Legal Tennessee sports betting is coming into focus after the state’s House of Representatives passed a bill on April 24th, while its companion bill is headed for a floor vote in the Senate. The Tennessee bill has undergone a series of changes during its passage through the state House. Language permitting bricks and mortar betting has been removed, meaning Tennessee would become the first state to legalize online wagering only. Meanwhile, the state senate is set to hold a debate on a bill that would allow certain forms of sports betting in Louisiana. The bill, known as the Louisiana Sports…

Bitcoin has been outperforming other digital currencies lately, increasing its share of the broader market as prices climb. The world’s largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization (market cap) reached $5,641.36 today on CoinMarketCap, its highest since November. The digital asset later pulled back, trading at $5,473.03 by 13:34 UTC, additional CoinMarketCap data shows. At this point, bitcoin was up 4.4% for the week, while several altcoins (cryptocurrencies other than bitcoin) were in the red. [Ed note: Investing in crypto coins or tokens is highly speculative and the market is largely unregulated. Anyone considering it should be prepared to lose their entire…

The owner of PartyPoker, GVC Holdings, has confirmed that its Fraud Team closed 277 PartyPoker bots accounts between December 2018 and March 2019, leading to nearly $735,000 in associated funds being returned to players. The bots are computer programs that are created to play against human opponents or other pieces of software, giving some players an unfair advantage. PartyPoker said that its specialist Poker Fraud Team, comprising a collection of former poker professionals who are equipped with the necessary knowledge and expertise to investigate suspicious activities, had been a key driver in the clampdown. Since the start of December, more…

After disagreement over the possibility of remote gambling, mobile Indiana sports betting is looking more and more like a real possibility. The state conference committee is reinserting provisions for the apps into the bill as it approaches the finish line. Disagreements across chambers primarily involved non-sports aspects of the bill concerning adjustments to casino licenses and location. As expected, most of Monday’s hearing orbited around those provisions. Mobile was one of the few sticking points within the sports betting language. The Senate bill authorized statewide mobile wagering as passed, but narrow opposition in the House nearly killed the bill entirely….

Nearly 18 months after the governor signed the enabling legislation, Pennsylvania online gambling finally has a launch date that’s  just 90 days away. An announcement from Gaming Control Board Executive Director Kevin O’Toole now says that the “go-live period” for online gaming will begin July 15, 2019. O’Toole’s timeline falls in line with reporting from Play Pennsylvania, which has been projecting a midyear launch for several months. Sources also expect the first PA online sports books to go live in the coming weeks — even prior to online poker sites. If things go smoothly over the next three months, the…

Another battle over the alleged illegality of skins betting is brewing… alleging the activity is allowing online gambling in Washington state. The Quinault Indian Nation has sued Valve Software, the owner and developer of Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, one of the most prominent games offering skins-based “gambling” activity as a way to generate corporate revenue. Despite the actual skins-based trading technically taking place on third-party sites, the lawsuit brought by the Quinault Nation asserts that Valve intentionally fostered and continues to benefit from an illegal-gambling environment aimed at consumers of all ages. Though skins trading often receives public and legal heat…