The International Gaming Awards or simply the IGA is regularly supported by some of the most renowned iGaming industry’s insiders, gaming operators and gaming venues including both land-based and online casinos. The International Gaming Awards is held every year as managed by the Clever Duck Media Ltd. company which is a prominent event management firm with an effective, creative and passionate team that has a unique, innovative understanding of the entire gaming industry.

The International Gaming Awards 2020

Just like every year, this year’s event gathered masses. The International Gaming Awards of the IGA 2020 took place at the Savoy Hotel located in London on the 3^rd of February. This year’s event was supported as well as enhanced by loads of renowned online and land-based casino insiders as well as a number of different gaming clients from all tiers. Some of the event’s sponsors included IGT, Pilot Games, SG Games, SA Gaming, Connective Games, Alea.com, Melco, Pragmatic Play, Yggdrasil Gaming, Videoslots Casino, 1XBet Professional Betting, Play’ n GO and many others.

The International Gaming Awards 2020 awarded several top-tier companies including online casino gaming and online sports betting operators for their unique, innovative work in the industry. A number of brands were also recognized for providing a unique, very positive impact in the industry via several different awards categories. One brand definitely stood up from its competition and this is William Hill which for two consecutive years has been named the IGA Sports Betting Operator of the Year.

Considering the operator’s recent successes which have helped it secure this prestigious award, the William Hill sports betting operator is taking all the right steps to remain one of the leaders in the industry. When it comes to its Sports Betting Operator of the Year by the IGA awards, the operator is recognized for its amazing ability to lead the industry not only in its customer numbers but also for its tablet and mobile customers as well as for its mobile platform’s originality and innovation.

William Hill’s Excellence

The Sports Betting Operator of the Year 2020 winner is also recognized for providing a number of premium-level customer services and products including its telephone service, usability and growth of its sports betting platform and its marketing efforts. All in all, the winning operator has shown that it excels in everything that the market demands and even more.

Commenting on the news, William Hill International’s CEO Patrick Jonker said that this year has started in an excellent way for his company. The company’s CEO also pointed out that his company’s major gaming brand Mr Green had enjoyed a similar success after winning the EGR Nordics Awards Operator of the Year just several days before the company’s major sports betting brand won the Sports Betting Operator of the Year IGA Award.

Being awarded the Sports Betting Operator of the Year by the International Gaming Awards just shows how well William Hill is positioned in the industry especially when it comes to the company’s two major brands. Mr. Jonker also said that he could not be any prouder of his teams. Another brand that was honored at the International Gaming Awards was the excellent Yggdrasil Gaming that was named the Innovator of the Year for four consecutive years. Yggdrasil Gaming won the award thanks to its remarkable developments including its new division named Yggdrasil Publishing.

The National Basketball Association or for short the NBA has recently announced that the association is planning on launching its virtual sportsbetting title in the near future alongside Highlight Games Limited.  Highlight Games Limited is one of the most prominent British sports games manufacturers in the industry with an impeccable reputation. This partnership deal was announced in an official press release.

Here, the organizer of the most elite men’s basketball league announced that its upcoming NBA Last 90 will include real game footage as well as exciting game highlights. The press release also detailed that NBA Last 90 has the blessing of the NBPA or National Basketball Players Association. All in all, this is one of those groundbreaking partnership deals which can surely add more fun and thrill to virtual sportsbetting across multiple sportsbetting operators in the industry.

NBA Last 90 Offered to All Licensed Sportsbetting Operators

With its upcoming NBA Last 90, the biggest basketball association is entering the world of sportsbetting in a grandiose way. With this virtual sports game, all basketball fans will be able to place real money wagers on all sorts of props. The game itself will be active soon to cover the 2019-2020 season.

Moreover, with NBA Last 90, interested players will be able to wager real money on all sorts of outcomes such as which team win, who scores the most points, total points scored by both teams and other during the last ninety seconds of simulated games between two teams. The game will also include footage and highlights of actual NBA matches which played in previous sessions.

In addition to its most recent partnership deal with Highlight Games Limited, the NBA has also struck several other deals such as its partnership deal with popular MGM Resorts which made MGM, the association’s official partner in the gaming industry. In other words, the NBA has been very proactive in recent times when it comes to the virtual sportsbetting industry.

As expected, NBA Last 90 will allow all fans of the NBA to be more engaged with NBA sporting actions simply because they will be financially invested in the NBA action. When it comes to the latest partnership between Highlight Games Limited and NBA, it will allow fans of virtual sportsbetting to place real money wagers on basketball simulated games.

NBA Last 90 Premiering in Europe

It should be noted that NBA Last 90 is set to debut in Europe first while it will probably enter the United States following year. The game will be distributed to only fully licensed and regulated gaming operators. Hence, fans of virtual sportsbetting can expect to see NBA Last 90 across all sorts of gaming channels including mobile applications, online gaming platforms as well as multiple retail locations.

It also should be noted that NBA Last 90 is very similar to another product offered by the Pennsylvania Lottery named the Xpress Sports. This product allows fans of football and several other sports to watch virtual teams as they play and place real money wagers among sixteen different outcomes. Wagers offered usually range from only $1 up to $20 while random number generators as in other games of this kind determine the outcomes.

The Xpress Sports Products platform including Xpress Football and Xpress Car Racing in which twelve cards race in simulated races including two laps. As expected, players predict which one will finish the race as first-placed, second-placed and third-placed. When it comes to NBA Last 90, it will be also powered by RNGs and it will also offer a great variety of outcomes o wager on.

The New York Gaming Commission has already taken some steps leading towards legalizing land-based sports betting activities back in January 2019. The news came after a meeting held on the 28^th of January when the commission approved certain regulations which will actually allow four casinos in the state to obtain licenses required to offer sports betting activities within their land-based gambling facilities.

The regulations approved back in January cover all sorts of reporting and technical requirements. One of the rules states that all kinds of sports betting activities must be offered in land-based, dedicated venue lounges that must be at least five hundred square feet. Another regulation states that any kind of online or mobile sports betting activities is permitted within these dedicated lounges.

The Latest Non-Mobile Sports Betting Regulations and Rules

All individuals who are involved in the sportsbook operation must be registered and licensed by the New York Gaming Commission under the state’s Racing, Wagering and Breeding Law. The regulations also stated that the gambling operators themselves are able to apply for licensing certifications which will last as long as their land-based casino license lasts.

The Commission also allows casinos and gambling facilities to partner with other operators and vendors to assist them with the operating of their sports betting activities. This was already done by the state’s biggest commercial venues of this kind including Empire Resorts’ Resorts World Catskills which has partnered with bet365, Paddy Power Betfair’s Duel with prominent Tioga Downs, DraftKinds has signed a partnership deal with del Lago Resort & Casino while Rivers Casino & Resort Schenectady has partnered with Rush Street.

As revealed by the latest sports betting regulations, only players aged twenty-one and over are able to wager real money on sports events whose results are fully verified. In other words, players are allowed to place wager only on events whose results are not affected by wagers placed. This means that all sports betting activities must be carefully conducted in compliance with the Commission’s applicable regulations, rules, and laws.

It should be noted that wagering is not permitted on any youth or amateur sports event, on any collegiate sports events and on horse racing. These regulations will most likely be applicable to all land-based venues including the state’s popular tribal casinos that can offer the same service and products as permitted to commercial venues.

Rules Taking Effect by the 26^th of June

Several months have passed after the regulations were approved and several more days has to pass before the rules take effect. In fact, rules can take effect only when they appear in the State Register and this is set to happen on the 26th of June. Since the regulations are still in their construction phase, the very first sportsbooks may start operating in August. This will make New York the fourteenth state to legalize some sports betting variants.

Currently, state lawmakers are working hard to potentially revise some of the regulations specifically regulations which prohibit all mobile and online sports betting activities. However, this must be approved several days from now as the state Legislature season ends by the 19th of June. Hence, these changes are not likely to happen this year especially since online gambling and betting regulations to be examined and eventually approved require an amendment to the constitution of the state which is a long process taking two to three years.

West Virginia lottery has stated that it will pass several more weeks before the Hollywood Casino located at Charles Town Races start offering its mobile sportsbetting platform. The Hollywood Casino gambling facility at Charles Town Race is not only a casino but also a race track located just outside the eastern ate of Charles Town. The gambling facility is owned and operated by Gaming and Leisure Properties with its partner Penn National Gaming.

The facility features a massive horse racing facility which serves as home to the West Virginia Breeders’ Classis. With more than two hundred and forty racing dates regularly scheduled, the Charles Town Races are among the busiest facilities of this kind in the state. It usually runs five days per week schedule. When it comes to the Hollywood Casino facility, it is also a busy place with crowds from all over the state. The casino includes more than three thousand slot machines, a sportsbetting service as well as loads of classic table games.

Going Strong Since 1933

The Charles Town Race Track opened its doors to the public on the 2^nd of December, 1933 by its owner Shenandoah Valley Jockey Club. Later on, the facility has changed its owners over the years. Back in 1997, it was bought by Penn National Gaming Inc. When it comes to the casino facility, in 2009 the venue was granted its application to offer classic table games. The very next year, the venue changed its name to Hollywood Casino from Charles Town Races & Slots.

Back in August of 2018, the facility started offering sportsbetting services which made it the very first casino located in West Virginia to offer this kind of service. The Hollywood Casino facility supposed to start offering a mobile sportsbetting service which was delayed. The boss of the state’s lottery has stated that it has to pass at least several more weeks before the state’s most popular gambling facility, Hollywood Casino located at Charles Town Races facility establish its mobile sportsbetting platform.

Alliance with DraftKings

According to the most recent reports on the subject, the disclosure came after the casino’s board announced that they had finished testing their mobile sportsbetting platform which will be running alongside the company’s partner, DraftKings Incorporated. The casino’s board also announced that once their mobile sportsbetting platform is launched, it will allow punters from all areas in West Virginia to place real money wagers on a massive range of sporting activities.

However, the launch of the platform has to be delayed after the company’s online trials have uncovered that one of their major servers is actually located in New Jersey. This issue could potentially leave West Virginia fully exposed to the latest Interstate Wire Act as established by the United States Department of Justice. Following this issue, the boss of the state’s lottery, Myers stated that all servers have to be located within the state’s borders in order to make sure that there is no violation of the Interstate Wire Act.

He also added that the latest Interstate Wire Act states that all sportsbetting-related functions must be done without crossing state lines. Therefore, the West Virginia casino has to split functions on its already exciting server located within the state’s borders. Since this will take some time, the launch of the casino’s mobile sportsbetting platform is delayed.

Sportsbook operator and online casino facility, Kindred Group has just announced that sportsbetting fans and enthusiasts located in New Jersey can invest real-money wagers on an impressive range of sports at NJ.Unibet.com. At the moment, Kindred Group which is formerly known as Unibet Group includes eleven different brands and among them Maria Casino, Unibet, iGame and 32Red.

The company is focused on offering all sorts of products and services to fans of online casino games and sportsbetting including online casino facilities, sportsbook platforms as well as online bingo and online poker websites. While the company is currently registered in Malta, it has offices in the United States, Stockholm, London, Gibraltar as well as smaller offices across Australia and Europe.

Going Strong Since 1997

Kindred Group has been present in the industry for more than twenty years as it opened its virtual doors in 1997. Some of the most important events for the company took place in 2011 and 2012 when Unibet gained one of forty-eight licensed for the Danish, newly regulated market. The next year was important as well when Unibet finally acquired a popular Danish sportsbook, Bet24. The next year, Unibet moved its online poker operations from the MPN networks to its independent poker website.

The very next year in April, Unibet signed another important deal this time with Thunderkick which made the platform the very first brand of this kind to include Thunderkick-powered games on its website. Later on, the company also purchased www.bingo.com domain for $8 million. The company’s acquisition trail continued in the following years as well including the acquisition of StanJames.com in 2015 and 32Red Plc in 2017.

Kindred Launching NJ.Unibet.com

The Maltese company in its official press announcement released by European Gaming Media and Events celebrated the recently-launched NJ online sportsbook which is powered by technologies from Scientific Games Corporation, Kambi Group, and Mazooma Incorporated. The platform comes packed with loads of first-class sportsbetting actions offered in a completely safe, reliable and secure gaming environment.

The company is already running numerous Ireland and United Kingdom-facing sportsbetting domains and online casinos while its recent actions mark its very first launch into the online casino industry of The Garden State. Following the announcement, the company’s Senior Vice-President Manuel Stan stated that Kindred has been preparing for this big step for a long time.

He also added that the establishment of NJ.Unibet.com actually represented another important step into what is likely to turn into the biggest betting market globally speaking. Thanks to the company’s latest efforts regarding the New Jersey gambling market, customers residing in this area can finally enjoy all sorts of thrilling online gambling adventures offered on a high-class technology platform.

Manuel Stan also added that this is the very first establishment in a line of many more to come reserved for the market in the United States. It should be noted that the company has previously partnered with SG Digital which allows them to use the Open Gaming System and Open Platform System while its Kambi partnership gives the company access to all sorts of other technologically-advanced sportsbetting-related services and products in New Jersey. In fact, Kambi and Kindred have a successful history together which both companies intend to nourish further and there is no better way of doing so than empowering the United States sportsbetting market together.

American Gaming Association (AGA) has just shared news about their sportsbetting marketing code during an official press release. Following the events that ensued after the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA) overturn, regulative instructions, covered by this marketing code, brought on by AGA, aren’t obligatory in any legal form. However, the organization’s members are expected to act according to the new set of rules which concern the promotional aspect of sports betting.

Sportsbetting Marketing Code’s Reach

The American Gaming Association is an organization, established to promote, educate, and lobby for the gaming industry by means of advocating and educating. Due to a recent spreading of sports betting, the AGA has developed a sportsbetting marketing code in order to regulate all sports wagering advertisement forms. In creating it, AGA’s members have been consulted with the primary goal to set such rules that result in responsible gaming conditions.

Key points of the code have excluded any sports betting message content that relates to minors by featuring cartoon caricatures, musicians or other public figures who may draw the attention of those below legal age. Also, displaying sports betting ads through media, social media which may attract individuals below legal age as well as being available at other events when is already known minors will be present is against the code.

New AGA regulations also refer to a permanent inclusion of responsible gaming messages and a help-line number. Making a connection between any kind of success and sports betting stands against these regulative guidelines as well. AGA members via their social media should always have reminders of legal age for engaging in sports betting as well as involving age confirmations.

Further Responsibility Commitments

Chief Executive Officer for the American Gaming Association Bill Miller, during the press release, on behalf of his organization, has disclosed that the code represents involvement for the gaming industry in taking precautions as well as a commitment when it comes to responsibility. In other words, this is their way of backing up sportsbetting as well as the gaming industry in general.

In his statement, he also mentioned that they’ve been trying to put an end to illegal gaming activities for quite some time. Their attempts were motivated by customers, economy and to retain the credibility this sector has. With the release of the new marketing code, despite high expectations, they are determined to encourage that all participants, included in the sportsbetting sector, comply with regulations, covered by the code.

New Sports Betting Opportunities

American Gaming Association has offered information about wide interest in sports betting which, after PASPA was struck down by Supreme Court last year, absolutely flourished. In fact, approximately $8 billion was placed in bets within sports wagering that, prior to PASPA being proclaimed as unconstitutional, has been restricted to Nevada’s land-based casinos. In addition, it’s been uncovered that, up till now, about $55.3 million tax revenues, local and state wise, have been accumulated through sportsbetting. Predictions are that the number will only increase per year, especially when more states enter the regulated market.