Pennsylvania clarifies cumbersome skins regulations

Pennsylvania has issued a new explanatory document to help operators better understand the regulation of skins in the market.

In the document, the regulator confirms wording that any sub-licensed sites, or skins, must clearly display the branding of the primary licence holder.

According to the PGCB: “Clear and prominent display includes, at a minimum, identifying the interactive gaming certificate holder in the URL/web address AND clear branding on the interactive gaming site or application.

“For instance, an interactive gaming website or app offered by an interactive gaming operator or skin should include the name of the certificate holder.”

In practice in New Jersey for instance it might mean Betfair would operate under betfaircasino.gldennugget.com.

The new document also clarifies that players can only have one document for each licence holder. Whether that means one account can be sued for all skins on that site, or whether they are restricted to one, is still unclear.

Penn Gaming and 888 both told EGR they were still considering the language of the regulations.

“I think it provides further clarity, but needs some more work so we can actually fine-tune our approach to the market, as I imagine other operators are doing,” said 888 SVP Yaniv Sherman.

Dermot Smurfit the CEO of platform provider GAN was also critical, adding: “I think the PGCB has offered a political solution to a loud debate with two diametrically opposing positions. Basically, you can have skins, but you probably won’t want them.

“Even worse, every webpage needs the licence holder’s logo slapped on it. Who’s going to sign up to that, exactly?”.