Daily fantasy sports have been under siege in several states, especially regarding a “pick’em” feature that resembles a sportsbook offering. PrizePicks has recently hired a member of the Massachusetts Gaming General Counsel to its staff.
Getting Compliant
Former Massachusetts Gaming Commission General Counsel Todd Grossman will switch sides and become PrizePicks’ Director of Gaming Regulatory Compliance. PrizePicks and Underdog Fantasy are two of the main DFS sites that have been under increasing scrutiny by state regulators as well as legislatures in those states that currently have not launched mobile sports betting.
Grossman comes equipped with a decade of experience as part of the legal team in Massachusetts that helped establish the regulatory framework for mobile sports betting, casino gambling, and parimutuel horse racing in the Bay State. Grossman’s new job will entail ensuring that PrizePicks is compliant with regulations from the states in which it operates.
“After an unforgettable chapter in public service, I’m thrilled to share that I’ve joined PrizePicks as Director of Gaming Regulatory Compliance,” said Grossman in a post on LinkedIn. “From day one, the welcome has been warm, the energy high, and the company’s commitment to building something truly exceptional has been unmistakable.”
Massachusetts’ First Assistant Attorney General Pat Moore stated that his office was poised to issue cease and desist letters to DFS operators that the state had viewed as non-compliant. Grossman was then the Massachusetts Gaming Commission’s interim executive director and acknowledged there were issues with DFS companies offering “pick ’em” style options on their menus.
The primary task for Grossman is to correct what he views as “misinformation spread by competitor lobbyists” and demonstrate that PrizePicks has complied with the regulatory environment set forth by the commissions and legislators in the states where the company operates.
PrizePicks Making Strides
Grossman is not the only move made by PrizePicks as it endeavors to meet compliance issues. Earlier this year, the company became the first daily fantasy sports operator to receive an International Consortium of Addiction Professionals (ICAP) certification, a responsible gaming standard from the National Council on Problem Gambling.
The standard for receiving an ICAP certification is the following, according to its website:
“A Certified Professional in Prevention has been trained in the science of substance use and abuse prevention. They have met the minimum standards for education/training, supervised experience, and passed the ICAP-Prevention exam.”
Recently, California Attorney General Rob Bonta issued his opinion on the legality of DFS operators whose products are available to the unregulated California market. The upshot was that Bonta did not agree it was legal for them to operate, which will likely trigger anti-DFS legislation.
In preparation for the announcement, PrizePicks has replaced its “pick’em style” games with a peer-to-peer model and is no longer operating as the house. The new pick’em version is called the Arena model and is intended to allay any fears about PrizePicks crossing the line from a DFS site to a mobile sportsbook, currently not offered in the Golden State.
