WynnBet gets approval for online sports betting license
WynnBet received the first green light for a Massachusetts online sports betting operator license on Tuesday.
In a 5-0 vote, the Massachusetts Gaming Commission approved the application from WynnBet, which is the phone- and computer-based app that will allow a registered user above the age of 21 with a linked bank account to place a sports wager.
WynnBet is operated by Wynn Resorts, the owner of Boston Encore Harbor, the Everett casino that received the state’s first retail sports betting license last Thursday.
Retail betting could launch as soon as the end of next month, while the commission has targeted March as the starting time for the other online licenses the commission could eventually approve.
The commission is scheduled to discuss and possibly vote on a second online license, Caesars Entertainment, tethered to Boston Encore Harbor, on Wednesday.
Also on the docket this week is a resumption of discussions over a retail license for MGM Springfield. After that, the conversation about BetMGM, the online license application tethered to the Western Massachusetts casino will start.
Talks concerning the third and last retail application, Plainridge Park Casino in Plainville, and its two associated online license applicants — Penn Sports Interactive and Fanatics — are scheduled for Monday and Tuesday of next week.
Just before Tuesday’s vote, commissioners attached conditions to their approval that concern diversity, equity, and inclusion measures of WynnBet vendors.
Those will have to be satisfied before an operations certificate would be issued.
During the virtual hearing, WynnBet representatives walked through its phone-based user interface, including verification measures in the registration process, how to place a bet, assorted promotions, and cooling-off periods among other responsible gaming options.
WynnBet assured the commissioners that its marketing efforts would be for the 21-and-above demographic and would not include anything that could be construed as targeting children, such as cartoon characters or advertisements on youth-oriented channels.