Written by :
Published on :
Victor Rocha serves with the Pechanga Band of Indians and is Conference Chair of the Indian Gaming Association in California.
He was the first to report that California Governor Gavin Newsom would sign into law a bill banning sweepstakes casinos. He did over the weekend.
Rocha mocked efforts by the The Social and Promotional Games Association (SPGA) in its attempts to prevent Newsom from signing the sweepstakes ban into law.
"This humiliating loss hangs squarely around the neck of SPGA founder and executive director Chris Grove. He ran one of the most ineffective lobbying campaigns I’ve ever seen. I knew the sweeps wouldn’t leave California without a fight. I just didn’t expect them to be so impotent."
There are two primary trade agencies in the sweepstakes casino realm: The SPGA and the Social Gaming Leadership Alliance (SGLA), both of which recently merged.
Rocha suggests that "coming together" hasn't quite been what it seems.
"The SPGA and the SLGA never really worked together, did they? I mean, other than those weak dog and pony show testimonials in Sacramento. playSTUDIOS? Really? That was funny. We all assumed the SLGA was created because the SPGA was doing such a lousy job. In the end, they both failed for the same reason. They showed up after the battle had already started. They looked exactly like what they were: cynical attempts to save somebody's financial investments. BTW I was told the trade groups didn’t merge. The SPGA was shut down. I guess the executive director had better things to do."
The sweepstakes casino sector will remain formidable despite losing California and a handful of other states, New York included. Still, as Rocha notes, the industry has lost approximately $2 billion.
He claims the technology won't get them far.
"What technology? Without the dual-coin model, they’re toast," he tweeted.
The sweepstakes casino sites do not have to exit the California market just yet, though quite a few already have. AB 831 goes into effect as of Jan. 1.
The new law prohibits online social casinos from offering free entries into sweepstakes draws for real money.
- Gilbert Horowitz, Gambling911.com
