Day-to-day fantasy sports market leader DraftKings has raised $153 million in new investment money. Ted Leonsis, the billionaire owner of the Washington Capitals and Washington Wizards sports teams, has bought a significant, but undisclosed, stake within the ongoing company through his investment firm Revolution Growth.
Ted Leonsis, owner of the Washington Capitals and Washington Wizards, has purchased a stake in DraftKings through his investment company, Revolution Growth.
This is certainly DraftKing’s second round that is major of in only over a year. In July 2015, the business surely could raise a $300 million war chest to simply help finance its international aspirations, $150 million of which came from Fox Sports for an 11 percent stake in the company.
The round that is last before DraftKings and other market leader FanDuel were beset by appropriate difficulties, nevertheless. Facing a threat of billions of bucks in fines from nyc Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, DraftKings’ international expansion plans were temporarily curtailed, as legal costs mounted.
Market Cap Unknown
The news that is good now that DFS has returned in New York, is that the industry is once again considered to be investable. And that’s despite DraftKings market cap being damaged by the different challenges that are legal has faced. In July 2015, the organization was valued at around $2 billion, and while its valuation had not been disclosed during this round of investment, Eilers & Krejcik Gaming has projected the organization’s worth to be around 1 / 2 of that figure today.
The analyst additionally said that, in light associated with the new investment, a merger between DraftKings and FanDuel would now seem unlikely. In June, it was reported by Bloomberg sources that the businesses were engaged in negotiations regarding a merger, which personal investors in both companies had been pushing for quite a while.
Consolidation would have made sense, largely because of this amount of cash both invest in wanting to out-market one another and will be offering an extremely similar solution. Then there would be the costs become conserved from both businesses’ various skirmishes that are legal the United States. Add the increase in licensing fees and local fees as DFS becomes regulated on a state-by-state that is gradual, and the attractiveness of a merger becomes clear.
Consolidation Off the Table
In a statement that is official DraftKings CEO Jason Robins praised Revolution Growth’s ‘entrepreneurial outlook and spirit of innovation’ that ‘meshes perfectly with the culture of our business,’ as well as its ‘deep expertise in recreations, technology, and policy.’
Revolution’s Steve Murray, who will join the DraftKings board of directors within the deal, said that his company has the ‘expertise to greatly help entrepreneurs execute on their ideas, especially where sports and policy intersect.’
If the merger is in fact off the table, the likelihood is that FanDuel could initiate a new round of funding of its very own in order to remain competitive.
Rodrigo Duterte Backtracks US Comments, Country Continues Illegal Gambling Crackdown
Philippines President Rodrigo Duterte is walking back responses directed at US President Barack Obama. Just hours after Duterte said he does not answer to anybody ‘except the Filipino people’ and called Obama a ‘son of a bitch’ in his Tagalog that is native Philippines leader issued a quasi-apology through his spokesman.
He arrived this week in China, a courtesy not afforded to President Obama though it was apparently Casual Monday for Rodrigo Duterte, the Philippine president still received the red carpet treatment when. (Image: Made Nagi/European Pressphoto Agency)
‘We look forward to ironing out our differences arising out of national priorities and perceptions,’ the more calculated and statement that is civil. ‘ Even though the cause that is immediate my strong comments to particular press questions that elicited concern and distress, we also regret it came across as a individual attack on the US president.’
Obama’s group canceled the meeting upon hearing Duterte’s initial remarks, however now say they are rearranging the engagement.
Obama has indicated he wants to meet up with with all the new Filipino president to confront the latter’s handling of unlawful drug dealers and extrajudicial killings. Duterte has offered law enforcement the straight to kill suspected drug operators and split up cartels, and almost 2,000 killings have taken destination because the took that is 71-year-old on June 30, 2016.
Duterte recently did an about-face for a stance that is previous internet gambling. After forcing the nation’s gambling arm PAGCOR to not renew the operating license for PhilWeb, he announced in late August them are situated far enough away from schools and churches that he was willing to allow online gambling, if taxes were paid and if the gaming parlors that house.
Some 299 internet gaming cafes through the nation have provided multimillions in tax revenue to the federal government. However for PhilWeb Corp and its own owner Roberto Ongpin, the ongoing party seems to be over. PhilWeb had claimed an exclusive license to operate the cafes offering eGames, prior to the Duterte dictum.
However with so many millions in potentially lost gaming tax revenue at risk, Duterte’s strong moral convictions seem to have, um, disappeared.
‘Pay the taxes which are proper . . gamble until you die. I do maybe not really care,’ the Filipino president stated about the online gaming reinstatement.
Gaming Operators Enemy #2
Duterte has made no secret about their wishes to get rid of drug dealers through the Philippines. But close behind the narcotics trade are those taking part in running lotteries that are illegal gambling.
On September 6, the top police chief in Cagayan de Oro City announced that his agency would be increasing its efforts to restrict non-regulated gambling. The 10th-most city that is populated the Philippines, the Cagayan de Oro chief said he will resign if his department cannot eliminate illegal gambling bands from the city within two months.
Neighborhood officials say underground gaming is hampering sales of town’s regulated lotto.
Duterte’s lead law enforcement official Ronald Dela Rosa, chief director of this Philippine National Police, claims his force will go after illegal gambling once the war that is present drugs concludes in 6 months.
No Love from Asia
Duterte was not the only international diplomat failing to show respect to Obama this week, either.
Like Duterte, President Obama is in Asia now for the G20 Summit. But when the American president arrived, the typical red carpet staircase very nearly exclusively used to welcome worldwide leaders was mysteriously missing.
In reality, Asia don’t even provide a staircase lift to Air Force One. Instead, Mr. Obama exited the plane from a staircase that is seldom-used happens from underneath the belly of the aircraft.
‘They will not even give him stairs, proper stairs, to escape of the airplane,’ Republican 2016 nominee Donald Trump said. ‘ If which were me personally, i might state, ‘You know very well what, folks, I respect you a lot but close the doors, let us escape here.”
Trump made the remarks at an event in Ohio, and his challenger that is democratic was far. This week with both candidates recognizing the importance of winning Ohio, Clinton and Trump’s airplanes passed each other while taxiing on the tarmac at Cleveland’s Hopkins International Airport.
A new CNN poll shows Trump leading Clinton by two percent, however the Real Clear Politics polling average still has the former secretary of state ahead by 3.3 points in what’s growing to be one of many most dramatic presidential campaigns of the past 100 years.
Paddy Power Irish Billboard Pokes Fun At Trump with ‘Is Orange the New Black?’ advertisement
A new Paddy energy billboard ad campaign in Ireland might be raising some eyebrows, but there is nothing new in that. The Irish bookmaker famously goes where no other business would dare, but its latest effort is perhaps the most uncomfortably smirk-stifling yet.
Orange is the New Black? Irish bookmaker Paddy Power is used to getting under individuals’s skin, but this time around, it’s all about what’s on the outside for the upcoming US presidential election. (Image: Paddy Power)
Offering odds on one of the prospects running for president of the United States, Paddy Power’s new billboard advertising bears pictures of presidential GOP hopeful Donald Trump alongside Barack Obama, while asking if ‘Orange is this new black?,’ an use the favorite Netflix TV series about women in a minimum-security federal prison whom wear orange jumpsuits.
The bookmaker manages to mock on our squeamishness at referencing skin and race color, while lampooning the famously orange-faced Trump. A bit over the past few months, he’s been known to go full-throttle tangerine in the past while the Republican candidate appears to have softened his fake tan stance.
Tangerine Dream
Paddy energy installed the billboard in Dublin over the weekend, in preparation for the forthcoming exhibition football game between Boston College and Georgia Tech, hoping to draw the interest of visiting Us americans.
‘With the gridiron attracting hordes of US visitors we thought we’d let them have an insight that is little how their Republican candidate is faring in the betting,’ said a spokesman for Paddy Power. ‘Despite some of Trump’s comments being more ill-advised than his hair, the billionaire is still quite definitely in the race and there’s a chance that is realistic orange could be the new black colored.’
To be honest, we never did we think we’d live to see the orange that is first associated with the united states of america, but what it’s likely that Paddy Power giving The Donald of making history now?
Odds on Donald
At 3/1 against, Paddy Power believes there’s a 25 percent chance of Trump making it to your White House, while Hillary Clinton remains the favorite that is 4/11. Paddy Power has said that should Trump win the election, its customers are set to make around €1 million ($1.12 million), a figure that’s expected to increase in the months that are coming.
But while bookmakers are notoriously good at predicting the outcome of political events, we’re maybe not sure it applies here. Into the United States, betting on politics is illegal. And the majority that is vast of energy’s customers are British or Irish citizens, and therefore will not be voting.
Bearing that in head, Paddy Power’s odds do not provide a cross-section of the views of US voters in just about any real means, shape, or form. It is simply that more profit the united kingdom has been placed on Clinton. And with the polls leads to the united states tightening between the two applicants, they could yet be painting the White House a deep shade of apricot come November 8.
Mesquite, Nevada Voters Want Smoke-Free Casinos, But Can Gaming Business Survive?
In Mesquite, Nevada, voters are prepared to ban smoking that is indoor all places of business. At the very least, that’s what one new city poll suggests in the small town of fewer than 18,000 residents that rests about 80 miles outside of Las Vegas.
According to a poll conducted by Public Opinion Strategies, a research that is virginia-based, 62 per cent of Mesquite residents support a nearby ordinance to completely ban smoking inside. That would change the present law that continues to permit cigarette smoking at gambling enterprises, nightclubs, and some bars.
Smoking on gambling floors could soon be prohibited inside Mesquite, Nevada casinos, after having a new poll shows residents want climate inside all business establishments. (Image: Danny Drake/Press of Atlantic City)
Nevada passed the Indoor that is clean Air in 2006, and made smoking inside workplaces and public buildings illegal.
But the clean air law included a carve-out for the state’s massive casino industry. Therefore the Mesquite Citizens for Clean Indoor Air group now wants to alter that.
‘Everyone deserves to breathe clean interior air. No one needs to lose their health for a paycheck,’ the coalition trying to amend the populous town law states.
With support seemingly current, the Mesquite City Council could introduce an ordinance to outlaw all smoking that is indoor places of company and implement the newest statute in as little as 60 days.
‘It’s not up to the voters to decide. It is up to the populous city leaders,’ Christine Picior, a coalition member, told The Spectrum.
Smoke-Free Impact
The city that is small of sits northeast of Las Vegas on the Nevada and Arizona border. The historic town relies heavily on tourism, having its casinos and pioneering history to lure visitors visiting and from Sin City in the I-15 interstate.
It remains unclear whether a casino smoking ban would bring brand new bettors to Mesquite, or turn customers that are away faithful. But it is likely that local residents, who also gamble, along with casino workers, tend to be more enthusiastic about unique health that is long-term days.
In Macau, a crusade that is similar ban smoking wasn’t very successful. Though smoking is confined to designated lounges, workers complained patrons usually neglect to comply with the mandate and continue smoking on the basic casino floor. In China (and Asia generally), the western’s campaign that links cigarettes and cancer doesn’t seem to have taken down much, if at all, and many citizens are still heavy smokers in that nation.
Final May, two lobbying organizations functioning on behalf of casino employees called on the resorts to enact an one-day citywide indoor smoking cigarettes ban on floors, smoking lounges, and VIP spaces. But with one in two Chinese citizens over the age of 15 reportedly a smoker that is regular the casino companies didn’t budge.
No Hurray for Harrah’s
If Mesquite opts to ban smoking from its casinos, it mightn’t be the first city to enforce such policies. Smoking is banned in all the major poker rooms in Las Vegas, though smoking on primary casino floors continues to be commonplace.
Down south in New Orleans, however, city officials extinguished all butts in gambling enterprises as of April 2015. free online pokies dolphin treasure Exiling cigarette smokers to outdoor ‘smoking lounges,’ aka steel benches, caused revenues to fall, based on Harrah’s brand New Orleans. The city’s only land-based casino said slot income fell 17 percent within the 12 months after the new ordinance.
Proponents of clean interior air says Harrah’s is utilising the cigarette smoking ban as a justification, and point to riverboat casinos in other areas of Louisiana experiencing revenue that is similar outside the smoking cigarettes ban.
Perhaps Pennsylvania gets the smoking predicament solved.
The Keystone State’s 12 casinos are permitted to designate up to 50 percent of the floor for smoker-friendly gaming. Dining areas are 100 percent smoke-free, since they are in nevada and most urban centers across America these days.