Massachusetts regulators approved another temporary license to operate online sports betting sites in the Bay State, but the recipient plans on being a late entry into New England’s latest mobile wagering market.
The Massachusetts Gaming Commission (MGC) met Tuesday and voted to issue a one-year wagering license to Digital Gaming Corp. (DGC), the company that will offer Betway in the Bay State.
March 10 is the tentative start date for the mobile component of Massachusetts sports betting, and Betway’s license would allow it to start accepting action as early as that date. However, that won't happen, as the online sportsbook has indicated to regulators they will not go live in Massachusetts for about a year.
Sort it out
There had also been a bit of confusion on Betway’s part about when it had to apply for the license and submit the $1 million fee for the temporary license given its plans for a later launch and DGC’s recent acquisition by Super Group Ltd. Nine operators were issued their temporary permits last week, but the MGC decided to wait on doing the same for Betway.
On Tuesday, though, the commission heard DGC had submitted their official request for a temporary license and the $1 million fee.
“They have fulfilled all the requirements in order to receive a temporary license,” MGC Executive Director Karen Wells said during the meeting. “Obviously, they will still be needing their operations certificate in order to go live, but the request is that this morning, the commissioners approve their temporary license to go forward.”
The MGC’s commissioners then voted 5-0 in favor of awarding the license to DGC. That means 10 online sportsbook operators have received the temporary permit, although only seven are on track to launch on March 10. The seven are:
Bally Bet and Fanatics were awarded temporary sports betting licenses last week by the MGC as well, but both have informed the commission that they plan to launch in May, not March. Meanwhile, PointsBet, which was found preliminarily suitable for a temporary license, recently told the MGC it was withdrawing its application.
"We have chosen this path to emphasize our continued focus on our 14 live states of the US (plus Ontario) and how we can best optimize those markets which provide an immense TAM for us to go after,” a spokesperson told Covers in an email.
“We would like to thank the Massachusetts Gaming Commission for their consideration of our application, conducting extensive hearings, and deeming PointsBet suitable for licensure ahead of the launch of legalized sports wagering in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts."
