Add Sweepstakes Casino Controversy - And Celebrities' All-important Role
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<br>The smiling faces of Paris Hilton and Ryan Seacrest made surprise appearances before the Louisiana Senate for Friday's hearing on illegal [sports betting](https://www.facetwig.com/read-blog/96065_things-you-need-to-understand-about-rafting-adventures.html).<br>
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<br>No, they weren't personally in attendance, but the world-famous celebrities were notably included in a slide presentation on social and sweepstakes gambling establishments - the questionable sites offering both free casino-style video games and profitable rewards, such as money, present cards or cryptocurrency. In one advertisement, the fist-pumping Seacrest is seen plugging Chumba Casino, where anyone can 'play for free,' while a [crop-topped Hilton](https://wiki.rrtn.org/wiki/index.php/User:StephenGarratt) holds a chip for sweepstakes operator, Wow Vegas, in the other.<br>
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<br>The websites are just 2 cogs in the multibillion-dollar industry that now discovers itself besieged by suits. In the eyes of numerous gaming corporations, not to mention suit plaintiffs and state regulators, sweepstakes casinos serve as standard casinos, only without the oversight, consumer defenses and tax laws. So not only can they prevent the steep 24-percent federal [sports betting](https://truthbook.social/read-blog/8348_how-are-betting-odds-calculated.html) levy, but sweepstakes operators aren't based on regulatory difficulties like anti-money laundering and responsible-gaming protections.<br>
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<br>One operator, Australia-based Virtual Gaming Worlds (VGW), reported $4 billion in revenue in 2015 alone. Now the company deals with allegations of illegal gambling in a New york city claim that claims VGW utilizes celebrity endorsers to 'develop a veneer of legitimacy' around its item. (See VGW's declaration listed below)<br>
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<br>'I'm uncertain" if you do not trust us, you can trust Paris Hilton" is a winning message for companies operating multibillion-dollar prohibited operations out of places like Malta, Isle of Man, or US mail drops,' Friday's speaker, Howard Glaser of video gaming corporation Light & Wonder, told DailyMail.com.<br>[bet9ja.com](https://register.bet9ja.com/?btag=yohaig&promocode=yohaig)
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<br>Sweepstakes endorsers consist of a range of stars from gambling enthusiasts Drake and DJ Khaled to swimmer Michael Phelps, along with NBA stars Karl-Anthony Towns and Paul George - none of whom offer any differences in between traditional gambling and sweepstakes play.<br>
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<br>Paris Hilton is seen plugging Wow Vegas, one of numerous sweepstakes gambling establishments discovered online<br>
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<br>Ryan Seacrest prompts fans to play at Chumba Casino, where numerous - but not all - video games are complimentary<br>
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<br>Drake has a deal with social sweeps casino, Stake, that he regularly promotes on social networks<br>
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<br>Donald Trump 'set to call NBA group owner as US ambassador to Italy'<br>
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<br>Instead, advertisements normally focus around the social aspect of the casinos, while leaving out the potential for real gambling losses.<br>
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<br>Others tempt clients with promises of prizes. One such operator, Stake, ran a social media advertisement flaunting Drake's cars and trucks, aircrafts and estates before rotating to footage of the rapper playing online casino-style games.<br>
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<br>'Daddy, why do we have a lot money?' read the very first caption on the screen.<br>
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<br>Another caption explained: 'Because I never ever quit.'<br>
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<br>The discrepancy in between gambling websites and social or sweepstakes gambling establishments is a bit intricate, but operators of the latter insist they're not included with the former.<br>
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<br>A spokesperson for a market trade group, the Social and Promotional Gaming Association (SPGA), explained its members are not in direct competition with online casinos and sportsbooks. Furthermore, according to SPGA information, many of the gamers on social-sweepstakes gambling establishments are playing for totally free.<br>
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<br>'Most social sweeps consumers never make a purchase,' the SPGA representative informed DailyMail.com. 'The minority of consumers who make purchases do so in amounts far smaller than the normal deposit or bet size at real-money online [sports betting](https://collegetalks.site/read-blog/11744_tennessee-sports-betting-top-4-legal-betting-sites-in-2024.html) websites.'<br>
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<br>Social casinos use consumers a chance to play casino-style video games with friends. Players have the option to buy valueless currency often described as 'gold coins,' which can not be exchanged for real money, but can be used to open various functions within the video games.<br>
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<br>But within the world of social gambling establishments exists sweepstakes video gaming, allowing clients to get other currency called 'sweeps coins' that can be exchanged for cash or other rewards.<br>
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<br>And therein lies the capacity for monetary losses, like the ones claimed by complainants in Florida, Georgia, New Jersey and New York City. One gamer told the Washington Post he lost more than $100,000 on sweepstakes gambling establishments in the previous year after continuing to purchase more coins in pursuit of money and other things of value.<br>
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<br>The Philadelphia 76ers' Paul George is seen [promoting](https://palkwall.com/read-blog/27740_for-sports-gambling-to-be-legalised.html) a Global Poker event<br>
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<br>Social sweeps gambling establishment Stake ran an advertisement showing off Drake's cars and trucks, planes and estates<br>
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<br>Karl-Anthony Towns of the New York Knicks is another NBA star plugging VGW's Global Poker<br>
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<br>Traditional online gambling establishments are banned in all but 7 states, which has assisted to sustain the appeal of [sweepstakes casinos](https://lidoo.com.br/read-blog/14606_for-sports-gambling-to-be-legalised.html).<br>
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<br>Anyone over the age of 18 can access the sweepstakes sites, which don't require normally require recognition. However, sites like Chumba will ask for IDs from gamers trying to withdraw any funds.<br>[bet9ja.com](https://register.bet9ja.com/?btag=yohaig&promocode=yohaig)
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<br>Many sites, like the crypto-compatible Stake, permit clients to send mail-in demands for free sweeps coins, offered the gamers follow painfully specific guidelines. What's more, gamers are often rewarded with sweeps coins simply for signing up, thereby providing a reason to try their hands at any number of gambling establishment games for a possibility to win - or lose - real money.<br>
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<br>So why are sweepstakes sites enabled to operate in 48 states, while online casinos are banned in all but 7?<br>
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<br>According to the stakeholders, their product is the totally free casino-style video gaming, and the real-stakes competitors is merely a method of [promoting](https://octomo.co.uk/read-blog/6566_things-you-need-to-learn-about-rafting-adventures.html) their support.<br>
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<br> games are just a type of online entertainment,' an SPGA spokesperson told DailyMail.com by e-mail. 'No purchase is required to play at social casinos with sweepstakes prizes. Consumers never need to pay for a chance to win rewards. That lack of a purchase requirement - or" factor to consider" - is an important difference between social sweeps and conventional online [sports betting](https://lubuzz.com/read-blog/84_things-you-need-to-know-about-rafting-adventures.html) websites like casinos.'<br>
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<br>Consider the way that McDonald's uses its yearly Monopoly game to promote its food: Customers aren't paying to gamble, but rather they're purchasing hamburgers and fries that use them the opportunity to win profitable rewards, such as a $1 million prize.<br>
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<br>And without a purchase requirement, or 'consideration', the video game itself doesn't fulfill the meaning of gaming in the US.<br>
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<br>'Sweepstakes are a long-standing technique for promoting all sort of everyday businesses in the United States, whatever from burgers to publication memberships to coffee and home improvement shops,' the SPGA representative told DailyMail.com. 'Sweepstakes promos are routinely used by a who's who of home names like AT&T, Chase, Home Depot, Marriott, Starbucks, and Wal-Mart.'<br>
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<br>But to lots of gambling market insiders, that argument does not cut it.<br>
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<br>For beginners, video gaming lawyer Daniel Wallach mentions, McDonald's Monopoly video game doesn't run forever. Rather, it has a distinct beginning and end, thereby recommending the sweepstakes is not the fast-food giant's primary product. Instead, the sweepstakes is being utilized to promote genuine products like fries, shakes, and the Filet-O-Fish.<br>
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<br>'They don't last permanently and they're typically not [connected](https://embargo.energy/index.php/User:OPXJasmine) to casino-style games of opportunity,' Wallach informed DailyMail.com. 'They're just cash free gifts.<br>
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<br>'The sweepstakes [gambling establishments] possess none of the characteristics commonly connected with McDonald's-design sweepstakes promotions,' Wallach continued. 'Besides running in eternity, the sweepstakes gambling establishments offer" casino-like" payouts, normally 80 percent or more of profits, whereas the typical payment portion for a momentary marketing sweepstakes is a trivial share of the revenue made by the company [normally less than one percent]'<br>
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<br>Wallach fasts to liken the online social sweeps gambling establishments to the internet coffee shops that emerged in Florida, providing customers the opportunity to play casino-style games for genuine prizes. A lot of those brick-and-mortar establishments have because been shuttered over [allegations](https://philadelphiaflyersclub.com/read-blog/8457_warner-bros-discovery-sets-stage-for-potential-cable-deal-by.html) of unlawful gaming.<br>
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<br>DJ Khaled is among several star spokespeople for VGW's Global Poker brand name<br>
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<br>Now, Wallach argues, social sweeps gambling establishments should face similar scrutiny.<br>
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<br>'These distinctions are not approximate,' Wallach said of social sweeps gambling establishments. 'They have repeatedly been cited by courts and state chief law officer as crucial consider figuring out that a sweepstakes promotion was in reality a guise for illegal [sports betting](http://woorichat.com/read-blog/10319_sweepstakes-casino-controversy-and-celebrities-039-all-important-role.html).'<br>
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<br>Among the gambling establishment industry's leading trade companies, the American Gaming Association, is now pressing lawmakers to investigate sweepstakes operators and, sometimes, enact brand-new legislation on the problem.<br>
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<br>'Consumers are being denied of securities and states are giving up significant tax and earnings chances as this gaming replaces that performed through controlled channels,' read a well-circulated AGA memo.<br>
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<br>And then there are the plaintiffs who have taken legal action against social gambling establishments in more than a dozen states.<br>
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<br>Sweepstakes casino operators paid a combined $14.2 million in 4 different cases in Kentucky without confessing any misdeed, according to the Washington Post. Meanwhile VGW accepted pay $11.75 million in one class-action lawsuit, saying the settlement was made to avoid legal expenses and continued litigation.<br>
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<br>Michael Phelps has actually signed a deal with the VGW Group, which owns Global Poker<br>
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<br>In the current suit, which is largely comparable to its predecessors, New York state locals Lamar Prater and Rebecca Pratt both declare to have lost well over $1,000 to VGW, which is described in the filing as an 'prohibited [sports betting](https://forum.petstory.ge/read-blog/3400_how-to-withdraw-from-bet9ja-8-step-guide-to-money-in-your-wins.html) enterprise. '<br>
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<br>Apple and Google have also been called as defendants in claims for hosting the sweepstakes websites. But unlike VGW, neither tech company reacted to DailyMail.com's request for comment.<br>
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<br>'We normally don't discuss matters before the courts,' a VGW spokesperson told DailyMail.com by means of e-mail. 'However, we keep in mind that this claim has only just been filed with the court and VGW has actually not been formally served.<br>
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<br>'We have full confidence in our compliance with all laws and policies where we run, and stay positive about the future,' the representative continued. 'We continue to offer our free-to-play games across most of North America, as we have for more than a decade, producing not just excellent video games, user experiences and home entertainment, however likewise guaranteeing this is done safely, responsibly and at the highest level of requirements.<br>[bet9ja.com](https://register.bet9ja.com/?btag=yohaig&promocode=yohaig)
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<br>'More broadly, we 'd reiterate that class actions and other lawsuits and arbitrations are relatively common across the online social video games market (and the US more broadly), and our basic practice is that we plan to vigorously defend any claim which may be brought versus us.'<br>
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<br>The concerns in between conventional online gaming and [sweepstakes gambling](https://www.grandtribunal.org/wiki/User:FlorianBlackwell) establishments could prove problematic for some celebrity endorsers.<br>
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<br>Towns, a star center with the Knicks, and the 76ers' George both back VGW's Global Poker brand name while the NBA is partnered with standard gaming titans like FanDuel and DraftKings.<br>
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<br>'It's paradoxical that expert athletes are hawking unlawful [sports betting](https://southwales.com/read-blog/304_exploring-the-sports-betting-industry-putting-ideas-into-practice.html) 'sweeps' sites while at the same time the leagues want to forecast a strong position against unlawful [sports betting](https://sensualmarketplace.com/read-blog/6442_exploring-the-sports-betting-industry-putting-ideas-into-practice.html) - specifically when trying to tamp down the occasional gaming scandal,' Glaser informed DailyMail.com.<br>
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<br>It was simply eight months ago that Toronto Raptors forward Jontay Porter [received](http://touringtreffen.nl/read-blog/2370_compare-amp-review-oddsjet-de.html) a life time restriction from the NBA over claims he conspired with [bettors](https://youtoosocialnetwork.com/read-blog/1295_uk-betting-firms-gamble-on-us-after-sports-wager-ruling.html). However, to be clear, Porter's scandal is unassociated to anything involving social or sweepstakes gambling establishments.<br>
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<br>Along with VGW, Apple and Google are being taken legal action against for hosting supposedly illegal gambling sites<br>
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<br>Regardless, Glaser sees sweepstakes gambling establishments as a significant concern for leagues such as the NBA.<br>
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<br>'I 'd anticipate that a league crackdown on professional athletes endorsing sweepstakes websites refers when, not if,' Glaser added.<br>
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<br>Neither an NBA spokesman nor the players' agents reacted to DailyMail.com's demands for comment. For that matter, spokespeople for Drake, DJ Khaled, Hilton, Seacrest and Phelps also ignored to react to DailyMail.com e-mails.<br>
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<br>Asked if their celeb endorsers have an obligation to [explain](https://pipewiki.org/wiki/index.php/User:BTOGabriel) to clients the [differences](https://globalunitedspirits.com/read-blog/3450_how-to-play-bet9ja-online.html) and similarities between iGaming and [sweepstakes](https://globalairgunner.com/read-blog/20336_just-how-much-are-americans-investing-in-sports-betting.html) casinos, VGW insisted there is nothing more that requires to be done.<br>
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<br>'We have full self-confidence in our influencer and ambassadorial collaborations, and our company practices more broadly,' the spokesperson said. 'Some of our values are" our players come first" and" we do what's right", and we put our worths at the core of whatever we do.'<br>[bit.ly](https://bit.ly/Bet9jaPromotionCodeYOHAIG)
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<br>Glaser, an outspoken opponent of [sweepstakes](https://letustalk.co.in/read-blog/11518_just-how-much-are-americans-investing-in-sports-betting.html) websites, sees things in a different way.<br>
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<br>['Celebrities](https://droidt99.com/read-blog/7000_the-ins-and-outs-of-betting-on-the-nfl-draft.html) who lend their names to shady prohibited gaming websites are, at a minimum, putting their track records at threat along with [courting civil](https://jamboz.com/read-blog/139_how-much-are-americans-investing-in-sports-betting.html) and class actions by consumers who declare damage,' Glaser said. 'There is also some risk that state regulators and state attorney generals of the United States rope star endorsers into enforcement efforts for assisting in prohibited [sports betting](https://namesdev.com/read-blog/15170_how-to-attract-users-to-my-fantasy-sports-platform.html).'<br>
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