acquires Trisigma Trisigma, a leading global gaming testing, inspection, certification, and auditing laboratory servicing both online and land-based regulated gaming clients, will continue to operate its network of testing laboratories independently while coordinating its efforts with GLI's larger sales, operations, and back-office staff globally. The arrangement allows Trisigma's clients to continue to receive world class service from Trisigma while benefiting from GLI's global network of laboratories and relationships with regulators worldwide. Esther Ballart will continue to lead and manage both the Trisigma Geldermalsen Netherlands and Trisigma Barcelona Spain offices. China National Lottery Sales in March 2024 – Year-on-Year Increase of CNY5.809 Billion or 11.7% Lottery Magic strikes in Mauritius where twenty people won the national lotto jackpot SPORTS BETTING AND CASINO GAMBLING The British Columbia Lottery Corporation replaces its retail sports betting offering with a new digital system New Jersey Senator John McKeon introduces a bill that would increase tax for online gambling and sports betting to 30% Flutter, owner of FanDuel and SISAL, to Move Primary Share Listing to New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) by the end of 2024 in a bid to attract more retail investors Illegal Offshore Sportsbooks Took More March Madness Action Than Legal Operators Entain Chairman Barry Gibson to step down, Stella David to lead as successor Massachusetts Gaming Commission hosted a roundtable on betting limits. All 10 state sportsbooks opted out Every live sports betting operator in the state declined to participate. The Massachusetts Gaming Commission (MGC) held a long-awaited public roundtable Tuesday to seek more transparency from sportsbooks on how, when and why they set betting limits on some patrons. "I’ve been made aware that 10 active operators in the commonwealth, after initially signaling that they would attend and actively participate in this public roundtable, decided not to,” said Jordan Maynard, the interim chair of the MGC. Maynard said the sportsbooks instead requested a private executive session in place of a public roundtable "as they felt that some information would be too sensitive to reveal in public.” The MGC, though, is required by Massachusetts law to hold their meetings in an open forum, except in some special circumstances. According to the MGC, sportsbook operators including BetMGM, DraftKings, FanDuel, Caesars, Fanatics and PENN Entertainment (ESPN BET) informed the commission of their decision to withdraw within 72 hours of the public meeting. Only one sportsbook operator that is not yet live in the state, Bally Bet, sent a representative. Bally Bet will not be available in Massachusetts until June. In addition to Bally’s representative, Justin Black, the meeting was attended by the commission members, their legal counsel, a professional gambler representing the perspective of sportsbook patrons and two gambling industry consultants. After an hour of conversation, the commissioners expressed frustration at the pointlessness of having the roundtable without the operators present. "This was not a good use of our time today, given that we didn’t have our primary stakeholders as part of the discussion,” said Commissioner Nakisha Skinner. "I hope we can work to change that going forward.” Commissioner Brad Hill said he felt "anger” for "not being able to get a lot more information that I thought we would be able to get today to start this conversation.” Opinion: SCHUETZ: Operators’ Snub Of Massachusetts Commission Shows A Total Lack Of Respect 'The way that the ten firms stiffed the MGC was the absolute ultimate statement of arrogance and ignorance.' When I was a casino executive on the Las Vegas Strip, every now and then, I would get a call from an agent of the Nevada Gaming Control Board. He would want to have coffee or lunch, and it would be at the Peppermill on the Strip. It meant that we would be meeting that day, and I canceled whatever I had planned. I went alone, for that was the unspoken rule, and when I arrived, there would always be two agents already there. Without fail, it had to do with an issue. The lead of the tandem would explain the issue, and the other person was just there to listen. About 90% of the time, the issue was resolved at the meeting. About 7% of the time, I would tell the agent I would get back to them within 24 hours, for I needed to talk to one of our lawyers, the company president or chairperson, or some such thing. Every now and then, we would disagree, and I would explain my position. We would finish the coffee or lunch, shake hands, and go our own ways. Either I would hear nothing more about the issue, or it would be elevated to a formal complaint. The one common element in all of this was that it was done with a high level of respect. What it’s supposed to look like … When I became a member of the California Gambling Control Commission, I made several trips to Nevada with other members of the California Commission to watch a Nevada Gaming Control Board meeting with Mark Lipparelli and later A.G. Burnett as chair. I wanted my fellow California commissioners to see the incredibly respectful way that the Nevada meetings were held. There were certainly disagreements and contentious moments, but they were held with a high level of respect. I was proud to be a part of all of that, and I considered it an incredibly important part of the industry. The point is that I grew up for 40-plus years in an industry with a culture of exhibiting the utmost respect for regulators, and importantly, they generally deserved it. It was the way it was done. P U L S E
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