The Responsible Gambling Affiliate Association (RGAA) announced recently that it will be launching a new membership initiative at SBC Summit North America. With the help of the program, RGAA wants to keep fostering a stronger community of affiliate companies while at the same time prioritizing consumer protection.

RGAA Expands Membership to Strengthen Integrity and Consumer Protection Efforts

Max Bichsel, Chair of RGAA, emphasized the importance of the fresh program, stating: “The launch of our membership program is a pivotal moment for the RGAA as we strive to promote responsible gambling practices and advocate for equitable regulation in the industry. With each new affiliate that joins our ranks, we fortify our efforts to ensure that integrity and consumer protection remain at the forefront of our sector.”

RGAA was founded in 2023 by a consortium of industry giants including Better Collective, Catena Media, FairPlay Sports Media, Gambling.com, Spotlight Sports Group, and XLMedia and since then it has upheld a commitment to promote integrity and responsible marketing practices. 

With this new expansion of its membership rooster, RGAA wants to enhance its influence and build upon the foundation of the goals set by its initial members. New affiliates can reap the benefits of united representation in the gaming industry and will be able to access a wide range of resources such as regulation updates, educational materials, and tools designed to empower their businesses.

Better Collective CEO Highlights Industry Dedication to Player Welfare

Rasmus Sojmark, CEO and founder of SBC Gaming, also expressed enthusiasm regarding the collaboration, stating: “Last year’s Summit was a huge success and brought together industry leaders throughout North America eager to exchange ideas, collaborate and make lasting change. I am confident that this year will be no different and our collaboration with the RGAA will further elevate the conversation surrounding responsible gambling practices and player protection.”

Members are obliged to make a commitment to upholding responsible gambling standards. This also includes a yearly compliance audit. The membership also means that all participants receive the esteemed RGAA Standards of Excellence certification, which shows the member’s dedication to championing responsible gambling marketing and advertising practices, and safeguarding consumer interests.

Marc Pedersen, CEO of North America for Better Collective and RGAA board member, underlined the collective dedication to player protection the RGAA propagates and underscored that Better Collective as a founding member has over 20 years of experience in the industry. He further mentioned that he expects many new members to join the RGAA as the organization continues its work to ensure the improvement of safer gambling practices and the protection of players.

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The Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario, the government body in charge of regulating sports betting and gambling in Canada’s most populous province, has ordered all licensed operators in the region to stop offering bets on events organized by the World Boxing Association (WBA).

The measure was due to concerns over the integrity of those events after the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario ruled that boxing matches organized by the WBA do not have adequate safeguards in place when it comes to preventing match fixing and insider betting. This all started after the regulator conducted a thorough review of the wagering activity of a title fight organized by the World Boxing Association.

The respective bout was the one between Yoenis Tellez and Livan Navarro, when the Ontario regulator observed suspicious betting patterns in live bets being placed over five and a half rounds during the match. The bout was observed by two registered independent monitors while the betting activity took place at a registered iGaming operator in the Canadian province.

There were also reports in the media claiming that the manager of Yoenis Tellez placed bets worth 110,000 dollars at a casino in Florida on the match going on for over five and a half rounds. The bet was a winning one as the match went on until the tenth round, when Tellez managed to knock out Navarro.

All Eyes on Insider Betting

The match took place in December 2023 in Florida and that is also when the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario started its review of the matter. One of the conclusions of the respective review was that bets related to boxing matches organized by the WBA don’t meet the current version of the Registrar’s Standards for Internet Gaming. This led to the indefinite suspension of betting on WBA events in Ontario.

The Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario also underlined that its licensed operators were asked to demonstrate that the WBA prohibits betting from insiders and the respective operators were unable to do that. This means that coaches, managers, handlers or medical staff involved with one of the fighters could place bets on the respective matches while having the benefit of knowing non-public information. Moreover, the review found no proof that the World Boxing Association took any action to investigate past allegations of match fixing and insider wagering.

This is not the first time the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario takes such a measure. In December 2022 the regulator ordered licensed operators to stop offering bets on UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship) matches following similar concerns over insider betting. That ban lasted just for a few weeks because the UFC then implemented new protocols to prevent insider betting.

Source: “Ontario halts World Boxing Association betting over integrity concerns“. iGaming Business. April 19, 2024.

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Seven key operators of online casinos and sports betting websites in the United States have announced their alliance with the purpose of creating the Responsible Online Gaming Association.

The aim of the respective association is to promote responsible gaming in the United States and to promote best practices for the iGaming industry in the country and not only.

The association was formed by BetMGM, Bet365, DraftKings, Fanatics Betting & Gaming, FanDuel, Hard Rock Digital and Penn Entertainment, operators that are licensed to conduct their business in several American states.

These seven companies are dominating the market in the United States, their combined market share reaching 85 percent of the American online sports betting and iGaming market. The seven companies pledged a sum in excess of 20 million dollars for the Responsible Online Gaming Association in order to finance its activity for the first year.

Dr Jennifer Shatley, a professional with 25 years of experience within the industry, was appointed Executive Director of the Responsible Online Gaming Association. She is also the President of the Nevada Council on Problem Gambling and also a member of the National Council on Problem Gambling.

Five Main Objectives

The Responsible Online Gaming Association has set five key objectives for its activity. The first one is to promote research regarding responsible gaming, including funding independent research on the impact and effectiveness of current responsible gaming tools.

Moreover, the Responsible Online Gaming Association will also promote best practices for responsible gaming, encouraging companies in the industry to employ these principles in their activities.

Another goal of the association is to raise awareness about the problems generated by irresponsible gaming and encourage appropriate advertising for gambling services and brands.

The Responsible Online Gaming Association has also announced that it will work to create an independent data clearinghouse, a tool for the member companies to share information between them in order to protect their customers.

Last but not least, the Responsible Online Gaming Association will try to establish an independent certification programme. This will have the task of evaluating the responsible gaming efforts made by the member companies and provide objective feedback regarding their responsible gaming policies.

Source: “Responsible Online Gaming Association“. iGaming Business. March 27, 2024.

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Six like-minded US affiliates have joined forces to form the Responsible Gambling Affiliate Association (RGAA). The newly created body’s job will seek to help affiliate companies serve the online gambling market in a responsible way.

The RGAA is comprised of six major affiliates, including Better Collective, Catena Media, Gambling.com, Oddschecker Global Media, Spotlight Sports Group and XLMedia. The six companies believe that affiliates have a responsibility to promote safer gambling and balance between effective marketing and customer protection.

The RGAA acknowledges the current regulations but believes that improvements can be made. It has organized its goals into five strategic pillars, including the promotion of competitive gambling markets, industry education, consumer protection, advertising codes of conduct and responsible business practices.

The RGAA is currently searching for a permanent president who will represent the organization as it seeks to shape the future of affiliate marketing. The organization promised to release a notification as soon as it makes an appointment.

Executives Are Excited about the RGAA

Representatives of the six affiliate companies comprising the RGAA released statements on the matter.

Mark Frank Pedersen, Better Collective’s chief executive officer of NA said that his team is doing everything possible to empower the industry and promote gambling as entertainment. He praised the opportunity to join forces with other affiliates and promote better standards and guidelines.

Not only is this the right thing to do for our customers, it’s the best thing to ensure the success and longevity of the industry and our businesses.

Mark Frank Pedersen, CEO, Better Collective

Michael Daly, Catena Media’s chief executive officer, also commented on the matter, highlighting the ever-changing nature of the US market. He said that Catena Media is proud to be one of RGAA’s founding members and promote responsible and positive wagering experiences alongside other affiliates that share the same values.

Charles Gillespie, Gambling.com’s CEO, on the other hand, noted that all shareholders in the US iGaming market must understand the critical role of affiliates in helping operators grow. He added that his team is proud to be part of the RGAA and set higher standards.

Meanwhile, Oddschecker’s CEO, Stuart Simms, said that consumers are at the heart of everything his team does. Because of that, he is glad to join forces with the other founding members of the RGAA and promote social responsibility. He said that his ambition is that the RGAA will “support fair play for all.”

Mark Renshaw, Spotlight Sports Group’s CEO, also expressed his thoughts, noting that his team has always been at the forefront of responsible gambling.

We are extremely proud to be a founding member of the Responsible Gambling Affiliate Association, which I believe will play a key role in ensuring the highest standards are set among the affiliate industry.

Mark Renshaw, CEO, Spotlight Sports Group

Last but not least, David King, XLMedia’s CEO, commented on the matter. He noted that affiliates play a critical role in providing consumers with choice while supporting regulated operators.

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On Tuesday, May 16^th, 2023 the National Basketball Association draft lottery day has finally arrived, and the NBA is about to find out which franchise will possess the number one overall draft pick that will enable them the chance to select Victor Wembanyama in next month’s 2023 NBA Draft.

The NBA Draft Lottery Process

The 2023 NBA draft lottery will be held on Tuesday night in Chicago, Illinois where 14 – NBA franchises will ultimately have a chance to win the number 1 overall draft selection for the 2023 NBA Draft which will be held on June 22^nd, 2023. The Detroit Pistons, the Houston Rockets, and the San Antonio Spurs all have the best possibility of winning the number one overall draft pick at 14 % each.

The NBA draft lottery revolves around 14 ping – pong balls going into a machine, and the 1^st – four balls that come out will be matched to the predestined NBA teams that are assigned to them determining the order of the first several picks of this year’s 2023 NBA Draft this upcoming June.

The results from Tuesday night’s NBA draft lottery will be nationally broadcasted on ESPN even though the official National Basketball Association draft lottery itself actually occurs about an hour before air time in a secured room.

Each NBA franchise will have one representative in the room as well as some league officials, lottery observers, and some major sports media outlets will also be in the set room, but no one will be allowed to leave the room or communicate with anyone else until the results are eventually displayed on tv to the general public.

The NBA draft lottery originated way back in 1985. Throughout the first 5 – years, the NBA draft lottery teams (7 in 1985 – 1988, and 9 in 1989) all had an the same or an equal chance of winning the number one overall pick.

Odds started to be weighted way back in the year of 1990. During those 33 – years, the NBA franchise with the best odds of winning the number one pick only prevailed to go on and get it just 11 – times, or 33.3 %, but the NBA team holding (or tied for) the best odds entering the NBA draft lottery won the number 1 pick 7 – times over the course of last 8 – years.

Victor Wembanyama

The now 19 – year – old Wembanyama just so happens to be a 7 – foot 3 – inch power forward / center that can do it all on the hardwood. The young phenom from France is just now finishing up his 3^rd – professional basketball season overseas, and he has been the consensus number – 1 2023 NBA draft pick for quite some time now.

Victor Wembanyama has the overall size of a center, the shooting touch of a wing player, and the passing ability as well as the ball handling skills of a point guard too. He is predicted to be the best number one overall draft pick entering the NBA in quite a long time.

Victor Wembanyama’s Basketball Career Achievements, Honors, & Awards

• Pro A Champion (2022)
• LNB All – Star Game MVP Award Winner (2022)
• 2 – Time LNB All – Star Selection (2021, 2022)
• 2 – Time Pro – A Best Young Player Award Winner (2021, 2022)

Sources:

The Associated Press News Services. “Draft Lottery day arrives, with the NBA about to learn where Wembanyama is going”. The Associated Press. Tuesday, May 16, 2023.

Basketball Reference News Services. “Victor Wembanyama”. Basketball Reference. Tuesday, May 16, 2023.

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