Online gaming platform Hard Rock Bet held an online Live Trivia contest and mistakenly gave away a total of over $1.7 million and didn’t ask for any of it back once the error was discovered.
Keep the Change
Each Wednesday throughout the summer months, the Hard Rock Bet online casino in New Jersey runs a trivia contest for its online casino customers. Last Wednesday was quite a bit different because everyone was a winner, a big winner, as Hard Rock erroneously paid out all 353 contestants the grand prize, which was supposed to be a total of $5000.
However, after the 10-question contest ended, all 353 players had a credit of $5000 in their respective accounts, which cost the iGaming platform a total of $1,765,000. Officials quickly became aware of the miscue but decided to let the players keep the windfall.
A Customer Win
“When made aware of the incorrect Live Trivia payouts, our response was quick and deliberate: the awards stand. While others may have tried to claw back the $5,000 awards — Hard Rock Bet wants to put our customers first wherever possible, not just when it’s convenient,” said Hard Rock Bet President Matt Primeaux.
Primeaux added, “Hard Rock Bet Casino is determined to provide our players with a simple, fair, and transparent entertainment experience, not one filled with terms and conditions, asterisks, and promotions that can never fully be won.”
iGaming is only legal in seven US states, including New Jersey, Delaware, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Connecticut, and Rhode Island. However, Hard Rock Interactive has a legal mobile sports betting and iGaming monopoly in Florida through a compact with the state.
Hard Rock Now a Digital Giant
Although many online casino operators would not have been so magnanimous, the $1.7 million mistake that Hard Rock Bet recently made in its Live Trivia contest is but a drop in the bucket if we listen to the experts.
Eilers & Krejcik Gaming (EKG) consultants appraised Hard Rock Digital at a whopping $8 billion, due in large part to its gaming exclusivity in Florida, the third-largest state in the nation. Florida has an estimated 23 million people, and Hard Rock has no competitors in the mobile sports betting or online casino gambling market.
Projections Signal Florida Online Casino Launch
EKG released a statement that read, “The bullish upgrade appears to assume Florida online casino in the next couple of years. That’s in line with our own projections, which estimate a go-live date in 4Q26.”
Nevertheless, Hard Rock has not ruled out working with some of the nation’s most popular gaming platform providers like FanDuel and DraftKings in Florida.
Hard Rock International Chairman Jim Allen said, “We do recognize that long term, some type of strategic relationship with some of the brands that really have marquee value could be helpful to both of us, and we are receptive to those conversations.”
“I would say whether it’s FanDuel or whether it’s DraftKings, we’ve actually developed a great relationship with them,” Allen added.
However, at this point, the Seminole Tribe, which owns Hard Rock, has yet to invite either company to participate in the mobile gaming revenue in Florida. Nor have the Native American tribes in California welcomed online sports betting. But that time is expected to come sooner rather than later, with the tribes giving final approval for any gaming legislation in the Golden State.
