It’s difficult to believe that the CEO of a major sports betting operator would say something to alienate his existing and potential customers. Yet, that’s exactly what Jason Robins did while speaking on the Canaccord Genuity 2021 Digital Gaming Summit held virtually last week. His statements came amidst conversations concerning how operators could be profitable in New York state with a 51% tax rate, so I guess now we know how DraftKings hopes to make money in that market!
Hello my friends! And welcome to This Week in Gambling, where we’re following an interesting bit of news. The CEO of DraftKings has made a comment that has many players in America asking: What the f— did he just say? This week’s big story comes from New York state, where they recently regulated both mobile and online sports betting with plans to launch early next year. However, they did so with an exorbitant 51% tax rate… which begs the question: How can any operator possibly stay profitable in that market? Well, the CEO of DraftKings has a plan!
At a recent digital gaming summit he addressed this issue specifically when he plainly said that players who bet for profit are not the sort of players that DraftKings wants on their site! Which leads us right back around to our first question: What the f— did he just say? He said, my friends, that DraftKings does not want players on their site who are betting for profit. You know, in order to make money. But correct me if I’m wrong, doesn’t everyone who places a bet have some expectation or at least hope of making a profit? Or am I wrong here? Are there actually players out there who place bets with the hope of losing their money?
Obviously, what the CEO of DraftKings was trying to say is that they would really rather prefer the casual gamblers on their website. You know, the ones who are not quite as educated. Ignorant, if you will, about how to place a sports bet. Rather, they’re there to play for fun. What they don’t want is to have the seasoned gamblers there. The ones that know how to study games, look at the odds, and make smart bets.
But before we condemn DraftKings let’s remember the real culprits here: The state of New York and their Gaming Commission who set that ridiculous 51% tax rate, forcing operators into this position. At least the CEO of DraftKings had the balls to come out and say this is what they have to do in order to be profitable in New York State! After all New York does have one of the highest effective tax rates of any state in the country. And (dare i say it?) when it comes to New York’s politicians and members of their state Gambling Control Board, I’ll bet you none of them suns of b—s pay anywhere near 51% of their salary and taxes!
The real question here is: What will operators in New York do to remain profitable? Will they simply set really bad odds for the games? Will they ban professional sports betting players from participating? Will they close accounts of players who win just a little too much? Well, we’re within two months of their launch date, so I guess we’ll find out!
This week we have a brand new slot machine review to share with you for a game that will soon be on a casino floor near you! It’s the Samurai Gold slot machine, with more wilds and extra cash, from our friends at AGS. This is a five real game with three rows that can expand to six rows during the bonus features! And players who land the Samurai Symbol could be awarded a really nice jackpot! Find this review and hundreds more when you visit and subscribe to our YouTube channel!