As a part of its efforts to protect Australian players against illegal online gambling, The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) keeps pushing internet service providers (ISPs) to continue blocking illegal offshore gambling companies. Operators found in breach of the Interactive Gambling Act 2001 are Wild Blaster and BetUS, two crypto-friendly platforms packed with an abundance of games.

Being an authority dedicated to keeping the local iGaming industry safe and well-organized, ACMA offers tons of handy bits of advice on how to protect from unlicensed gambling operators or file a complaint about an illegal site. Its website also contains the register of licensed wagering services, as well as the up-to-date list of gambling platforms that have already been blocked.

More Operators Bid Farewell to the AU iGaming Market

Found in breach of the Act, Wild Blaster and BetUS Casinos also ended up among the blocked platforms. Players from Australia will no longer be able to access either of these two sites, as they don’t run the business in accordance with the local gambling laws.

Only a month earlier, ACMA ordered ISPs to block five more gambling operators, as all of them were found operating illegally in the market. The casinos in question are Viperspin, Just Casino, Betandplay, Play Fina, and Comic Play Casino.

As a small reminder, the Authority made its first blocking in November 2019. To date, 863 illegal gambling and affiliate sites have been added to the fast-expanding list, making it impossible for those companies to offer their products and services to local clientele.

Having started to enforce new illegal offshore gambling rules in 2017, ACMA has so far requested 218 illegal services to withdraw from the AU market.

Continuous Battle Against Illegal Offshore Casinos

Website blocking is just one of the measures the Authority enforces to protect consumers from gambling on unlicensed platforms.

Most commonly, a gambling site can be blocked if it provides prohibited interactive services (online casinos, online slot games, in-play online sports betting, and similar). In addition to this, ISPs may cease one casino’s operation if it doesn’t hold a local license or in case of targeting Australian players via ads.

In November 2019, the AU government presented the idea for a nationwide self-exclusion register, aiming to minimize the harm caused by irresponsible gambling. As far as the official explained, the process is voluntary, and it allows individuals to halt online gambling activities for at least three months.

Also, in August this year, Australia launched a program called BetStop. The new self-exclusion register also allows consumers to take better control of their gambling habits and learn to make wiser decisions. Within just a single step, players can exclude themselves from all AU-licensed online and mobile wagering sites for a limited period of at least three months or permanently.

Another measure introduced is the idea to ban credit cards for gambling online. This topic has been discussed for a couple of years now but was never passed into law. As soon as it becomes effective, both operators and consumers will have six months to adjust, after which financial penalties will be imposed on those who fail to follow the ban.

Source: “More websites blocked to protect Australians against illegal online gambling”, acma.gov.au, October 25, 2023.

The post ACMA Requests 2 More Offshore Gambling Sites to Be Blocked appeared first on Keno Wizard.

The sports betting market is growing rapidly, with new sportsbooks springing on every corner of the Internet. Today, we will take a look at the best offshore sportsbooks that accept players from the US and around the world. The list of offshore sports betting sites below includes some of the most trusted brands that offer the best odds and range of sports markets to bet on.

Top-Ranked Offshore Sports Betting Sites

1

3962 players claimed the offer this month

2

3281 players claimed the offer this month

3

3770 players claimed the offer this month

4

4070 players claimed the offer this month

5

5426 players claimed the offer this month

6

3135 players claimed the offer this month

1. BetOnline

BetOnline is one of the biggest brands in offshore betting, having offered competitive odds and markets for many years now. The brand was established in 2004 and has been rapidly scaling its global reach, covering mainstream sports, political betting, entertainment programs betting, and electronic sports. The site brings a tight offer of offshore sports betting markets, bonuses, and great customer service. Let’s take a closer look.

Bonus Offer

The BetOnline welcome bonus will have players access a 50% deposit bonus up to $1,000, which will charge your account right away. Sports fans are welcome to access a number of other bonuses as well, including the 100% crypto bonus with bonus code CRYPTO100. BetOnline also offers a $25 risk-free player prop and a $100 overtime insurance promo. The site updates its bonuses frequently under the Promos section.

Betting Markets & Odds

In terms of sports variety, you can expect to find a broad variety of in-play and pre-game wagers, across numerous sports. BetOnline covers a large selection of offshore sports betting markets, including all main sports such as basketball, football, baseball, hockey, golf, martial arts, soccer, and tennis, among others. BetOnline features a strong selection of “other options” such as boxing, auto racing, Aussie rules, and a few more niche markets, such as financials, entertainment, lottery, and of course, politics. There is a lot to try at BetOnline, including same-game parlays and odds boosters.

Customer Service

Customer support is excellent at BetOnline. Sports fans will have the option to connect with the sportsbook through the Live Chat feature or look for a solution at the FAQ or Help Center pages. You can expect to get help 24/7 and have any questions you may currently have about BetOnline answered promptly.

2. BetUS

BetUS is a privately-held company and one of the biggest offshore sports betting companies that currently serve global markets. It was established in 2020 and is considered to be one of the leading offshore sportsbooks today. The website enjoys a strong pull with betting audiences, offers competitive odds, and brings value to all bets fans make. The platform covers everything from pro football to college sports, to NASCAR, and more.

Bonus Offer

BetUS offers an excellent promotional offer of 125% up to $3,125 as part of the welcome package, making for a very big bonus amount you can scoop up right at the start. If you are looking to bet with bigger sums, BetUS may be just the right place for you. The platform features a whole lot of other bonuses as well, including a 200% crypto bonus triggered with the JOIN200 promo code.

A dedicated 100% Crypto Sports Bonus is available with SU100CRYPT bonus code and a 20% cash bonus with 20CASH promo code. The promotions are updated frequently and you can track these updates through the dedicated section. On top of this, BetUS also offers Contests and Loyalty campaigns to make the experience even more fun for offshore bettors.

Betting Markets & Odds

There is a lot BetUS offers in terms of sports betting markets. The offshore sportsbook will provide you with a range of online sports betting markets for football, basketball, ice hockey, baseball, golf, tennis, soccer, and more. All sports are listed on the left-hand side of the desktop platform or in an intuitive dropdown menu for mobile.

You can choose from more than 30 betting markets, including mainstream and niche markets, such as politics, entertainment, and esports. There is even a section called novelty, which allows you to push the experience a notch further and bet on even more exciting markets.

Players will be able to access pre-game and live bets, bet on player props, and place parlays, as some of the most popular and challenging wagers. All of this comes with competitive offshore betting odds that are priced to offer great value to sports fans.

Customer Service

Customer support at BetUS is spot-on and it’s one of the best when it comes to staying in touch with the sportsbook. Players are able to connect via several options, including live chat but also by calling directly at 1 (888) 512-3887. There are multiple social media channels that are active and work well, and you may further reach out to the sportsbook if you think there is a reason to. In our experience, the live chat and phone line work well and provide you with quick solutions.

3. SportsBetting.ag

So far sports betting online goes, SportsBetting.ag is one of the most trusted offshore sportsbooks available on the market. The company set foot in the online betting space in 2003 and has been a fixture ever since. Today, you get to access a number of live and pre-game betting markets that make it easy for you to navigate some of the best markets and odds, place player props and team parlays as you see fit, and enjoy a robust sports betting experience from start to finish. There are tons of worthwhile features, great customer support, an excellent welcome bonus offer, and other loyalty options to get you rolling from the very start.

Bonus Offer

SportsBetting.ag features a neat bonus that will get you started right from the get-go. The 50% sports welcome bonus is a match bonus up to $1,000 and is claimed with the SB1000 bonus code. All you need to do to claim the bonus is to sign up at the offshore sportsbook and place a minimum deposit worth $55. The bonus will then be subject to a 10x rollover requirement. You need to complete the bonus in 30 days and claim any winnings thereof.

SportsBetting.ag also offers other bonuses, including the 100% Crypto 1^st time bonus and 10% Bitcoin Boost. Players are also able to get 25% and 30% Reload Bonuses activated with their own promo codes. The difference is that one of the bonuses will reload crypto and the other FIAT currency.

Betting Markets & Odds

In terms of sports betting market variety, you have nothing to worry about. SportsBetting.ag offers you a solid choice of online sports betting markets with more than 30 different sports and categories to choose from. Popular choices here include baseball, basketball, football, hockey, golf, martial arts, soccer, and many others.

Sports fans are also offered a great chance to check out Player and Game Props, Futures, and go through a very long list of Other Sports. The website also supports more betting categories that will appeal to those of you who are not only interested in sports.

Among those are Politics and Lottery bets, but there are similar Financials and Entertainment choices. A big highlight of the offshore sports betting offer at SportsBetting.ag is the Same Game Parlays, which lead to some pretty cool opportunities to place a bet and benefit from your knowledge of a particular match-up. Besides that, there are also the Odds Boosters, and naturally – you can bet on in-play and pre-game events.

Customer Support

To get in touch with SportsBetting.ag, all you need to do is place a call at 1-888-843-9027 if you want to call directly. The website also has a Live Chat available so if you prefer to just chat to a customer agent, you can do that as well. Customer service is available 24/7, the company assures. We have play tested to confirm ourselves. You can similarly go straight up and email support.

4. Bovada

Bovada is owned by Harp Media B.V. and is one of the longest-standing offshore sports betting sites you can access from the United States. The website was previously known as Bodog in the period between 2004 and 2010 and rebranded as Bovada in 2011. Bovada is ranked as one of the largest sportsbooks that is available around the globe, and it is licensed by Curacao eGaming. The brand has redesigned its website to be intuitive, fast, and easy to navigate. Bovada offers some of the most competitive sports betting odds on a variety of events, making it easy for sports fans to find true added-value fixtures and sports betting markets.  

Bonus Offer

Bovada will welcome you to a solid 50% match bonus of up to $250. The bonus is available on your first deposit only, and it has a 5x sports rollover requirement – which makes it one of the best sign-up offers you can get. To claim any winnings, you need to meet the wagering requirements within 30 days of claiming the bonus amount.

Bovada similarly offers you a $750 crypto welcome bonus. This is a 75% bonus and it’s activated with the sports bonus code: BTCSWB750. Once again, you have a 5x rollover requirement for the bonus and need to clear it within 30 days of placing your first deposit and claiming the bonus. The website offers other bonuses and perks along the way, including a Refer a Friend Program and Rewards Points Loyalty Program.

Betting Markets & Odds

The value of Bovada’s online sports betting odds is where the website truly shines. Bovada’s trading team is one of the best, with constant updates and a lot of action going on on the website. You can tell that the brand is determined to bring you some of the best odds in the industry, as with most of the top offshore sportsbooks.

Bovada always features Trending Events to offer you a quick breakdown of what you may enjoy. Among those are the NBA, MLB, the NHL, The Masters, England Premier League, Spain Copa del Rey, ATP Tennis, WTA Tennis, and more. The website similarly features Trump Specials – a dedicated section for former President Donald Trump, his political aspirations, and legal battles.

Bovada is in the habit of covering such events and personalities, with a good focus on political and entertaining betting. The site similarly runs pre-game and in-play wagers, bringing you coverage of all major events. Apart from the above-mentioned markets, there are also virtual sports and esports – one is simulated real sports, and the other is video games. All in all, Bovada runs a solid variety of sports betting markets for you to enjoy and explore!

Customer Support

Bovada is always happy to help out as well. There is a dedicated Help section that offers you a quick FAQ breakdown of everything that you may need answers to. Bovada customer support is available also via email, and it’s there 24/7. Most queries are going to receive a prompt reply with the Help section still proving an important source of information for everything that you need to know in the meantime.

5. MyBookie.ag

MyBookie is another fairly new sportsbook licensed in Curacao and set up in 2014. Since it was launched, the offshore sportsbook has come a long way, consistently improving its odds over the years. While there are clearly some things to be improved upon, MyBookie is a good point of reference when it comes to odds.

The sportsbook has a quick pricing model that offers value betting opportunities along the way. We are not sure how well sharp bettors would enjoy this website, but recreational sports fans have few things to care about. As to the overall User Interface and Experience, MyBookie holds its end well, providing players with a swift and reliable platform.

Bonus Offer

MyBookie has a good way to get you started. The initial deposit bonus is 50% up to $1,000, which is a great sign-up bonus all in all. There is a 10x rollover requirement that makes things fairly easy although we have to admit – there are some welcome bonuses that are much quicker and simpler. The only thing we really don’t like about the offer is the use of “free play” for the bonus money, as you need to deposit it in order to trigger the bonus amount. It’s not exactly free.

Still, we think the bonusing system is well-developed at MyBookie. It includes an 8% horse rebate, and 25% sports reload. There are also 200% referral bonuses, which are a great way to bring your friends over and get something out as well. All in all, the promotions found here are among the best of all offshore sports betting sites.

Betting Markets & Odds

MyBookie does a good job of keeping the odds list together. The website offers a good variety of parlays, teasers, and straight bets, contributing to a strong overall variety of options you can take. The odds coefficients can be indeed improved upon, but in terms of the pure variety of betting markets available, MyBookie does well.

A good thing about the pricing model here is that MyBookie clearly puts a lot of effort into making sure that it covers a variety of events and does so with equal interest in big and small sports, providing niche-seekers with the opportunity to connect with their favorite sports right on the spot. The sportsbook covers both traditional sports as well as some of the more unorthodox markets, such as politics and financial betting.

Customer Support

MyBookie takes pride in the fact that whenever you need help with your online sports betting, the team will be there for you – 24/7. Sports bettors will get a fantastic treatment, with quick answers, and feedback. All you need to do is send an email through the contact form and look forward to a swift response. If you prefer, though, you can reach out via live chat as well.

6. XBet

XBet is another prominent offshore sportsbook in the online betting industry. The website is licensed by the Curacao eGaming Commission, and it was launched in 2014. The sportsbook is one of the most competitive you will find out there on the market, making for a great variety of odds, competitive markets, and wager types. All of this put together provides players with a solid variety of options to enjoy as they seek to optimize their next wager and place with the best odds possible. XBet sportsbook is available for both mobile and desktop devices, making it a fantastic experience from start to finish. Let’s take a closer look now.

Bonus Offer

The starter’s offer at XBet is definitely something that you need to look into. The offshore sportsbook bonus is $500 on your first deposit. This comes with a 7x rollover requirement, which is actually pretty decent. The matched rate you can claim the bonus at is 50%, and not the standard 100% for this type of bonus, but this is still okay, as the rate and clearance conditions are pretty good.

There are also other promotions you can explore at XBet to make your offshore sports betting experience even better. For example, you have the 7% horse rebate and a sports reload bonus of up to $250. These bonuses are quick and easy to use and claim, making for a smooth betting experience right from the start.

Betting Markets & Odds

The sports betting markets at XBet are optimized to provide you with a decent variety of competitive odds, wager types, and sports. All three boxes are checked with the sportsbook which strives to always bring you some of the most satisfying outcomes no matter what sports you want to wager on.

There are tons of parlays, teasers, and straight bets to choose from with XBet, giving you a complete and wholesome variety of options to enjoy. The offshore sportsbook runs many sports-specific brackets and markets. Player proposition bets or player props as they are known to the public are also very popular with this sportsbook, making for a fun experience from start to finish.

There is usually anything between 50-100 props per game, which is actually quite neat. Spread, Moneyline and Total wagers usually tend to be in focus here for the most part, but you can look up more wagers under each game and match.

Customer Support

XBet’s customer support is a great way to connect with the betting operator and have your queries answered. Players who are looking to find out more about the sportsbook would be able to fire up a live chat or call directly on a phone line. The support agents are there 24/7 and they will help you sort out any query you may have about the website.

How We Pick and Review Offshore Betting Sites

With so many great sportsbooks to go around, reviewing offshore sports betting sites may prove a little daunting at first glance. Thankfully, you don’t have to do any of the hard work as we have a dedicated team of industry experts with extensive understanding and insight into the industry.

As a result, we can bring you the best offshore sportsbooks and give you specific reasons why some simply outperform the rest. With a combined experience of over 60 years in the gambling industry, our experts take a look at several important aspects of the offshore gambling sites we bring to your attention.

Reputation and Public Opinion

Because the topic of offshore betting is always a little divisive, we have established over the years that for a sportsbook in this vertical to be successful, it would need to fulfill certain prerequisites. One of those is establishing a sterling reputation that makes sportsbooks a familiar and trusted partner in offshore gambling. To achieve this, every betting site will have to meet high consumer standards and expectations and offer an impeccable online sports betting experience. We thoroughly review public opinion and use it to create our own rankings.

Fairness of Odds and Lines

Because there is no central regulatory authority in most cases, offshore betting sites must live up to high standards of fairness and integrity. Offshore sportsbook odds must be competitive with the ones offered on the mainland. They are often even better to make such betting sites competitive. However, the best offshore sportsbooks pay smaller taxes, which allows them to adjust the odds and offer smaller vigorish fees, which makes it rather easy for them to establish a strong reputation and fair odds and lines. We make sure to double-check for these as we go along.

Security and Safety

Since offshore sportsbooks are not located in the country in most cases, US players and players from around the world are often wary of how safe a sportsbook is. As it turns out, they have some of the highest standards of safety and security. They ensure that all their pages are SSL encrypted, and often, they even call upon third-party auditors to verify the fairness of the odds and payouts. This is a crucial moment for offshore bookmakers to build up their reputation, and they strive to uphold draconian safety measures.

Offshore Betting Bonuses and Promotions

Just like anywhere else, offshore sportsbook bettors are keen to get their hands on a variety of promotions. Whether it’s a deposit bonus, a first deposit welcome bonus, risk-free wagers, or some other option, bonuses play a crucial role in sports bettors. While they are not the most important aspect of the sports gambling experience, bonuses still help us read whether a sportsbook means well to its players or is trying to take advantage of them. Top offshore betting sites have excellent promotions that involve a great welcome bonus and a generous risk-free wager that can be both used quickly and without any issues.

Sports Variety and Markets

Another important aspect of the online sports betting experience is the variety of markets. Bettors are keen to place a variety of sports bets that include money lines, totals, spreads, prop bets, and others. That is why we make sure to always check if an offshore sportsbook satisfies these expectations before recommending it. Sports variety is equally important to us, and we will look at whether all main sports have been covered, including the NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL, MLS, and many others. Variety is crucial to the success of online sports betting sites, and that is what we expect to find.

What Is Offshore Betting?

Offshore sportsbooks began appearing back in the 1990s when the hunger for quality sports betting action was high, and there were a few alternatives. Operators realized that they could set up shop at places such as Costa Rica and create online sportsbooks that service customers from around the world. As a result, sportsbooks began catering to a global audience, with bettors coming from North and South America, Europe, Oceania, and Asia.

The status of ‘offshore’ has been challenged on several occasions, but to this date, the best offshore betting sites are up and running precisely because they do not break any specific laws. Essentially, an online sportsbook in Costa Rica serves as a betting shop that people visit. Instead of traveling to the venue, though, they can simply place their sports bets remotely.

For this matter, offshore sportsbooks are considered to be legitimate businesses, and offshore gambling is a fair choice for anyone who wants to set up an online betting account and get access to even more odds, markets, and betting opportunities.

Offshore betting is set up for entertainment purposes only, and sportsbooks based in the Isle of Man, Curacao, or Costa Rica still acknowledge and honor gambling laws in individual countries by focusing on jurisdictions that do not formally object to offshore sportsbook gambling.

Offshore vs. Regular Sports Betting Odds

As we briefly mentioned odds in our reviewing process, it’s time to take a slightly closer look at the betting lines and how they fare when we compare offshore betting sites with mainland ones. As explained earlier, offshore sportsbooks have slightly more favorable markets when it comes to odds. This is thanks to several reasons. For starters, unlike US sports betting sites, offshore bookmakers often have to pay a little less in terms of tax (or no tax at all).

That allows them to be more competitive when drafting up the lines and odds. Secondly, they have fewer actual regulatory objections to deal with. While college sports betting on the NCAAB or NCAAF may be the cause of some concern in some states, offshore bookmakers can make sure that they draft markets for those events without having to worry about anything. In terms of available markets, you are bound to have pretty much the same options as mentioned before.

You will have moneylines, but the vigorish at offshore sportsbooks will probably be smaller. So, instead of paying $110 to win $100, you may end up paying $105 to win $100. There are spreads, totals, and proposition bets all worth your while, as well as bets that are specific to sports such as baseball and hockey. Overall, the odds at offshore sports betting sites are spot on, and they provide you with a fair market where you can make use of betting over the Internet and extract the best possible value from your wagers.

Reasons to Bet at Offshore Sportsbooks

There are many distinct advantages why you would want to choose the top offshore online sportsbooks. These betting sites are built in a way that can cater to US players, but then again, they can cater to anyone else in the world. The welcome bonus at most such sites is universally good, and you can find great odds and sports, including horse racing, to really add to the joy of the experience. Here, we will list several reasons why we believe offshore sportsbooks bring so much to the table and why you would benefit from betting at any of them.

Competitive Odds

As mentioned before, offshore sportsbooks have one excellent advantage -competitive odds. The odds are often a bit better than mainstream bookmakers precisely because there is less red tape to get in the way. As a result, sports fans are able to benefit from competitive lines and fixtures that will add value to every possible bet you can make, whether you are betting on live events, pre-game, or future markets.

New Opportunities

Once again, offshore sportsbooks tend to excel when it comes to market variety. Online gambling makes it easy and quick to track a variety of sports that appeal not just to US players but also to the broader global betting crowd. As a result, markets such as NCAAB and NCAAF, and even esports, are thoroughly featured at offshore betting sites, which makes it very easy for you to have an entire plateau of betting choices at your beck and call. You can browse through any market you wish and place a wager that you feel comfortable with.

Better Vigorish

Offshore sportsbooks come with better vigor. The vig is the fee that is charged on top of your every bet – that’s how a sportsbook makes its revenue. However, the vigorish at offshore betting sites is much better for a number of reasons. For starters, betting sites located outside of the mainland are subject to a much better tax regime, which allows them to be more generous when it comes to drafting lines and offering a competitive sports betting experience.

Remote Access

While local regulation may obstruct the introduction of intuitive sports betting options such as mobile betting, you can rest assured that offshore sports betting is focused on the consumer. As such, mobiles are ALWAYS an option offshore, and you will be able to access a betting site directly from your desktop computer or smartphone. All top offshore sportsbooks are available on mobile and can be bet on interactively from afar.

Quick Banking

A crucial component of any offshore sportsbook is its ability to deliver quick banking options. Your first deposit, whether it’s done with a credit card or e-wallet, should always clear quickly, and that is precisely what bookmakers do. You can enjoy instant banking that will provide you with the funds necessary to bet online on your favorite sports in no time. You can manage your deposits quickly and easily by using the right banking options.

Is Offshore Sports Gambling Legal?

Understandably, the legality of offshore betting and gambling as a whole is a recurring issue. The majority of sports bettors worry that there may be some legal reason not to access sports betting websites. For the most part, there is none. Unless a regulator has exclusively banned a website from accessing your area of living, you may rest assured that it’s technically legal for you to play an offshore sportsbook.

A popular example explains that offshore betting sites are like visiting these websites in places like Costa Rica or the Isle of Man. This is an imperfect way to put it, and these websites are “a grey area” at best. However, they are not to YOU as a sports bettor. You can access your account, enjoy tons of selections and claim various bonuses free of worry that you have any responsibility to carry.

The onus is on sportsbooks to make sure that their offers are compliant with local regulations. Naturally, you should pay attention to whether a bookmaker has had any head-butting with local regulators as this may presage a ban for the website from your area. However, it’s safe to say that participating in sports gambling contests at offshore betting sites is completely legal from the standpoint of someone who places wagers.

FAQ

The post Best Offshore Sportsbook Betting Sites [Updated appeared first on Keno Wizard.

ComeOn Group has announced the launch of a brand new live dealer casino suite in Scandinavia under the “brand-within-a-brand” name, Nordic Ruby Lounge. The premier bespoke gaming studio joins the rest of the Ruby Lounge portfolio launched within the brand with Evolution Live Gaming in March 2022.

The live studio offers players in the Nordic region a local touch and native entertainment and will be available across the company’s core markets. One differentiation is the hosting of local games by native live dealers giving the suite a personalized and customized touch.

Bespoke Environment for Nordic Players

Cristiano Blanco, Chief Product Officer at ComeOn Group, said: “We are extremely happy to see Nordic Ruby Lounge take things to the next level with our live casino offer. Our Nordic players can now enjoy a bespoke environment locally tailored around their preferences, with native dealers for that extra cherry on top. It’s been about great teamwork throughout all involved departments, which has landed us in a great quality product with a truly impressive design and functionality. For us, the launch of Nordic Ruby Lounge is a great milestone and with that said we are looking forward to seeing Nordic Ruby Lounge succeed and take things up a notch.”

Nordic Ruby Lounge joins the Group’s Ruby Lounge portfolio, which was launched in early 2022. ComeOn and Evolution have enjoyed a successful partnership since 2013 and Ruby Lounge gave ComeOn a great opportunity to make a strong brand identity statement with the bespoke games. Making it wholly Nordic and enhancing the native offering gives it a chance to re-introduce the brand within a brand with the personalized touches it needs to be the top-tier studio in the region.

The dedicated ComeOn team serves up roulette and blackjack from several tables across the Group’s Nordic brands creating a one-of-a-kind live studio product that sets a high standard for competitors to reach for and marks a milestone in ComeOn’s track for growth.

When the broader Ruby Lounge portfolio was launched by the partners across multiple online markets, rather than restricted to the Nordics as today’s debut is, it was comprised of one Roulette table and eight blackjack tables.

The games operated 24/7 from Evolution studios and were served as well by dedicated ComeOn dealers.

Live Suite Appears in Several Nordic Casinos

ComeOn Group’s extensive brand portfolio includes ComeOn, Snabbare, Hajper and Casinostugan and several more, with the Group operating in multiple markets including Sweden and Denmark.

Commenting in March on the initial launch of Ruby Lounge, Cristiano Blanco, Chief Product Officer at ComeOn Group, said: “The Ruby Lounge extends choice and entertainment, offering an exclusive, premium, vibrant and exciting live gaming experience. Once again, Evolution has proved what great partners they are. The Ruby Lounge has such a strong identity yet works with all our brands.”

At that time Erland Hellstrom, Commercial Manager at Evolution, commented: “We have been working closely with ComeOn Group for many years and we’re delighted that their dedicated live casino environment is now live. The end result is magnificent and early statistics suggest that ComeOn Group players absolutely love the whole look and feel of this premium environment with its world-class live casino games.”

Beyond the Nordics, ComeOn added a bespoke Group branded live dealer game studio powered by Stake Logic Live games to its Dutch-facing brand in late 2022.

Source: ComeOn Group launches new bespoke live casino studio under the name Nordic Ruby Lounge, EU Gaming News, June 1, 2023

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The rowdy streamers’ professed love for streaming slots has extended beyond Twitch, as the platform and its chief executive officer, Dan Clancy, have taken a much harder look at what gambling content must be allowed onto the Amazon-owned giant.

Twitch CEO Debates on The Validity of Gambling Content on the Platform

Twitch has been muddling through reform for gambling content, introducing a dedicated policy that has people stream in the Slots category, one of the highest-grossing and most watched on the platform, but the company also pressed on with another measure – its decision to suspend streams that promote specific gambling websites.

Essentially, brands such as Stake.com and Rollbit.com are no longer allowed to be streamed, which has prompted the former to take matters into its own hands and introduce a dedicated streaming platform, Kick, which has been gaining followers and viewers exponentially.

This comes at a time when Clancy is doubling down on his decision, and the company’s guidance and direction, that in order to have a casino website streamed on Twitch, it must have been regulated by a government agency.

He specifically seems to suggest an agency based in the United States and has criticized offshore gambling sites, that is sites that do not have a license to operate in the country. Clancy spoke during an interview with Filian, a VTube streamer, and said:

The thing that was growing was these unregulated offshore gambling sites. These are sites that there’s nobody overlooking to see, for example, what are the odds on the craps tables, are they tweaking them, do they change them, cause they’re not regulated.

Twitch CEO Dan Clancy

No Objection Against Gambling in General

He further explained that there were significant amounts of money being forwarded towards those gambling sites, originating from Twitch, which the executive said was not something the platform thought was good for its communities. Clancy, though, argues that streaming gambling as a concept is perfectly reasonable and that Twitch has no strong aversion to the institution of gambling as long as it’s done correctly.

However, Clancy is also somewhat vague in what websites that are now deemed to be not a good fit to be shown on Twitch streams would have to do in order to qualify. He argues that should those sites become regulated, and “are willing to adhere to the regulations of most major countries,” they would be acceptable on the platform.

Then again, this doesn’t really introduce clarity in the debate as the United States, for example, does not care if a website is regulated in the United Kingdom. In fact, every individual state may press a claim against sites that target their own citizens without a license.  

The post Twitch CEO Weighs In on Gambling on Stream and Offshore Sites appeared first on Keno Wizard.

KRAIL, the Regulation of Gambling and Lotteries, has said that it has been able to shut down more than 1,000 illegal gambling sites. The regulator said that it had a list of 1,895 unlicensed operators that continued to target citizens in the country, with the majority of those websites now restricted.

Illegal Gambling Sites Dropping Like Flies

However, 727 websites are still in operation and continue to find loopholes to provide Ukrainians with gambling products. KRAIL though is stepping up its effort to bring these websites to a halt, with the regulator working closely with a number of enforcement agencies to succeed. Some operators, though, have been elusive, and continue to brand their products as legitimate offerings in the market.

They have been aggressively hosting mirror websites to try and continue to squeeze out profit from residents in the country. KRAIL has called on the government and various divisions of the judiciary and law enforcement to pool their efforts and crack down on such rogue operations through better coordination.

The regulator will continue to use all available solutions and seek further assistance from relevant authorities to ensure that illegal gambling is restricted. The war that Russia waged on Ukraine in February and that has been ongoing has been a test for the regulator’s ability to operate.

Bad Actors Need to Go, More Coordination Underway

Many bad actors from Russia tried to target vulnerable Ukrainians with casino websites intended to siphon off more money from the country. Such websites have been swiftly hindered, but many still remain.

The President of Ukraine, Volodymyr Zelensky, recently issued a blocking order for a number of gambling websites in Ukraine, attempting to target even more operators that the country has deemed to be a threat to its citizens and national security.

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Orilla Matters reported that in a sudden turn of events, all Gateway Casinos and Entertainment properties, including Casino Rama located in Orillia, have been shut down due to a system-wide malfunction on April 16. According to the company’s statement, all gaming facilities in Ontario would remain closed until further notice.

Patrons Left Disappointed as Gateway Casinos Close Unexpectedly

The Facebook statement posted on Sunday read: “All Gateway Ontario sites will close due to a system-wide malfunction until further notice.” No further information was provided on the nature of the malfunction or when the casinos would resume operations.

At 1 p.m. on Sunday, a sudden closure of multiple locations occurred, including Casino Rama in Orillia, the Cascades Casino in Chatham, and nearby Gateway Casinos in Sarnia, London, Woodstock, and Clinton, as well as the Playtime Casino in Hanover. The duration of the closure remains unknown and the facilities will be closed until further notice.

The closure has left many patrons disappointed, as the Casino Rama was one of the most popular gaming destinations in Canada. The Casino Rama Resort’s hotel and Weirs restaurant, however, would remain open despite the shutdown, according to the statement.

Employees Left in the Dark as Gateway Casinos Remain Closed

The sudden shutdown of all Gateway Casinos and Entertainment properties has also raised concerns among employees. The company has not released any further statements regarding the situation, leaving many to wonder about the cause of the system-wide malfunction and the timeline for the resumption of operations.

Casino Rama opened its doors on July 31, 1996, and it has been continuously operating 24/7 until the pandemic shutdown in 2020. 

Gateway Casinos and Entertainment, which operates the Casino Rama, is a major Canadian gaming and entertainment operator. It has its headquarters in Burnaby, British Columbia. With a current count of 23 casinos spread across Ontario, British Columbia, and Alberta, it has grown significantly since its inception. 

The company is currently owned by The Catalyst Capital Group Inc., a private equity investment firm that started in 2002. Gateway Casinos & Entertainment Limited is one of the largest and most successful casino and entertainment companies in Western Canada, employing over 3,000 employees and operating 12 facilities, a remarkable increase from its humble beginnings with only 2 facilities and 150 employees back in 1992.

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Ontario Canada’s liberalized open market model for online casino and sports gambling has been in operation for a year now and it has become a fiercely competitive market. European operator CoolBet got in on the first day and pulled out of the market in March, less than one year into the endeavor.

Prior to the market’s official launch on April 4, 2022, Ontarians either gambled at a local casino, at Play OLG online, or they went offshore to play at a site licensed in Malta, Gibraltar, the Isle of Man, Alderney, or even the Caribbean jurisdiction of Curacao.

Now, according to a survey by Ipsos, the bulk of players are all happily spinning away at regulated sites available in the province thanks to a collaboration between iGaming Ontario (iGO), the Government of Ontario, and the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO). The survey found that over 85% of those who gambled online in the last three months gambled at a regulated site.

From 70% offshore to 85% Province-Regulated?

However, that top-line number can’t tell the whole story. The Attorney General released a report on July 06, 2021, stating that 70% of all online gambling was done at “unregulated, grey market websites, with limited, if any, consumer protection and responsible gaming measures,” and that the assumed flight of capital was some billion dollars a year. If all of that gambling activity seems to have come home to roost, the open competitive online gambling market must be a huge success – at least revenue-wise for the province.

However, as is often the case when studies are commissioned by stakeholders, not all of the important numbers are easy to find. One of the major arguing points for regulated online gambling was the potential to reap revenues from single-event online sportsbetting in the province which the AG report estimated to be a $14 billion-a-year industry in Canada. It’s absolutely unclear if the Ontario market has captured even a sliver of that number.

Some reports following on the heels of the Ipsos survey results suggest that province-regulated online gambling has almost entirely displaced the previous practice of placing bets offshore, but that is not quite true on its face.

The AGCO seems to be taking a more realistic tack in its conclusions about the first year. Registrar and CEO of the AGCO, Tom Mungham said: “A key objective in this first year has been to move Ontario players from playing on unregulated sites to the regulated market so that they would benefit from high standards of operator and game integrity, fairness and player protections including responsible gambling safeguards. Although there’s still much work to be done, we’re pleased to see such a substantial shift towards gaming on regulated sites so far, and everything that it represents for players and for the province.”

According to Ipsos:

85.3% of respondents who have gambled online in Ontario over the past three months report having wagered on a regulated website.

14.7% of respondents who have gambled online in Ontario over the past three months report having wagered only on unregulated websites.

Further, among the 85.3% who are using regulated websites, Ipsos’ study found that 19.5% have wagered on a combination of regulated and unregulated websites.

These numbers tell us that over 30% of active players in Ontario still use offshore gambling sites.

Another study was done by PrimeOnline LTD, a SkillOnNet operator with the branded Ontario online casinos Spin Genie.ca, the holder of an Ontario iGaming license in good standing. That study found that 43% of players in Ontario began gambling online in the last year (since the launch) and about a quarter of players (24%) had only been playing for six months or less.

The aforementioned survey used roughly the same methodology and had about the same margin of error and confidence interval as the Ipsos survey.

How Many Know if They are Gambling at a Licensed Site?

Somewhat striking among the findings and begging more detail to the actual questions asked in the Ipsos survey, the Prime survey noted that less than three-quarters (72%) of players queried were even aware that OLG.ca (the official Ontario Lottery website) is regulated and they believe that other major websites are unregulated – but – players are most likely to believe that whichever website they visit is indeed regulated.

The parts of the survey released to the public did provide some demographic information which can tell us a little bit about the most common type of online gambler in Ontario.

During the last 3 months, Ontarians who have placed real money bets online are overwhelmingly male (68.1%), between the ages of 19 and 34 (45.8%), have earned a University Degree+ (39.5%), and make less than $75,000 per year (54.9%).

There are 45 operators with about 70 live real money gambling websites in Ontario. AGCO has certified over 5,000 games for online use.

According to a CBC News report posted on Jan 17, 2022, a “Private & Confidential” report compiled for the government stated that the province could lose more than $2.5b in revenue as players migrate from brick-and-mortar gameplay to online only. In decades of reviewing such doom and gloom assessments, none have proved true to date.

Jeffrey Haas, senior vice-president of DraftKings Inc. made the correct call on that report stating: “People who are playing in online casinos and online sportsbooks and online poker rooms will continue to do so, except they’re going to go from playing offshore to onshore,” according to the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. “And anybody who continues to walk into real casinos in order to play games there will continue to do so.”

Source: Ontario iGaming Market Channelization (PDF), Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario, April 3, 2023

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The Betting and Gaming Council (BGC), the single industry body of the gaming and betting industry in the UK, released data from a new study that probed what may be the possible outcome of tight restrictions for the gambling market in the country.

The study, organized by YouGov for the BGC, uncovered that 79% of the gamblers feared that enhanced restrictions may result in people switching to unregulated, black-market gambling operators. Some 70% of the participants in the new study admitted that if they encounter a request for sharing “private financial documents” as a requirement to place a wager, they are likely to select a different bookmaker.

The Council reiterated data from a previous survey from RacingTV which uncovered that 15% out of 3,500 gamblers admitted that they knew someone who uses an unregulated online gambling company. The same study found that some 80% of the respondents disputed mandatory spending limits imposed by bookmakers.

Non-intrusive Gambling Checks Are Needed

BGC’s CEO, Michael Dugher, explained that the recent research by YouGov once again raises the concern that the proposed changes to the regulated gambling sector are pushed forward by people who haven’t wagered. At the same time, he said that the BGC supports “genuinely non-intrusive checks, which use technology to carefully target and protect the tiny minority of vulnerable punters.”

“This research is the latest in a series outlining the genuine concerns of millions of ordinary punters who feel that the people making decisions about the future of betting are out of touch and have never had a bet in their lives.“

Michael Dugher, CEO of the BGC

Dugher also acknowledged that blanket affordability checks and intrusive restrictions for the sector are likely to face fierce rejection by gamblers. Moreover, he warned that such efforts may even push gamblers to the unregulated, black-market operators that do not offer any safe gambling tools and do not pay taxes or support the economy.

“Ministers should listen to the millions of punters enjoying Cheltenham rather than pander to a naive and snobbish minority of anti-gambling prohibitionists,“

added Dougher

Data from the latest study emerged ahead of the biggest horseracing week, the Cheltenham Festival. Starting next week, the Festival is expected to see 280,000 attendees and generate some £274 million ($329.4 million) for the local economy. Keeping in mind the popularity of the event, during the four days of racing, some £1 billion ($1.2 billion) is expected to be wagered.

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