New York is mulling some notable technological changes to its sports betting market.
After Gov. Kathy Hochul asked the New York State Gaming Commission (NYSGC) in January to consider new measures to restrict underage access to online gambling platforms, including requiring the use of biometrics, the gaming regulator has proposed new rules for the biggest sports betting market in the U.S.
Hochul and the NYSGC announced on Monday new draft regulations aimed at increasing player health safeguards in the Empire State. Among the proposals is a suggestion to ban licensed sportsbooks, land-based casinos, and horse wagering operators from using AI to target bettors with personalized promotions and wager options.
“Mobile sports wagering is everywhere, enticing everyone — including our youth — to place bets without fully considering the consequences,” said Hochul in a statement posted March 30. “We need strong regulatory safeguards to prevent those under 21 from gambling, keep artificial intelligence from preying on gamblers, and require sports wagering operators take real action if one of their customers is showing signs of gambling harm.”
Automatic problem gambling intervention triggers
Sportsbooks would also have to take steps including identifying and maintaining a list of at-risk patrons, ensuring those players are provided with responsible gaming information and do not receive direct advertising materials, requiring several phases of interventions when an at-risk player is identified, and restricting the ability of a user to cancel a fund withdrawal request.
The NYSGC also outlined a set of at least 11 automatic activity triggers that would flag a player for a mandatory due diligence review by a sports betting licensee to determine whether the patron is exhibiting signs of potential problem gambling. Sportsbooks would have to intervene if a customer:
- Deposited more than $10,000 in 24 hours
- Deposited more than $100,000 over three months
- Made three or more trips within 30 days to the self-exclusion page without completing the process
- Began a second cool-off period within 45 days of coming off a cool-off period
- Increased gambling limits three times without lowering those limits within a seven-day period
- Canceled a withdrawal three times in a 10-day period
- Wagered more than $1m in three months
- Increased their in-app time by 50% or more compared to the prior two weeks
- Ended a betting session with less than $1 in the account twice or more in one week
- Ended two or more sessions in a week where the total bets increased each time
- Deposited funds from more than two sources within 24 hours
The NYSGC noted that the list could be expanded to include any additional triggers that are identified by either a sports betting licensee ior the regulator as a potential indicator of problem gambling behavior. Identification of those triggers would lead to three stages of intervention: Sending information about various responsible gambling features, requiring the bettor to watch a video tutorial about responsible gambling, and finally setting up a meeting between the bettor and the sportsbook’s responsible gambling lead.
In that instance, the player’s account would be suspended until direct communication took place. Any bettor still showing signs of problem gambling could have their account closed after the third phase of intervention.
Biometric ID could become mandatory
In addition, Hochul and the NYSGC said the regulator is considering several steps to further prevent underage individuals from accessing sports wagering platforms.
Those include requiring age-assurance and registration controls to prevent underage people from downloading a gambling app, mandating the use of biometric ID data such as fingerprints or face recognition and related verification measures, and requiring geolocation controls to deny access in irregular situations or locations, unless the customer verifies their ID via biometrics.
The commission is also considering involuntarily banning any individual who allows an underage person to gamble from participating in any gambling in New York State.
Hochul’s State of the State agenda, published in January, stressed the importance of using biometrics to protect New York gamblers. The NYSGC said at the time that it would consider making changes. Now, it has published its formal proposals and will take comments from the public, the gaming industry, and stakeholders until May 15.
“As Governor Hochul rightly highlighted: No other form of gambling has pervaded our consciousness like sports wagering, and impressionable kids are constantly exposed to the practice,” NYSGC Chair Brian O’Dwyer said in a statement on March 30. “Per her direction, we have identified additional ways to protect our youth, help those who need it at the point of crisis, and keep legalized, regulated gaming safe for all New Yorkers. We look forward to hearing from the public on these important proposals.”
Player protection top of mind in NY
Hochul thanked the Commission for drafting the “comprehensive measures”.
New York Council on Problem Gambling Executive Director Michelle Hadden said the regulator’s “swift action” in response to Hochul’s call to action is a testament to the fact that problem gambling is being addressed as a serious issue in New York.
To that point, numerous legislative proposals have been filed in New York this year. One bill, which would require licensed online sportsbooks to provide customers with monthly profit/loss statements outlining their wagering activity, was passed by a unanimous 143-0 vote in the Assembly on March 24 and has been sent over to the state Senate.
The following day, the New York Assembly also unanimously passed a bill to ban proxy betting and mandate risk assessments for online sports bettors.
