News and Analysis
North Carolina Preps Sports Betting Rules
The North Carolina Lottery Commission has officially begun to prepare for the launch of sports betting in the state, which is due to go live by summer 2024. The Commission started the rule-making process on October 17th. It is currently open to public comment until November 1st.
HB 347 was passed into law in June, legalizing sports betting in NC and stating that the new regulations must be finalized by January 8th, 2024, with the market opening by June 14th at the latest (many speculate a February or March launch due to the SuperBowl and March Madness). The current proposals include banning fantasy sports, which will come into force unless challenged.
North Carolina is not the only state turning its attention to DFS, as earlier this month, New York regulators agreed on Rule 5602.1(a)(4) to ban fantasy sports games that mimic real money prop betting.
EveryMatrix and betParx Agree to Multi-State Content Deal
SlotMatrix (part of the EveryMatrix Group) and betParx have agreed on a multi-state content deal to expand betParx Casino's offering. The deal will provide betParx with content from the distributor's 22,500+ games and 300 partner studios aligned with the brand, cross-product bonuses, and gamification tools, including free spins and tournaments.
EveryMatrix holds supplier licenses in New Jersey. Michigan, West Virginia, and Connecticut, with an application underway in Pennsylvania. The aggregator already has agreements with multiple iGaming operators in the US.
Revenue Roundups, September 2023
New Jersey
Gambling revenue in NJ is up 7.5% YoY for September, hitting $521.5m. This is slightly down on the previous month's earnings of $531.6m. Overall, YoY, land-based gaming was down 2.1%, with iGaming growing by 21.1% and slots accounting for most of the growth in this sector. Sports betting was also up by 13.4% YoY.
Pennsylvania
In PA, gambling revenue grew by 6.2% YoY in September, with total revenue at $476.3m. Online casinos in PA showed the most considerable growth, increasing by 41.5% to $159.5m and setting a new record for monthly iGaming revenue. Hollywood Casino was the frontrunner, followed by FanDuel, then BetRivers in third place. Conversely, sports betting revenue fell by 27.1% YoY.
Delaware
Most unexpectedly, Delaware also saw monthly gains, with sports betting revenue up 208.9% on August 2023, while iGaming increased by 21.3% compared with the previous month. Sadly, this didn't compute YoY gains for sports betting, with figures down 65.5%. iGaming showed a slight increase of 3.4% YoY.
Michigan
Lastly, in Michigan, gross internet gaming and sports betting receipts from commercial and tribal operators increased 19.2% YoY, hitting $210.4m in September. Online casinos in Michigan generated the majority ($166.4m), representing a 29.3% YoY increase, while sports betting fell by 8%.
Game of the Week
Rich Little Piggies Meal Ticket by Light & Wonder, RTP: 96%
Enough of the serious business; it's time to turn our attention to online slots. This week, we're discussing Rich Little Piggies Meal Ticket from Light & Wonder. It's a medium volatility number, set on 5x3 reels, with 25 lines, a whopping max win of 12,500x. It's also among the most popular online slots currently available at US casinos.
When you open this slot, it's not much to look at and even feels a bit dated, but that's not why you're playing; this game is all about the jackpot and bonus appeal. To start making wins, you need to match 3-5 symbols on a bet line from left to right. The Wild symbol can help you create wins by subbing for any symbol that isn't a Blue, Red, or Yellow Coin (these are the bonus symbols). The higher-value symbols are the Piggies and Vault.
During any spin, a number of Mystery Symbols can fall on the reels and reveal matching symbols or coins. The coins are collected by the matching color Piggie sitting atop the reels.
When coins are collected, they can either trigger the Red, Yellow, or Blue bonus round or enhance the round for the next trigger:
- Blue Coins correspond to free spins if they trigger the round; if not, each coin adds an extra spin to your next trigger. When you play the Blue round, you get the number of free spins shown on the meter, which maxes out at 100 and resets at 9.
- Yellow Coins can lead to the jackpot free spin bonus round, where Mystery Symbols are collected and reveal jackpot prizes. If a Yellow Coin doesn't trigger the bonus, it adds 0.25x-6.75x the current bet to the Major, Maxi, Minor, or Mini jackpot meter.
- Lastly, the Red Coin triggers free spins or removes a low-paying symbol from the Red Piggie Metre for the next free spins round. During the round, Mystery Symbols are active and reveal only high-paying symbols.
Ready to play and see what you can win? Then set your bets from $0.20 up to $24 and take it for a spin at these top-rated Light & Wonder Casinos in the USA!