Hargett Says Tennessee Ready to Enforce New Law Regulating Fantasy Sports Companies

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Published on:

Jul/05/2016

Our sister site DFS911.com has the latest Daily Fantasy Sports news, both pertaining to the industry and player updates. Below are some recent headlines.
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Hargett Says Tennessee Ready to Enforce New Law Regulating Fantasy Sports Companies - A state agency has a new name and new rules to handle a General Assembly-passed law last session that legalized fantasy sports betting in Tennessee and regulates it. The state Division of Charitable Solicitations and Gaming, housed in Secretary of State Tre Hargett's office, is now the Division of Charitable Solicitations, Fantasy Sports and Gaming.

DFS Pro Assani Fisher Enjoying Being a Recreational Poker Player - "I got in at the right time and should have made a lot of money," Assanti Fisher told PokerNews.com regarding his initial foray into poker. ”But I was just young and stupid and played above my bankroll, etc." Then, he found daily fantasy sports and his life changed. Along with his friend Aaron "aejones" Jones, Fisher has found huge financial success in DFS. He's now the No. 7 ranked player on popular DFS site RotoGrinders, where he also hosts a recurring series of video blogs.

Judge Dismisses Tony Romo Fantasy Football Case - A judge in Dallas Tuesday dismissed a lawsuit filed by Tony Romo’s National Fantasy Football Convention against the NFL. Attorneys for The Fan Expo, LLC, claimed the NFL improperly contacted players through the NFL Players Association and their agents — a tactic that contributed to the inaugural Las Vegas event's cancellation. Fan Expo lawyers say they will appeal the decision.

New Documentary Takes Aim at Daily Fantasy, Sport Betting - Documentary filmmaker Evan Rosenfeld premiered his documentary "The Line" on Viceland, a channel launched in February. “These two corporation were run very differently and they were really going after each other,” said Rosenfeld, the executive producer of Vice World of Sports. “Now, they are fighting for their existence. Maybe the only way they are going to survive is if they join forces. The battle is real.” "The Line" began as an exploration of sports betting, but the explosion of daily fantasy sports shifted the focus of the documentary.

New York Assembly Votes 91-22 in Favor of Daily Fantasy Sports - The New York State Assembly voted 91 to 22 Friday to approve daily fantasy sports games, with lawmakers saying the popular online contests run by FanDuel and DraftKings are not gambling and would not violate the state constitution. The state Senate was expected to consider the bill later Friday, but it's fate there is unclear.

DraftKings, FanDuel Merger: The Right Time But Obstacles Still Stand in the Way - DraftKings and FanDuel are downplaying media reports this week that the two biggest daily fantasy sports companies could team up. But given their swift change of fortune this past year, industry watchers say the timing's right for a deal. An open question is how federal regulators would view such a move. A merged company would effectively control over 90 percent of the daily fantasy sports market, creating a potential monopoly that may run afoul of federal antitrust laws, says Dustin Hecker, a Boston-based business lawyer.

TechCrunch: DraftKings, FanDuel Merger Makes Plenty of Sense - While the companies have been in discussions for a few months, the report notes that no final transaction has been agreed to and the deal may still fall apart. If a deal were to happen, it would make total sense. Product wise, the companies’ offerings are essentially identical: both let you play short-term, daily fantasy sports games across nearly every sport; both spend insane amounts of money to advertise with professional sports leagues and stadiums, mainly to compete with each other; both operate in the same gray area and, at the time of writing, have pulled out of 11 U.S. states

New Nevada-Based DFS Company Admits It’s Gambling - A Las Vegas bookmaker and thoroughbred executive are trying to bring the simplicity of prop betting to the daily fantasy sports market, according to an ESPN report. Their company, called U.S. Fantasy, will effectively turn questions such as “which wide receiver will catch the most passes” into a horse race. They are the first to apply for a Nevada DFS license.

NY Daily Fantasy Sports Bill Advancing Through House - Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie said the measure is advancing through his house. “I’m not a huge fan of gambling personally, because I do think that it can lead to other ills in society,” he said. Online gambling occurs despite prohibitions, however, he said, and it’s best for the state to acknowledge that and regulate it. Heastie said there are differences between the Assembly and the Senate bills that he hopes can be worked out by the end of the session, scheduled for June 16.

New York DFS Bill Gets Past One Hurdle, More Obstacles Stand in Way - New York State Sen. John Bonacic called his DFS bill — S6793A — during a meeting of the Senate Racing, Gaming and Wagering Committee that he chairs. On Thursday, the Senate Finance Committee is set to consider the bill, legalizing and regulating Daily Fantasy Sports in the Empire State. The future may not be as rosy as things appear, however. The majority of the Senate committee voted “aye with reservations,” meaning those senators did not entirely agree with the bill as it came before the committee.

Illinois Daily Fantasy Bill Shelved - Legislation to regulate daily fantasy sports betting in Illinois was shelved Sunday after the proposal became mired in vote-buying allegations. Democratic Rep. Michael Zalewski, one of the bill's sponsors, told colleagues in a House committee Sunday that he would not put the proposal up to a vote before the Legislature adjourns its spring session Tuesday.

New DFS Legislation Could Open Door Back Up For NY Residents - “We’re going to make it work,” said Senate Racing, Gaming and Wagering Committee Chairman John Bonacic (R-Orange County), who introduced his bill Tuesday. The bill comes at a time following the state Attorney General ordering DFS juggernauts DraftKings and FanDuel to cease operations in the state. He also frowned upon a previous measure that was being promoted in the state legislature. The news bills created by Bonacic and Assembly Racing and Wagering Committee Chairman Gary Pretlow (D-Westchester) both require daily fantasy sports sites to pay licensing fees to the state and impose an annual tax equal to 15% of their gross revenues after prizes have been taken out. They would also ban the sites from taking action on college and high school games and horse racing.

Online Casino Gambling Wanted: Delays Illinois Daily Fantasy Sports Bill - The Illinois Senate narrowly approved the measure, which would set the minimum age to play at 21 years old and levy a 5 to 30 percent tax based on annual revenue. But a motion filed by a Democratic senator has frozen the plan for now, meaning it might be prevented from moving to the Illinois House indefinitely. "If you're going to have a conversation about legalizing Internet gaming, that should be a comprehensive law," said Paul Gaynor, who represents Rivers Casino in Des Plaines. Some casinos would like to see a plan that would allow other kinds of Internet gambling.

Daily Fantasy Sports Companies Push for Missouri Governor Not to Sign Bill Legalizing Sites - A proposal to regulate and tax fantasy sports in Missouri is under attack by smaller companies who say it favors the two behemoths of the industry: FanDuel and DraftKings. Under the plan, fantasy sports websites would pay an annual registration fee of $10,000 or 10 percent of entry fees, as well as an annual administration fee of 11.5 percent of revenue. But Alex Kaganovsky, co-founder of the Small businesses of Fantasy Sports Trade Association, said the proposed law would decimate dozens of smaller fantasy sports businesses.

Mississippi Does an About Face on Daily Fantasy Sports: Now Legal - Mississippi Gov. Phil Bryant signed a fantasy sports regulation bill — S 2541 — into law, a source familiar with the legislation told Legal Sports Report. Friday was the deadline for him to act on the legislation. Mississippi became the 4th state this year to official legalize Daily Fantasy Sports. Indiana, Virginia and Tennessee are the three others. The measure passes just three months after Mississippi’s Attorney General Jim Hood declared the activity to be illegal in the Magnolia State.

NJ Rep. Says Hypocrital Not to Call Daily Fantasy Sports Gambling Rep. Frank Pallone Jr. (N.J.), the ranking Democrat on the House Energy and Commerce Committee, said it is hypocritical for FanDuel and DraftKings to argue that daily fantasy sports is not gambling when they apply for gambling licenses in the United Kingdom to conduct business.

“Yet in the U.S., both companies maintain that daily fantasy sports is not gambling," Pallone told Peter Schoenke, the witness representing the Fantasy Sports Trade Association. "So what is DraftKings’s rationale for getting a gambling license in the U.K. if they say that daily fantasy sports is not gambling? And what about FanDuel’s? How do they justify this when they ask for the gambling license in the U.K.?”

Legal Daily Fantasy Sports Could Bring $10 Million to Missouri Economy - Fantasy sports betting could generate an estimated $10 million for the state of Missouri under a proposal being considered in the Missouri Senate. The measure would set up a taxing system similar to what Missouri casino operators pay. “We’re trying to regulate an industry that has previously not been regulated,” said Senate Minority Leader Joe Keaveny, a St. Louis Democrat who is sponsoring the legislation.

Daily Fantasy Sports Gets Its Day in Washington DC - Daily fantasy sports will take center stage on Capitol Hill when the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Energy and Commerce debates issues and perspectives of the industry on May 11, 2016. A hearing has been called for 10:15 a.m. et, which brings together a group of eight witnesses with varying backgrounds to opine on the future of daily fantasy sports from a federal standpoint. “There have been varying responses to the growth of this marketplace from state legislatures, state Attorneys General, and state consumer protection regulators,” reads part of the Introduction section of the memorandum circulated concerning the hearing. ”There is an ongoing debate in some states about whether or not the products offered by DFS operators fall within existing state gambling statutes. null ”

Another State Bans Daily Fantasy Sports - DraftKings and FanDuel, two popular sports wagering websites, agreed to stop providing the offerings to this state’s residents in response to the AG opinion such sites violate gambling laws. “Idaho defines gambling, in part, as risking money or other thing of value for gain that is contingent in whole or part upon chance or the outcome of an event, including a sporting event,” Lawrence Wasden, the state attorney general, told the Idaho Statesman. “My concern is that the daily fantasy sports offerings my office reviewed require participants to risk money for a cash prize contingent upon individual athletes’ collective performances in various future sporting events. As I see it, this falls within Idaho’s definition of gambling.”Other DrafKings, FanDuel restricted states include: New York, Mississippi, Hawaii, Arizona, Iowa, Louisiana, Montana, Nevada, and Washington State.

Rico Action Against DerbyWars Horse Racing Fantasy Gaming Site Dismissed - A California federal judge on Monday dismissed three of the four causes of action in a civil lawsuit filed by tracks owned by The Stronach Group (TSG) against the online fantasy gaming site DerbyWars. But the court order gives the plaintiffs “leave to amend,” meaning the TSG tracks have 14 days to reformulate portions of the lawsuit and address structural deficiencies in their arguments.

State of Minnesota Close to Legalizing Daily Fantasy Sports - A bill to legalize Daily Fantasy Sports is heading to the Minnesota state senate. The industry claims that Minnesota has the highest per-capita fantasy sports participation in the country, with nearly 1 million players, about 1 out of 5 Minnesotans. More than a dozen fantasy sports companies call Minnesota home.

DraftKings, FanDuel Exit Alabama Market - Daily fantasy sports operators DraftKings and FanDuel have announced their exit from the Alabama market ahead of the state attorney general’s deadline for doing so. On April 5, Alabama AG Luther Strange sent letters to the two DFS operators, ordering them to cease and desist all real-money activity with state residents as of May 1. On Friday, the AG’s office issued a statement saying the operators had reached a settlement to comply with Strange’s order as of May 2.

Forbes: High-Tech Unicorns - DFS Industry Could See Billions in Asia - As North America engages in a legal dispute over the legitimacy of disruptive digital sports start-ups, the East looks like a fresh playing field to Sam Jones, who launches his new app, Ballr, in India and in China later this year, while billionaire tycoon Jack Ma announced investing $15.4 million towards sports-tech tournaments in China.

Looney Says Fantasy Sports Bill Unlikely after AG’s warning - HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) - Legislation authorizing fantasy sports appeared unlikely Monday to pass this year after the Connecticut attorney general said it could jeopardize the state’s slot machine revenue-sharing agreement with two federally recognized Indian tribes.
Attorney General George Jepsen said in a written opinion requested by the top two Democratic leaders in the state Senate that there’s a “high degree of uncertainty” as to whether daily fantasy sports are games of skill or games of chance. If the latter, Jepsen said, authorizing daily fantasy sports could potentially violate the agreement if played on a device the tribes consider to be a video facsimile, or if the tribes consider fantasy sports to be a casino game.

More of Daily Fantasy Sports Headlines

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Daily Fantasy Sports Sites Potentially in Violation of Seven Patents

House Committee Advances Fantasy Sports Bill in Tennessee

Illinois Rep on DFS Status in State: 'We Need to Get Out of Business of Banning Things

Fantasy Sports Fueling a Rise in Online Gambling Addiction

Lawyer: AG Letter Helps AL Lawsuit; People Who Played Fantasy Sports May Get Money Back

Missouri DFS Bill Would Not Make Sites Subject to State Gambling Laws

NY Assemblyman Talks Potential for Legal Online Poker, DFS in State