Sweepstakes casinos could be in the firing line in Florida as state lawmakers threaten to toughen punishments for illegal gambling.
House Bill 953 and Senate Bill 1404, introduced by Rep. Webster Barnaby and Sen. Corey Simon respectively, propose making it a third-degree felony for anyone other than the Seminole Tribe to operate an online casino or online sportsbook.
In Florida, the Seminole Tribe holds exclusive rights to online gambling through a compact with the state, which it operates via Hard Rock Bet.
In the Sunshine State, a third-degree felony is punishable by up to five years in prison. Additionally, anyone found guilty of using an illegal online casino or online sportsbook would be charged with a first or second-degree misdemeanour, also punishable by time in jail.
Proposals threaten ‘significant unintended consequences’
Alongside iGaming and sports betting, sweepstakes casinos may have been referred to in the legislation, although they were not mentioned by name.
The bills’ definitions of internet gambling included the phrases “money or other thing of value”, which could include the dual-currency play utilised by sweepstakes and social casinos, and a gaming product that “simulates casino-style gaming”.
In response to the pre-filed legislation, the Social and Promotional Games Association (SPGA) warned that the bills would criminalise legitimate business activities and risk losing Florida tens of millions of dollars in revenue.
It stated: “These misguided proposals threaten significant unintended consequences that could make criminals out of major companies that regularly use sweepstakes promotions, such as Coinbase and Starbucks, not to mention the thousands of small businesses that rely on sweepstakes and similar marketing tools to survive and thrive.
The landscape for sweepstakes casino operators continues to be complicated.
Data from Eilers and Krejcik Gaming values the US sweeps market at $5.6bn, estimated to rise to $11.4bn by the end of 2025. However, the legality of the sector continues to be debated by operators and legislators in some jurisdictions.
Lawmakers in Connecticut, Maryland and Mississippi have all introduced bills this year to ban the vertical. During the American Gaming Association’s State of the Industry presentation, CEO Bill Miller also slammed the sweepstakes sector as a “newer category of unregulated actors”.
The SPGA urged Florida’s legislators to engage with the industry to “better understand” the differences between sweepstakes gaming and gambling before advancing legislation.
Florida elevates hostility against sweepstakes casinos
In recent weeks, the Florida Gaming Control Commission has also intensified actions against overseas operators in the state, issuing cease-and-desist letters to the parent companies of BetUS, Bovada and MyBookie.ag.
In the communications, it noted that the platforms are offering some combination of sports betting, online casino games or skill games.
Previously, Bovada has exited almost 20 states following cease-and-desist letters to regulators. All three operators are yet to respond to the demands.
