iGaming Business magazine iGB 111 July/Aug | Page 73

Feature
One executive who did agree to comment on the current state of
play was former California gambling regulator Richard Schuetz. At
times he’s been outspoken on how European companies should stop
complaining about the regulatory patchwork in the US and deal with
the situation at hand.
Schuetz told iGaming Business: “It was my experience while I was
in California meeting many of the foreign [EU] operators who were
interested in that state, that there was not a deep appreciation of the
complexity of dealing with a state-by-state legal model or the US
regulatory model. They would often suggest that it was stupid, and
there is merit to that; however, it is the system.”
Schuetz added that European groups should “get up to speed on
the idiosyncrasies of the US model, with each state being able to
determine its destiny, and to also understand that the US regulatory
model is a bit different than what they are accustomed to”.
Insider knowledge
But for all the talk of EU companies not being ready for the
US regulatory model, most have been prospecting there for some
time and have a good knowledge of the intricacies of the market.
According to Matt Stephenson, managing director of data
and odds supplier Betgenius, most suppliers “have been studying
the US market for long enough to understand the challenges
and nuances of the state-by-state model. Operating across
Europe and globally, we are all accustomed to adapting our
offerings to a specific territory’s rules and regulations, so that’s
nothing new”.
Suppliers are used to providing customised solutions to their
country-specific clients, for example when it comes to margin
levels applied to each market and to best suit the regulatory
framework. Stephenson cites his company’s relationship with
Betclic Everest as an example, describing the company as
“an operator with licences, among others, in Italy, France, UK
and Portugal, all of which differ substantially when it comes to
tax rates and product restrictions”. He sees a comparable
situation unfolding across the pond. “The patchwork of a
state-by-state US market will present similar challenges,” he says.
For David Sargeant, an igaming consultant currently working
on an integration project between a well-known US casino and a
major supplier, it simply comes down to individual requirements.
“The needs of a regional casino are very different from those
of a multi-state operator with international activities. So yes,
for some US groups it is about understanding what these
suppliers do, but it’s also about asking: is it right for me?
Does it fit with my strategy and will the products offered respond
to market demand? Sportsbook is tailor-made for each operator
and it’s about a company choosing what best suits their needs,”
says Sargeant.
And while there are many European suppliers, each one of
them does different things. A quick glance at headline products
tells us that Betgenius provides odds, some trading and risk
management and official sports data. Betradar works along
similar lines, while SBTech supplies sportsbook and casino
platform solutions. Kambi only provides sportsbook.
But, as Sargeant points out, “each operator has to understand
what they are using sports betting for. A rural casino can use it to
attract players to the premises and drive people to the casino floor,
but it will not look to drive volume or enhance margins”.
Sports
betting
supplier
map map
Sports
betting
supplier
Data / trading
providers
Sports betting
software specialists
Full stack
providers
Operators / partners
Source: Rokker Ltd 2018
Source: Rokker Ltd 2018
iGamingBusiness | Issue 111 | July/August 2018
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