In a move that looked almost impossible a month ago, legislators have passed sports betting in Washington State. Governor Jay Inslee signed the sports wagering bill into law this week and said it allows betting on a wide range of sports, including college games, professional events, overseas leagues, the Olympic games and World Cup competitions. However, due to the current Coronavirus closures of casinos in the state, it will be months before sports fans can actually place any bets on games. Additionally, the tribes have to negotiate regulatory agreements with the state, and obviously the sports leagues have to start…

This week we’re tackling a story about a Washington State lawsuit over free play casino games, alleging Big Fish games illegal gambling activity. One ‘interesting’ player has alleged that Big Fish games use “illegal gambling tactics” in their free play games, and that selling chips constitutes gambling. Washington state has a long history of being aggressive towards our industry, even when there is no money being wagered! And this suit against Big Fish games could have interesting implications for our industry. Also, word has come that Sheldon Adelson is in failing health. Be sure to check out this week’s sponsor,…

State legislators are to hold hearings this week on a bill that could legalize Washington State sports betting after decades of it being banned. House Bill 1975, sponsored by Majority Caucus Chair Eric Pettigrew (D) and seven others, calls for professional and college sports wagering to be legalized within tribal gaming facilities. The bill, introduced last Friday, also calls for the legalization of online sports gaming within those same tribal facilities — which would represent a significant shift for the nation’s only state where any form of internet gambling is currently a Class C felony. At least one regulator predicts…

Korean social casino game operator DoubleUGames said on April 15 that a lawsuit filed against its US affiliate DoubleDown Interact would have limited impact. DoubleUGames’ statement came after a class action suit was filed against four social casino game companies including DDI in Washington on April 12, following a court ruling on March 28 terming operations of US-based Big Fish Casino as illegal online gambling as per state law. “We believe that the ruling of the Ninth Circuit of US Court of Appeals on Big Fish Casino is quite unusual,” the company said in a statement, citing four previous cases…

In Washington State, class action lawsuits have been filed against four social gaming sites in which the operators are alleged to have violated state law by charging customers to compete in play money casino games. Those followed suit on a case against online site Big Fish Casino that had been initially dismissed back in 2015 when filed by a player, but was then overturned by the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals in March. Cheryl Kater, a customer of Big Fish Casino, filed a lawsuit against the social casino in 2015, claiming she paid for play money chips which, of course,…