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Registered online gambling suppliers in Peru may no longer provide services to any unlicensed operators active in the country, according to a published by the country's gambling regulator on Tuesday (October 15).
The memo signed by Yuri Guerra Padilla, general director of the gambling authority within Peru's Ministry of Tourism and Foreign Commerce (MINCETUR), noted that regulators had now "successfully" completed a transition process to license operators for sports betting and online gaming, in accordance with an October 2023 regulatory decree.
MINCETUR will now commence web-blocking against unauthorised platforms and shut down illegal betting outlets, Guerra wrote.
"If any service provider is found providing services to unauthorised companies or platforms, MINCETUR... will revoke their registration in the list of registered service providers so that they will not be able to continue providing services to any companies that are authorised in Peru," Guerra warning.
The Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) has fined NorthStar Gaming $30,000 for failing to ensure that their online gaming site is accessible only to players in Ontario and other violations, the regulator confirmed Wednesday (October 16).
As part of its ongoing compliance monitoring of the gaming sector, AGCO identified the issue with NorthStarBets.ca during a proactive, third-party assessment it undertook of registered internet gaming operators.
As part of the assessment, tests were conducted from physical locations in Quebec and New York state to determine whether Ontario gaming sites were accessible outside of the province. During the assessment, NorthStarBets.ca failed to accurately identify the location of one of the devices.
The AGCO is further citing the operator for its repeated failure to provide the registrar with data, information and documents requested in a timely manner as required.
Ontarios gaming sector is carefully regulated to ensure it is conducted legally and with the public interest in mind, Karen Schnarr, CEO and registrar of AGCO, said in a statement.
The AGCO will continue to take all appropriate steps to ensure that regulated gaming sites are operated with integrity and within the provinces legal framework, Schnarr added.
Macau lawmakers have unanimously backed a government gambling crime bill that will criminalise side betting, unauthorised land-based or online gambling or its promotion, unauthorised credit, and unauthorised currency exchange.
The Legislative Assembly on Wednesday (October 16) passed the with only minor lawmaker concerns over its tougher range of punishments for gambling crime, including a maximum of eight years in jail for side betting, up from three years.
Side betting refers to informal agreements between players and junket operators that multiply the value of chips by an agreed factor, stripping the casino and the government of revenue.
Other penalties include a maximum of five years prison for illegal currency exchange for gambling purposes, whether on or off-site and a two-year prison term for illegal sales of lotteries, including Hong Kongs Mark Six lottery.
The new law will strengthen enforcement capabilities by granting law enforcement officers greater evidence-collection powers at nighttime in private residences.
It also enhances undercover investigative powers and protections for informants, as well as stripping suspects of the right to legal representation prior to questioning.
The New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement (DGE) will amend its regulations to specifically allow for the funding of online gaming and sports-betting accounts using gift cards, subject to certain conditions.
When the regulations were promulgated in 2013, gift cards that could be purchased at gas stations, supermarkets, or other retail locations were not specifically included in the acceptable method of funding an online account.
Among the acceptable funding sources were credit or debit cards, cash, chips, and reloadable prepaid cards issued to a single, identifiable user. The DGE noted that consumers trying to fund their accounts with credit or debit cards have often found their transactions declined.
As a result, the DGE decided to allow the use of these gift cards that were not issued to an identifiable person for account funding, as they were a method that was accepted at higher rates than credit or debit cards.
The DGE admitted it was aware of law enforcement concerns about fraud, so it imposed a one-time play-through requirement on all gift cards before a withdrawal can be processed.
For example, if a patron deposits $100 into their online account using a $100 gift card, $100 worth of wagers must be placed before withdrawals can be processed.
A person cannot, for example, use a $100.00 gift card to buy a $1.00 item and receive $99.00 in change, according to the DGE.
The Argentine province of Mendozas new tender for online gaming has attracted the attention of five companies, who have made their bid for a licence. The province will grant a total of two more, in addition to the five companies that already operate.
According to Mendozan media, the companies who applied are KLP Emprendimientos SA, Nuevo Plaza Hotel Mendoza SA, New Star Internacional SRL, CasinoSoft SA and Slots Machines SA.
Current operators are BetWarrior, Codere, Super7 and Bplay, with Betano expected to begin operations soon. Slot Machines SA applied for a licence in the previous tender and failed.
Initial licences were finally awarded in April in 2023, in a process that took so long that half the qualified operators dropped out.All licences will be valid for ten years with the possibility of renewal.
This summer Mendoza embarked on blocking access to unauthorised gaming sites in public spaces as part of an effort to prevent adolescents and those at risk from gambling. It is part of a larger trend throughout Argentina to decrease youth access to games.
New Zealand and Australian casino operator SkyCity Entertainment Group has lost its appeal to the High Court of Australia on the revenue classification of electronic gaming machine credits converted from loyalty points.
The High Court on Wednesday (October 16) upheld the South Australia state Court of Appeals ruling that revenue gained from customer credits converted from loyalty points is taxable, SkyCity said in a filing to the Australian and New Zealand stock exchanges.
The company now faces a bill of up to A$38.4m ($25.7m) after the High Court a related government appeal on interest, the filing said.
Todays decision requires SkyCity to pay an extra A$10.3m in casino duties up until January 2024, resolving a long-standing dispute over a 1999 casino duty agreement between the company and the state government.
In addition, SkyCity must pay A$2.8m deriving from a section of the Court of Appeal decision that the company did not dispute.
The High Court also upheld the state treasurers action against Court of Appeal support for SkyCity on the agreements interest provisions, potentially adding a further A$25.3m to SkyCitys tax burden as of the end of September 2024.
The latter amount will be determined by the state Supreme Court at a later date, and SkyCity is yet to recognise a provision for it, the filing said.
SkyCity has suffered several fiscal blows in recent months, agreeing in May to pay A$67m in fines to the Australian government and NZ$4.16m ($2.5m) to the New Zealand government over breaches of the nations anti-money laundering (AML) laws.
The company was forced to close its gambling operation in Auckland for five days in September over compliance failures, and it remains under investigation in South Australia over AML breaches.
Governor Josh Shapiro, a Democrat, has directed the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board (PGCB) to begin negotiations for the state to join the Multi-State Internet Gaming Agreement (MSIGA) for poker, a PGCB spokesman confirmed Monday (October 14).
In a letter to regulators dated October 10, Shapiro stressed that joining the MSIGA would allow the state to continue to remain competitive in the legalized gaming sector. Shapiro added that joining the compact would bring in additional revenue for the state and allow players more gaming options.
PGCB spokesman Doug Harbach told 蹤獲鱉鱉 GamblingCompliance in an email that they just received the governors letter, so the time frame to negotiate, join, and offer multi-state poker is unknown.
There are currently five MSIGA states: Delaware, Michigan, Nevada, New Jersey, and West Virginia.
Online poker generates a small percentage of total gaming revenue in Pennsylvania. In August, online poker revenue was $2.22m, an 8.8 percent decline from $2.44m for the same month last year. Online slots reported $138.3m in revenue in August with online table games posting $43.1m.
Brazils Attorney General (AGU) has filed a lawsuit in Federal Supreme Court seeking to immediately enjoin online operators licensed in Rio de Janeiro from accepting bets from players located beyond the states borders.
The AGU the civil lawsuit on Friday (October 11), accusing the interstate licensing regime of Rio lottery authority LOTERJ of violating principles of federalism and free competition, contradicting new federal regulations for online betting, and invading the authority of the federal government to operate lottery services across the national territory.
It also said Brazilian anti-money laundering authority COAF had filed a supporting memorandum to provide evidence that Rio de Janeiro has lax rules regarding the prevention of money laundering and terrorist financing.
In accordance with a 2023 licensing decree, LOTERJ has so far authorised a total of 14 online betting sites, including at least two that were rejected for a new federal whitelist published earlier this month.
The AGU noted that similar licensing regimes have been set up in the states of Paran獺 and Maranh瓊o that require operators to use geolocation technologies to block out-of-state play.
Brazils federal gambling regulator has offered additional guidance on the types of bonuses that may be offered by operators under a forthcoming licensing regime.
Welcome or deposit bonuses are among offers prohibited under Law 14.790 and its implementing regulations, according to an October 10 update posted on the of the Secretariat of Prizes and Bets (SPA).
However, operators may offer other types of rewards, including those that involve benefits attributed to the bettor in the form of money, points, free bets or other legal forms, provided that the bettor is part of a loyalty program or the reward recognises the bettors previous activities.
The rules for reward programs also must be clearly established in the operators terms and conditions, the SPA said.
Peru has told registered suppliers they must stop serving unlicensed operators.
