Of recession, records and the latest iGO report
We borrow James Carville's famous line about the economy, we highlight some robust numbers from last week, and asked around about the iGaming Ontario Q2 numbers.
In this issue:
Teeing up today’s Gaming News Canada Show
Resiliency > recession?
G2E (really) came back with a bang
The Company Line - Aristocrat Technologies
Teeing up The Gaming News Canada Show
Amanda Brewer of Kindred Group, Troy Ross of TRM Public Affairs and Playmaker Capital CEO Jordan Gnat are our scheduled guests on Twitter Spaces this afternoon at 2 ET. We’ll speak with Gnat about Playmaker’s acquisition of Wedge Traffic earlier this week. Brewer and Ross, along with Parleh Media Group CEO Mark Silver, will provide their thoughts on the aftermath of last week’s Global Gaming Expo along with the Q2 performance report from iGaming Ontario.
Riding the wave of economic uncertainty
Reaching out to the digital version of the Merriam Webster dictionary yesterday was prompted by conversations with a few knowledgeable types in the gaming industry, along with this statement from American Gaming Association president Bill Miller in response to an executive survey on the outlook for the gaming industry in the country just below our borders, as John L. Smith of CDC Gaming Reports writes, “buffeted by inflation and political divisions” (umm, we’re right there with you, JL, in the current version of the truth north strong and free).
“Our industry remains cautiously optimistic — and has weathered this volatile economy — because of resilient consumer demand,” said Miller.
Adam Rivers, who leads KPMG’s consultancy business in the gambling sector, used the “R” word when speaking with Gaming News Canada via Google Meet yesterday.
“Historically, if you look at the data during periods of low consumer confidence, gaming and betting is relatively resilient,” said Rivers, an economist who’s been following the industry for more than a dozen years. “(From the) trends of the past 3-6 months, we’re seeing that story play out again - albeit only on a top-line basis.”
Canadian Gaming Association president and CEO Paul Burns, who was among the estimated 25,000 attendees at last week’s Global Gaming Expo in Las Vegas (more on that in another section of the newsletter), said the industry on both sides of the border is keeping close tabs on the economy.
“Everyone is making plans accordingly,” Burns said. “There are regional differences from market to market. In Las Vegas, you don’t see any indication (of a recession), but it’s a unique market. In (2008-09), southwestern Ontario and other parts of the province were hit hard by the recession, but Toronto wasn’t.
“Right now, there’s optimism (in the gaming business).”
That optimism isn’t unanimous. A study put out by TransUnion last week indicated that American sports bettors are pulling back on their spending.
“People are probably going to be familiar with the old adage that the industry does well in recession, right? I’ve heard that since I was a kid,” Declan Raines, head of U.S. gaming at TransUnion, told Sports Handle reporter Mark Saxon. “Now, we’re going to actually see that put to the test. I would say this report would actually counter that conventional wisdom.”
A report by Global Betting & Gaming Consultants suggested, however, that innovation - especially around live/in-play wagering - along with a busy sports calendar that includes the FIFA World Cup next month will help the betting industry weather some harsh economic winds.
Rivers said that digital technology and the expanded menu of available bets could lead some customers to spend their betting wallet differently.
“Consumers may be looking for a bit more bang in the buck for value. From the anecdotal conversations I’ve had, there’s a certain cohort of customers where the average (spend) per bet is slipping. ‘I’m going to deposit my $50 but I’m going to spread it among more bets.’ One operator said the attractiveness of parlays have increased slightly. They’re going to place those couple of bucks on a long shot.”
Steven Salz, the CEO of Toronto-based Rivalry which announced record betting handle and revenue for its Q3 results last week, says the company’s younger customer base has helped shield it from what’s happening with the economy.
"Rivalry's customer behaviour and spend has remained consistent despite the current economic environment,” Salz said in a statement. “We're engaging an audience that skews younger than traditional sports betting consumers and is typically less invested in the market with more flexible spending habits. These factors contribute to younger demographics feeling relatively unaffected by macroeconomic conditions, and has allowed the company to continue scaling in Ontario."
In a highly competitive market, we’re watching to see if regulated operators pull back on their advertising spend, if we continue to see many of those same players lean on staff in other jurisdictions to oversee their Canadian operations, and the impact of an continuing economic downturn on the technology, data, agencies and other ancillary businesses in the industry.
“I’m hearing everyone’s quite pleased”
More wagers. More revenue. More players. More operators. More websites.
Tis indeed, that’s a bare-bones summary of the Q2 performance report from iGaming Ontario, released the same day that the aforementioned CGA head honcho Burns was moderating a G2E panel discussion on the Canadian gaming scene inside a nondescript meeting room at The Venetian Expo with iGO executive director Martha Otton, McCarthy-Tetrault senior counsel Danielle Bush and Bruce Caughill, the former Falls Management Company/Niagara Casinos executive who less than a year ago became the Canadian country manager for Rush Street Interactive.
We have no canines in the coal mine (or something like that) when it comes to tossing bouquets or bricks at the opening six months of the Ontario market. Dave Briggs at Play Canada nicely laid out, with the help of Jenn Montgomery, the significant growth from the maligned-in-some-corners Q1 numbers delivered by iGO. Yahoo Finance reporter Jeff Lagerquist pointed out that revenues were on track to fall short of the $1.6 billion in gross gaming revenue this year estimated by U.S. consulting company VIXIO Gambling Compliance.
Et tu, Burns?
“It’s a positive step and we’ll see continued growth in the next quarter,” said the CGA president and CEO, pointing to the continuing NFL regular season, the MLB playoffs (sorry Jays fans), the start of the NBA and NHL regular seasons, and the FIFA World Cup on the horizon. “It’s going to take a couple of more quarters to really see where the market’s at. (But) I’m hearing everyone’s quite pleased.”
While there won’t be much light shone on how OLG is performing in the province’s brave new wagering world, we’ve been told by a few knowledgeable folks that the lottery corp is very pleased with how its online sportsbook and casino products have fared so far against the incoming competition. We also know there are more operators on the way, and that the grey-turned-black market continues to exist and there will undoubtedly be operators which will challenge the AGCO’s October 31st deadline for doing business within the rules.
Troy Ross, the president of TRM Public Affairs who’s been around the Canadian gaming industry for more than two decades - and was immersed in the creation of the regulatory and licensing framework for the Ontario gaming industry during his time with the AGCO in the early 2000’s - metaphorically raised a half-full goblet to iGO’s latest metrics.
“At the Canadian Gaming Summit (in June), I said I expect Ontario to be one of the most successful betting regimes in North America,” Ross told us Tuesday. “The overall cost of doing business here is either competitive or far better than the U.S. states. We have a 20 per cent tax rate here. That’s not New York (51 per cent). That’s not Pennsylvania (36 per cent).
“Is the model perfect? No. Are there lessons to be learned? Absolutely. But I’m thrilled that they (the provincial government) got it as good as they did. We’re looking at 30 operators right now with the potential for another 40, so they’re doing something right.”
Count Dale Hooper, the Canadian country manager for FanDuel, among the yays for the province’s performance so far.
“It is great to see the success of the industry since launch,” Hooper said in a statement to Gaming News Canada. “We are looking forward to the industry's continued growth, and are constantly working on ways to deepen the sports betting and casino experience with FanDuel. We want to make sure sports fans in Ontario can continue experiencing their favourite sports in new, fun and responsible ways.
“This fall promises to be very exciting with Canada’s participation in the World Cup, and the NFL, NBA and NHL seasons ramping up. We are excited and optimistic for what’s to come!”
G2E (really) comes back with a bang
Having survived our first trip to Las Vegas and our maiden Global Gaming Expo visit while suffering a mild(ish) case of the Coronavirus, we captured a small sample size of the in-depth coverage from the gaming and sports betting extravaganza at The Venetian last week.
Attendance at this year’s Expo almost doubled that of last year, when folks were still on fairly high COVID-19 alert.
Ryan Butler, iGaming NEXT’s reporter, writer, tweeter and panel moderator last week, grabbed some of the best mon mots of the expo.
Richard Velotta of the Las Vegas Review-Journal wrote about the need for sportsbooks to do a reset around making money and customer satisfaction.
In case you missed it, the leaders for DraftKings and FanDuel were tossing bouquets across the stage at each other.
Ryan Butler sat down with Joey Levy during G2E and did the Q and A thing with the co-founder of the Betr microbetting platform.
Bob Dancer summarized AGA president Bill Miller’s Wednesday morning conversations with Barstool Sports CEO Erika Nardini and Las Vegas Raiders president Sandra Douglass-Morgan.
Speaking of Miller, the AGA’s head honcho called on the federal government to take action against illegal and unregulated gaming websites and slot machines, which are taking in a reported $300 billion (U.S.) annually.
The slow rollout of legal igaming in states across the U.S. is resulting in the loss of billions of dollars in tax revenue.
Good stuff from Mike Seely at US Bets, who covered a panel on women in sports betting which included Stathletes co-founder/CEO Meghan Chayka.
Rege Behe of CDC Gaming Reports covered a conversation around diversity and inclusivity in the gaming business.
Finally, Pechanga chairman Mark Macarro touted a Tom Petty line when addressing the position of California’s Indigenous gaming operators against igaming businesses wanting to enter the state as legal operators.
The Company Line
This week, we put The Company Line spotlight on Aristocrat Technologies, which was granted a suppliers licence this week by the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario.
Birthdate: 1953
Home Base: Sydney, Australia (Aristocrat has an Ontario office in Mississauga).
Founders: Len Ainsworth originally founded the company as Aristocrat Leisure. The company is now Aristocrat Technologies with three operating units: Aristocrat Gaming, Pixel United and Anaxi.
Raison D’Etre: Aristocrat is a global gaming content and technology company, and mobile games publisher.
If you’d like to have your company featured in this section to profile the players in the Canadian gaming space, please drop us a note at steve@theparleh.com.
On the Home Front
As we were rubbing the sleep out of our eyes this morning, news landed that the AGCO is being honoured by the International Association of Gaming Regulators for its rollout of the Ontario igaming market.
The legal gaming industry is booming in the Maritimes, writes Jose Colorado for PlayCanada.com.
Revenue for the lottery corporations in Manitoba and the Atlantic provinces have been on the rise.
Colorado reported on a Radio-Canada report that revealed government-owned casinos in La Belle Province have some work to do on the anti-money laundering front.
Speaking of Quebec, Geoff Zochodne reported last Friday that Loto-Quebec is taking a peek at offering sports betting at casinos and gaming halls across the province.
Zochodne also has the goods on Pinnacle’s plans to launch its regulated Ontario business next week.
FanDuel marketing VP Conor Murray spoke recently with Greg Warren at Sports Handle about its partnership with TSN and the integration of betting information into the network’s NFL broadcasts this season.
The chief strategy officer for Bede Gaming offered his thoughts on the early days of the regulated Ontario market, and his company’s working relationship with OLG.
Sonja Lindenberg of iGaming NEXT interviewed Rivalry CEO Steven Salz, including how the former bank employee got into the gaming business and why he likes bonus promotions about as much as we enjoy tainted tuna on a Triscuit.
Gaming attorney Jack Tadman weighed in on pay-to-play video game platforms in our home and native land.
Online Casino operator LuckyDays received its licence last Friday from the AGCO.
And, c’est la meme chose for live dealer betting games studio company BetGames.
Finally, big Parleh props to Catherine Meade, VP of Community, Sustainability & Social Responsibility at OLG, who has been named to the Top 100 of Canada’s Most Powerful Women list by the Women’s Executive Network, and is a recipient of the 2002 Canadian Tire Community Impact Award.
Let’s Get Together
Genius Sports will be the official data partner of the Australian Professional Leagues men’s and women’s soccer loops.
PokerStars VR will be a launch title for Meta’s ground-breaking Quest Pro mixed reality headset.
There’s a meeting of media and data in a new agreement between Sportradar and XLMedia.
Speaking of Sportradar, it also announced yesterday a new partnership around data for the ATP Tour.
SportsGrid announced Tuesday that it will be distributing its sports betting video content through The Associated Press.
Gaming Society is joining the American Gaming Association as a partner in its Have A Game Plan, Bet Responsibly campaign.
U.S. Integrity has a new, multi-faceted partnership with Arkansas-based Saracen Casino Resort.
Prizeout is jumping on board the Betr train.
IGT, which we highlighted in The Company Line last week, has a deal with Lady Luck Games to deliver games to a Norwegian company.
The Sportfive agency is expanding its esports representation business by joining forces with Gen.G.
African online sports betting business SunBet has a new partnership with Sportingtech.
EQL Games and ReelPlay are going to be working together in the lottery content space.
Matters of M&A
Matthew Nicholson reported for Gambling Insider that Entain has borrowed $1 billion and will use some of those funds for the acquisition of SuperSport, which it announced earlier this year.
Aussie company Tabcorp Holdings is acquiring a 20 per cent stake in sports betting business Dabble Sports.
Tekcorp is walking away from its plans to buy a sports betting company.
Score one for FanDuel’s legal reps, who were triumphant in an appeal of a shareholder suit over the Flutter merger.
Quarter(s) Pole
Rivalry announced as part of its Q3 earnings report last week that more than 90 per cent of its sportsbook handle came from wagering on esports. The Toronto-based company also reported that 82 per cent of its active customers are under 30 years of age.
In releasing its Q3 results last week, Entain pointed towards a rosy fourth quarter with the pending World Cup of Soccer. There’s more here on the overall landscape for the company.
Departing the Netherlands and stronger player safety measures in the UK are having a negative effect on 888.
Rank Group released its Q1 2022/23 earnings last week.
States Side Stories
Some new numbers released by the AGA yesterday (you can peruse the entire report here):
JohnWallStreet wrote for Sportico last week that we haven’t even got to the 90-pitch mark yet (isn’t that when they pull MLB pitchers these days. . . .) when it comes to declaring contenders and pretenders in the sports betting biz.
A pilot program in New Jersey could keep gambling addicts out of jail.
Count Fanatics CEO Michael Rubin among the folks who are disenchanted with New York’s tax rate on online sports betting, writes Mike Mazzeo.
Legalizing online sports wagering in the state of Delaware is almost at the finish line, writes Pat Evans for Legal Sports Report.
Cole Rush writes for iGB North America on the evolution of the affiliate business since PASPA was overturned in 2018.
Heather Fletcher at Bonus.com has the latest on FanDuel’s plans for a U.S. IPO.
PlayUSA’s 20 Power Players of Online Gambling list, released a week ago, is a little light on representation by women and people of colour.
Jill Dorson writes for Sports Handle that delivering legal sports betting via initiative is no piece of cake.
The only state in New England that doesn’t allow online sports betting appears to be having a change of heart.
This Matt Rybaltowski tweet will certainly put some more kindling on the fire around ESPN going deeper into the sports betting biz.
Bennett Conlin of the aforementioned Sports Handle writes about a shuffling of the deck chairs by Caesars with its in-venue sportsbook at Capital One Arena in DC.
FanDuel’s new TV network now has an NBA-centric show: Run It Back with host Michelle Beadle and The Athletic hoops writer Shams Charania.
GridRival, the sports betting startup focused on motorsports, launched its daily fantasy sports product across 23 states this week. Charlie Horner at SBC spoke with GridRival boss Ross Fruin about the launch.
Geoff Zochodne reports that PointsBet, Bet365, Caesars Sportsbook, Betfred and SuperBook Sports have been approved for mobile licences by the Ohio Casino Control Commission.
Three months before legal sports betting begins in the Buckeye State, DraftKings is offering $200 in free bets.
Friday is the deadline to apply for an online sports betting licence in Maryland.
SBC’s Charlie Horton dug a little deeper into FuboTV’s Tuesday announcement that it was getting out of the sports betting business. Among the entities affected by the change in Fubo’s direction: the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Fifth Street Gaming announced Tuesday the launch of the all Spanish-language JefeBet Podcast Network.
Resorts Digital Gaming is on the cusp of integrating GeoComply’s technology to help deal with credit card chargebacks.
September was very, very good to DraftKings in the state of Michigan.
Online sports betting has entered the conversation in the bun fight between the Democrats and Republicans in the state of Georgia.
Major League Baseball publicly jumped on the bandwagon last week for legal sports wagering in Californ-ai-yay.
The first week of legal casino gambling in Nebraska brought in just over $285,000 in taxes and fees for local governments.
Two thumbs-up to Sam McQuillan at The Action Network on this explainer of the duelling props in California.
The numbers continue to climb in the Hoosier State.
Same for Connecticut, which had a record-setting September, writes Chris Altruda at US Bets.
BetMGM has rolled out a bunch of NHL-branded casino games in New Jersey.
The sportsbook handle in the Garden State slipped below the $1 billion mark last month.
Q3 revenues for Detroit casinos declined seven per cent year over year.
Sightline Payments co-CEO Omer Sattar had a chat with CDC Gaming Reports’ Rege Behe about the company’s ambitious commitment to facilitating digital-payments technology at 250,000 slot machines across the U.S. of A. over the next three years.
Emile Avanessian wonders on Bonus.com if the owner of the Houston Rockets is taking Fertitta Entertainment down a new path with a proposed resort for the Las Vegas Strip.
Sports betting hit new heights in Tennessee last month. Now about those goalposts. . . .
Across the Ponds
Entain CEO Jette Nygaard-Andersen spoke about the company’s sustainability strategy during its Sustain event yesterday.
Conor Mulheir wrote for iGaming NEXT about the wagering lift the Netflix’s Drive to Survive series has given to Formula One racing.
Flutter Entertainment CEO Conor Grant says the company is spending more than $155 million annually on safer gambling in the UK and Ireland.
The European gambling industry is taking a harder stance against money laundering.
And the Belgian Gambling Commission is dropping its weekly limits for players on online gambling websites by more than half, effective today.
SkyBet has launched a Mythbusters program around Safer Gambling Week.
The Netherlands Gambling Authority is rescinding almost $390,000 in fines after two unlicensed operators decided they’re leaving the Dutch market.
And speaking of the Dutch regulators, unlike North America where marketing deals between gaming operators and celebrities are en vogue, the KSA has imposed a blanket ban.
The Internationals Betting Integrity Association reported a double-digit rise in YOY suspicious betting activity around the world, with only one alert in North America.
The Malta Gaming Authority has reported that there are 18 illegal operators currently doing business across the country.
Finally, SBC’s managing director connected with Anton Kuchukidze, the chair of the Ukrainian Gambling Council. Our hearts go out to the people of Ukraine.
Esports Reports
The consensus at this week’s Casino Esport Conference in New Jersey is that the competitive video game industry is just getting started from a sports betting perspective.
Viewership for the League of Legends World Championship group stage has taken the Nestea plunge year over year.
Esports Entertainment Group is in a heap of financial trouble.
Comcast Spectacor is shutting down gaming and esports network G4 TV.
Dallas Stars cornerback has been signed to join the Complexity Stars roster by esports business Complexity Gaming.
Quick Hits
The NBA is seeking sports betting experience startups for the second season of its Launchpad Program.
We highly recommend spending a few minutes on Scott Longley’s look at the uncertain U.S. gaming landscape in the Deal Talk edition of Earnings + More.
The Twitch ban on unregulated gambling operators is locked and loaded.
Mark Keast reported on the WagerWire study, conducted by Canadian market research company Leger, which discovered that more education would lead to more sports wagering online.
Scott Longley made a guest appearance on Covers.com to write about the marriage of sports streaming and sports betting.
Erin-Marie Gallagher at SBC interviewed the chief revenue officer of LSports about how the company will use artificial intelligence to support the business of betting around next month’s World Cup of Soccer.
A report that the global video game industry could grow to beyond $300 billion annually over the next five years.
Facebook has released its new application form for gambling and gamer operators to receive advertising approval from the platform.
Aristocrat has a new name for its igaming business.
We enjoyed catching up with man-of-many-hats Jesse Learmonth in Vegas last week. And speaking of Jesse, his latest episode of The Betting Startups Podcast features ALT Sports Data founder/CMO Todd Ballard.
EvenBet has released a white paper on the latest trends and priorities in the gaming industry.
NHL fans like the new digital board ads they’re seeing on broadcasts. And Leaf fans are giddy about not having celebrated a Stanley Cup title since 1967. . . .
And hey, we simply couldn’t help ourselves when this came across our Twitter feed yesterday:
People on the Move
Evolution has promoted Jacob Claesson to CEO, North America.
Andrea Ellis, once the Head of Finance for Tim Hortons, has been appointed Chief Financial Officer at Fanatics Betting & Gaming.
Gaming industry veteran Gilad Naim is the new CEO at Soft2Bet.
Brett Arneson has been appointed Senior Director, Human Resources at FanDuel.
Wave Sports + Entertainment has promoted Daniel Maas to Executive VP, Commercial (Partnerships and Revenue).
Tiffany Lopez Lee announces the start of a new position as Head of Global People Operations at Kambi.
Aaron Brown has a new role as Gaming Compliance Officer at BCLC.
Scientific Games introduced its new Mona Garland as Chief Human Resources Officer.
Jeremy Cooper has a new position as Regional Manager, VIP at theScore.
FanDuel brings on board Christopher Flesher as Customer Operations Supervisor.
Basketball Canada has promoted Amy Shields to Director, Production & Operations.
Katie Kohler has left Play Pennsylvania and joined BetMGM as iGaming Communications Manager.
Sports betting and tech company nVenue has added NBC Sports betting analyst Matthew Berry to its advisory team.
David Rooney has joined the recruiting team at Bettingjobs.com.
Agnes Wong, who has previously worked at USports, the Canadian Olympic Committee and the NHL, has been hired by Red Bull as a Social Media Specialist.esports business Complexity Gaming.
Classified (Jobs) Information
Spread the word, please: Special Olympics Canada has an opening for a VP, Digital Products and Technology.
Kaizen Gaming is looking for a Marketing Manager to join its Toronto team for the rolling out of its Betano.ca business in Ontario.
There are openings at theScore for an Engineering Manager and a Data Engineering Manager.
BetMGM has some jobs available at its Toronto office and is also in the market for a Director, Team & League Partnerships.
Canadian company Sports IQ Analytics is hiring a Sports Trader.
PlayUp is searching for a Regulatory Compliance Advisor to work out of its Sydney (Australia, not Nova Scotia) offices.
There’s an opening for a Sportsbook Product Designer in Toronto.
EBet has an opening for a Financial Controller to work remotely.
iGaming Group is hiring a Marketing Manager.
Esports Insider is looking for a Head of Sales & Partnerships.
The Canadian Olympic Committee has a 12-month contract available for a Director, Marketing Partnerships.
The MLS Vancouver Whitecaps are seeking a Chief Commercial Officer.
CBC is on the lookout for a Manager, Partnerships (Sports & Olympics).
The National Hockey League is hiring a Senior Manager, Innovation.
The Toronto Blue Jays are in the market for a Manager, Premium Service, Hospitality & Retention.
McMaster University in Hamilton has an opening for an Advancement Officer - Athletics & Recreation.
Coming soon to your town/screen
Enthusiast Gaming is the presenting sponsor of today’s Advertising Week Gaming’s Creator Economy virtual conference.
The Responsible Gambling Council is still accepting registrations for next month’s Discovery conference in Toronto (you can also watch the conference from your screen).
Game Plan, in collaboration with PENN Interactive, is hosting two evenings of webinars on career opportunities in the sports betting space. You can register here to participate.
Registration is now open for next month’s SiGMA Europe in Malta.
Tickets are now on sale for next month’s Esports Revolution conference in Brussels.
CDC Gaming Seminars has a couple of webinars/seminars teed up for next week and in mid-November.
Finally, for our friends in the Ottawa area, WNBA Minnesota Lynx player Bridget Carleton, LGBTQ2 advocate Brock McGillis and Stephanie Cowle of Parachute are the panelists for an OSN - Safe Sport talk before tonight’s Sens-Capitals game at the Canadian Tire Centre. Register here for the panel discussion and a ticket to the game.
About the Numbers
The Parleh’s Michael Singh presented some suggestions for a futures bet on the World Series MVP, which took us back (roll the clip to the 18-minute mark) to Pat Borders’ performance in the Blue Jays’ 1992 Series win over the Atlanta Braves.
Follow us @GamingNewsCA on Twitter for the latest news on the sports betting and gaming industry. And for our daily picks and other sports video content, visit @theParleh.
Questions? Please contact us.
Did this email get forwarded to you? Sign up for the Gaming News Canada newsletter.