A sports betting operator was hit with a $7,000 civil fine by the California Lottery Commission on September 27 for reaching out to prospective players via email after they had previously opted out of receiving promotional offers.

In late August, Gamewise, which manages online and mobile sports betting for Delaware North, the owner of Wheeling Island Casino, self-reported the marketing error to the West Virginia Lottery. For individuals who unintentionally got the email, Gamewise Team Leader Todd San Jule informed the commission that they were unable to place bets.

He expressed his apology to the Lottery. The appropriate safeguards have been put in place to ensure that this doesn’t occur again.

This isn’t the only gambling-related legal case, as After GeoComply’s case was dismissed earlier this year by Judge William Bryson of the United States District Court of Delaware, Xpoint Services has been granted permission to operate in West Virginia and provide operators with its product.

For every one of the seventy users that were contacted, Gamewise will now be fined $100 by the commission. John Myers, director of the state lottery, said that although Gamewise did self-report, the issue wasn’t discovered by the company right away.

Companies that violate the rules may be fined up to $50,000 by the Lottery Commission. According to Myers, there is a purpose behind the law.

It was a programming fault, he said, but it wasn’t anything they did on purpose; they needed to demonstrate that West Virginia takes these kinds of things seriously. Because individuals want to be sure they are protected if they have a gambling-related problem.

San Jule said it was the first infraction of this nature for the business. It’s a reputational blow, he said. They accept accountability.

Relicensing of Racetrack Casinos

Additionally, the yearly relicensing of the racetrack casinos in Charles Town, Chester, Wheeling, and Nitro received final approval on September 27 from the Lottery Commission. According to Myers, the financial data for each of the four sites is reliable. He said that other states are still competing with them for gaming revenue.

According to Myers, it occurs in cycles. Although sales are a touch lower at the casinos and at LVLs (Limited Video Lottery locations) this FY compared to 2022, which was really an excellent year, traditional sales are up.

August saw just under $111 million in total lottery winnings, with roughly $25 million coming from conventional purchases and around $40 million from each of the Racetrack and Limited video lotteries.

Powerball Expanding

The Powerball jackpot kept increasing before the drawing on the night of September 27.

By afternoon, it had reached $850 million, the fourth-highest prize in Powerball history.

According to Myers, the inclusion of a weekly drawing has resulted in jackpots that are expanding more frequently. The third day of the week drawing, he said, has had a significant impact on how quickly the jackpot increases.