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Sunday, June 5, 2022

Bet On Big Tech and Social Media News Developments

Sunday, April 24, 2022

OpenSea Delists Sands Vegas Casino Club NFTs after Cease & Desist Orders

OpenSea Delists Sands Vegas Casino Club NFTs after Cease & Desist Orders

OpenSea Delists Sands Vegas Casino Club Gambler NFTs.

This month two U.S states issued cease-and-desist orders to Sands Vegas Casino Club for NFT sales.

Sands Vegas Casino Club reportedly sold NFTs to fund a Metaverse casino, classifying them as securities.

It has been a mixed year for leading NFT marketplace OpenSea. In January, OpenSea saw trading volumes hit a record high before a sharp decline through February and March.

NFT market conditions have improved in April, with OpenSea Ethereum (ETH) based NFT trading volumes already sitting above March levels.

According to Dune Analytics, Ethereum-based NFT trading volume for April sits at $2.68bn with a week to go. For March, trading volumes stood at $2.49bn.

With NFT market conditions improving, OpenSea appears to be taking a more cautious approach to avoid regulatory fallout.

OpenSea Delists Sands Vegas Casino Club NFT Sales

This week, OpenSea suspended the sale of Sands Vegas Casino Club Gambler Ape NFTs. This time last week, OpenSea continued to allow the trading of the Gambler NFTs despite regulatory action against the virtual casino.

According to the Sand Vegas roadmap, Sand Vegas Casino acquired 27 plots in Sandbox in January 2022. The virtual casino aimed to meet all regulatory/legal requirements between March and August 2022.

The OpenSea Help Center states that it delists NFTs if it determines the NFT to:

The delisting will cut a funding source for the virtual casino.

Owners of the Gambler NFTs purportedly share in half the casino profits generated.

The OpenSea delisting follows the cease & desist orders from the states of Texas and Alabama.

While the casino website is still up and running and states that the SVCC NFTs are sold out, the Twitter account @sandsvegascasino no longer exists.

Alabama and Texas Issue Sands Vegas Cease-and-Desist Orders

This month FX Empire reported on Alabama and Texas issuing Sands Vegas Casino Club with cease-and-desist orders.

The two states said that the online casino sold NFTs to fund operations. According to the state laws of Alabama and Texas, the NFTs constituted an illegal securities offering.

The Texas State Securities Board press release stated that the virtual casino offered,

“11,111 Gambler NFTs in connection with their development metaverse casinos in popular metaverses such as the Sandbox (SAND), Decentraland (MANA), Infinity Void, and NFT Worlds.”

The press release went on to say,

“Gamblers, acting through avatars, can enter the metaverse casino and play poker and other games using cryptocurrencies. Purchasers of the Gambler NFTs profit from these operations. Not only do they become owners of the metaverse casinos, but they also purportedly share in half the profits generated.”

Tuesday, March 15, 2022

Blog update: Controversial Las Vegas Strip Casino Operator May Make a Big Change

Controversial Las Vegas Strip Casino Operator May Make a Big Change

The company operates casinos on the Las Vegas Strip as well as all over the country while also owning Barstool Sports.

Las Vegas never stops changing. In recent months we've learned that MGM Resorts International will sell The Mirage to Hard Rock International while Rival Caesar's Entertainment (CZR) - Get Caesars Entertainment Inc Report plans to rebrand its Bally's property under its Horseshoe brand. That's, of course, because the actual Bally's Corporation (BALY) - Get Bally's Corporation Report has made a deal to buy the non-land assets of the Tropicana in order to turn it into a Bally's.

At the moment, Bally's does not operate The Tropicana, that property is run by Penn National Gaming (PENN) - Get Penn National Gaming, Inc. Report, which sold the property to Gaming and Leisure Properties (GLPI) - Get Gaming and Leisure Properties, Inc. Report which licensed back the operating rights to the casino to Penn National.

That deal expires at some point in 2024, when you have to assume the property's new owner, Bally's, will actually run it, though it could license some of its operations to Penn.

Confused? It's Las Vegas where everything feels iconic even if it's new. Now, Penn National Gaming may be making a big change.

Penn Owns Barstool Sports and theScore

Penn, at least for the moment, operates multiple properties on the famed Las Vegas Strip. The Penn name isn't actually all that well known as it's not on any of its properties. Penn does, however, own a controlling stake in Barstool Sports, a controversial sports and lifestyle brand with a huge following among millennials.

The Barstool name appears not just on its website, but also on Penn's online sportsbook which now operates its app in 12 states. That makes Penn a competitor to Caesars and MGM not just in the brick-and-mortar casino world, but also in the growing digital gambling space.

Penn recently closed on its acquisition of theScore, a sports media company that also has its own betting app. As the owner of these two brands, Penn may want to change how people see it and a new patent application suggests it wants to change its name.

Trademark attorney Josh Gerben first shared the news that Penn could be looking to change its name on Twitter.

"The filings include international patent classifications for “downloadable mobile applications for playing casino games, sports betting, live-action betting games, and off-track betting.” The applications also seek trademarks for the aforementioned names for “casino services” and restaurant, bar, café, and hotel services.," Casino.org reported.

Why Does Penn's Name Change Matter?

Penn's move speaks more to a change in how it sees its operations than it does anything else. The company didn't opt to brand itself to Barstool or theScore, but it has embraced those two brands. CEO Jay Snowden explained those changes in his company's fourth-quarter earnings call.

"In the fourth quarter, we successfully advanced several of our long-term strategic objectives. Most significantly, we closed on our acquisition of theScore, a transaction that provides us with another powerful sports media brand, loyal audience, and full control of our product and technology road map," he said. "Looking ahead a year from now, we also have the opportunity to fully own Barstool Sports, which together with theScore, will mark our transformation into a major media and entertainment company."

Snowden no longer sees his company as a gaming brand. That's a core part of its offering, but it's not how he defines the company. He sees the Barstool and theScore brands as feeding the company's regional portfolio of casinos with customers.

"We are also very fortunate to have two dynamic and growing customer acquisition funnels in Barstool Sports and theScore, together with our leading portfolio of retail casinos and sportsbooks that provide us with highly effective organic marketing and monetization opportunities without the need to incur massive losses to compete," he added. "And we're going to stay committed to our strategy of leveraging these strengths."

(The Street)