Gaming Report: William Hill Files Copyright Infringement Charges Against FanDuel, Caesars Entertainment Not Interested In Merger & More

While upheavals in the gaming and gambling industry are ever-present, sometimes those changes can spell disaster for companies. In a bid to get ahead in the sport betting market, FanDuel now finds itself at the receiving end of a copyright infringement lawsuit that was filed by William Hill US.

On the other hand, it seems that the possible merger between Caesars Entertainment and Golden Nugget Casinos may not go through as the deal offered by Golden Nugget owner Tilman Fertitta was rejected by Caesars’ board of directors.

Meanwhile, Pennsylvania may see its sixth mini-casino operational by 2020. Greenwood Gaming and Entertainment that owns the Parx Casino in Bensalem outside Philadelphia has applied to the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board (PGCB) for a license to operate the same in Shippensburg township.

In China, the state-run sports lottery continues to post strong growth figures, even after the 2018 FIFA World Cup got over. China’s Ministry of Finance has released statistical information proving that the combined sports and welfare lottery sales for September were 13.3% more than that for the same month in 2017.

Copyright Infringement Charges Filed Against FanDuel By William Hill

Following the dismissal of the PASPA Act, the sports betting market has bloomed in the U.S. But with the legalization of sports betting, operators have had to act fast in order to cope with the emerging competition. However, it seems that some sportsbooks may have skipped a few steps in their haste to not fall behind.

As reported in The Washington Post, on Tuesday William Hill US filed a copyright infringement lawsuit against competitor FanDuel in a U.S. District Court in response to the latter’s theft of content from a betting guide produced by William Hill.

CEO of William Hill US Joe Asher said, “We are not litigious people, but this is ridiculous.” A month after William Hill released its “how-to” guide in June, FanDuel began distributing “a virtually identical guide” at the Meadowlands Racetrack.

Not only were large blocks of texts, diagrams, and even betting examples copied from William Hill’s guide, but apparently the FanDuel guide also included a page in which William Hill’s name continued to appear, apparently a mistake that was probably made following the cutting-and-pasting of data.

The lawsuit “seeks unspecified damages” as well as any profits earned by FanDuel via the guide. Asher explains that William Hill intends to use some of the proceeds to “fund scholarships for creative writing programs at New Jersey universities.”

Caesars Entertainment Not Interested In Merger With Golden Nugget Casinos

A report published this week has suggested that the possibility of a merger between Caesars Entertainment and Golden Nugget Casinos is unlikely.

On October 21, the Post reported that Caesars’ board was “expected to unanimously reject” the deal being offered by Golden Nugget owner Tilman Fertitta, “believing it would saddle the casino giant with too much debt.” The report came via “two sources close to the situation.”

The details about Fertitta’s deal was first released to CNBC a week prior which stated that offer to Caesars Entertainment would value the casino at $13 per share, a merger that reportedly would have involved Fertitta exchanging stock from a private company for shares of Caesars.

The deal would also include “somewhere between a $2 billion and $3 billion dutch tender to give Caesars shareholders an option to sell.”

Nonetheless, speculations regarding another deal between Caesars and Jack Entertainment (formerly Rock Gaming) which operates six casinos in Ohio and Michigan has also been brewing.

Parx Casino Plans to Open New Mini-Casino Near Shippensburg By 2020

The Parent company of Pennsylvania-based Parx Casino and Racing i.e. Greenwood Gaming and Entertainment has sought licensing permission from the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board (PGCB) to operate a mini–casino in Shippensburg. Once the permission is given, the mini-casino may open by the second-half of 2020.

The mini-casino will feature a total o 475 slot machines and table games, along with a sports bar and restaurant.

Located between Philadelphia and Pittsburgh, the small town of Shippensburg is part of Cumberland County. In 2017, the state approved a law that authorizes up to 10 smaller gambling facilities to operate. These mini-casinos are permitted to run 300-750 slot machines and up to 30 table games. Permission for five mini-casinos has already been granted, two of which are run by Penn National Gaming in York and Berks County.

Notably, Parx that is located in Bensalem outside Philadelphia earlier attempted to build mini-casinos in Carlisle and South Middleton and failing to do so, picked Shippensburg where the management was able to go ahead with property negotiations.

The township is one of the handful of municipalities in South central Pennsylvania that have left the doors open to casino development. The new mini-casino is expected to generate close to $45 Million in annual gross gaming revenue and create 100 full-time jobs.

China’s Sports Lottery Continues Good Run Post FIFA World Cup

China’s state-run sports lottery continues to remain popular even after the 2018 FIFA World Cup. China’s Ministry of Finance announced on Thursday, that the combined sports and welfare lottery sales equal an approximate RMB41.8 Billion (~$6 Billion) in September which is 13.3% more than the same month in 2017. Furthermore, the Ministry informed that the sales figures had remained unchanged from those for August 2018 and higher than the months prior to June and July, meaning that despite the FIFA World Cup being over, the sports lottery continues to post strong revenue.

China legally permits sale of two state-run lotteries, welfare lottery and sports lottery across 31 provinces and cities. Till recently, the welfare lottery was the highest selling among the two officially approved gambling products.

While the welfare lottery reported total sales of RMB17.8 Million in September, displaying a marginal i.e. 1.2% rise over last year’s figures for September, the sports lottery in contrast surged by 24.3% year-on-year to RMB24 Billion. Overall among the 31 provinces and cities, the sales figures were higher in all but one province, when compared to previous year’s figures.

The individual statistical figures of the two lotteries were also nearly the same from August figures, and though the sports lottery saw a huge spike in sales in June and July owing to the World Cup, sale of the sports lottery is higher than the pre-World Cup months, and sports lottery has overtaken the welfare lottery in terms of popularity and sales.