Tal Itzhak Ron and Kovi Skier, both of Tal Ron, Drihem & Co, take a look at two key emerging trends in the gaming industry – and the legal implications.
EVERY now and then a new trend comes along that simply dominates the competition and becomes the defining innovation for its time.
We’re still at too early a stage to know if or when one such trend will emerge from the pack in 2015, so for the time being we can only wait and see. But there are definitely a few trends that we’ll be keeping a close eye on this year.
Lottery messengers This is a trend that picked up steam in 2014 and we can expect to see further growth in the coming year. The name gives the game away: it’s essentially a trend in which brokers will allow internationals to purchase – by proxy – lottery tickets in high-stakes lotteries occurring in other jurisdictions.
Many of these lotteries, such as in the US, require that ticket-holders be residents of the host country, which is where the need for the “messenger” comes in. The messenger buys the tickets, sends the information to the client and redeems the prize in the event of a winning ticket. This practice is in style for big spenders living in countries with less-than-lucrative local gaming options.
Currently, lottery messengers come in two forms. In the “courier service” model of business, the operation involves a physical courier buying tickets, very much as described above. Despite the logistical limitations and expenses inherent in this model, the interesting part of it is that – according to brokers currently operating in the field – the broker isn’t actually offering a wagering service, but merely providing access to an existing one, and, as such, does not need to be licensed or regulated.
The second form of lottery messengers – known as the “insurance model” – does not require the broker to physically purchase tickets at all, but rather, to take the players’ wagers on the projected outcome of said real-life lotteries. While this model offers clear advantages to the broker, it is also classified as gaming, since the broker is betting against the player on the outcome of the lottery, essentially forming a “contract for difference”. However, for these purposes, there are plenty of licences available for betting on real-world events or sporting events, which brokers can avail themselves of.
Read the full article in the latest issue of iNTERGAMINGi
