PointsBet Receives Online Gambling, Sports Wagering Licenses in Pennsylvania

PA regulator confirms Australian bookmaker will be on the Hollywood Casino York license, under agreement with Penn National Gaming.
PointsBet Receives Online Gambling, Sports Wagering Licenses in Pennsylvania
By
with contributions from .
January 21, 2022

PointsBet PA has been granted online sports wagering and interactive gaming operator licenses by the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board (PGCB). The operator plans to launch its sports betting and iGaming platforms in the Keystone State soon.

PointsBet will enter the market in cooperation with Penn National Gaming (PNG). PGCB spokesman Doug Harbach confirmed to Pennsylvania Gaming Review that PointsBet will be on the land-based casino license of Hollywood Casino York, which PNG owns.

The Australian bookmaker entered the regulated online gambling market in the US in January 2019 and has since launched operations in more than half a dozen states. Following its recent launch in New York, Pennsylvania marks the tenth state in which PointsBet is active.

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“We are excited to be inching closer to officially offering PointsBet’s market-leading products to sports fans and bettors in Pennsylvania in partnership with PNG,” said PointsBet USA CEO Johnny Aitken.

“With Pennsylvania ranking among the top five sports betting states in the nation, PointsBet is thrilled to be able to soon establish its presence in this lucrative market, and we are appreciative of the support we’ve received from the state of Pennsylvania and the great people at the PGCB. We ultimately seek to provide customers in Pennsylvania with the best-in-class sports betting and online casino experience.”

While the operator may be late to the party in Pennsylvania, PointsBet has one particular advantagethe brand is the exclusive sports betting partner of NBC Sports and will be prominently featured on the multi-media platform and in marketing campaigns, including exclusive sports betting integrations during the network’s NFL football coverage. Comcast Corporation — the parent company of the peacock-emblemed media giant — is headquartered in the Keystone State.

The partnership with NBC Sports gives PointsBet exclusive access to an extensive portfolio of events in Philadelphia, which is home to three major sports teams — the MLB’s Phillies, the NFL’s 76ers, and the NHL’s Flyers. Furthermore, the existing Spanish-language functionality of PointsBet will be supported by the Telemundo Deportes and Telemundo broadcast stations.

Zero Disruptions from Live Wagering Test

Another factor that may play a pivotal role going forward is PointsBet’s success in significantly reducing live in-play market suspensions.

During the broadcast of the NFL Wild Card game between the Las Vegas Raiders and Cincinnati Bengals on NBC, the operator made sports betting industry history by becoming the first to successfully test live wagering opportunities with zero suspensions across the core markets of spread and moneyline.

This was made possible through its innovative 'always on’ in-game betting technology based on the development by Banach Technology, which PointsBet acquired for $43 million in March 2021. The Irish gambling tech company specializes in proprietary quantitative-driven trading models, which heavily support complex pre-game and live, in-game betting products in various sports markets.

Thanks to the clinical support via market-leading models, platforms, and products with a focus on in-play capabilities, PointsBet technology leaped forward much faster than expected. With the development well ahead of its expected time frame, the company decided to pull the trigger and test the new capabilities under the most severe circumstances — an NFL playoff game — according to Aitken.

“While this test focused on the spread and moneyline markets, it also showed a glimpse into the future of where we can take our technology over time and offer a completely differentiated experience when betting in-play with PointsBet,” Aitken said.

The company had previously reduced the live in-play market suspensions by 40% through its “OddsFactory” platform during the regular season. PointsBet said it will aim to further refine the live betting technology ahead of the 2022 NFL season.

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