NeoPollard Interactive LLC announced that they were elated after the First Circuit of the US Court of Appeals ruling on the Wire Act.
NeoPollard Interactive LLC announced that they were elated after the First Circuit of the US Court of Appeals ruling on the Wire Act. The First Circuit confirmed that the Wire Act is limited to sports betting, and does not apply to state lotteries.
The Wire Act came into force in 1961.
Wire Act
The Wire Act states that a person in the sports gambling business, commits a crime, if they do a gambling business across states or countries, online. The act applies when the recipient of that wire communication will get paid or credit for it.
Many state lotteries, like land-based casinos, are now transitioning their operations online. But, they have faced legal hurdlers in the past, with regard to the Wire Act. That’s after the United States Department of Justice, (DOJ), said it is illegal for lotteries to sell tickets online.
Why Online Sports Betting Act is Controversial
The announcement was actually a reversal of the DOJ’s earlier 2011 memo, about selling state lotteries online. In 2011, DOJ had given a go ahead for state lotteries to sell their tickets online.
The reversal meant that even popular games such as MegaMillions and PowerBall, would also become illegal.
That’s because they also rely on cross-border online communications, between two or more states. It is not yet clear whether the new Biden administration will appeal the decision in the U.S. Supreme Court.
For now, it’s comforting that Biden had stated, “We don’t plan to restrict the gaming industry as Trump had done.”
With this ruling, New Hampshire’s iLottery service projects it will generate over $6-8 million in net profits, in its 2020/2021 fiscal year. Obviously, this will continue to increase, as more people choose to buy lottery tickets online.
The ruling affirmed a 2019 ruling made by the US District Court for the District of New Hampshire, which the DoJ had appealed. Businesses such as NeoPollard Interactive LLC, and Pollard Banknote, can now sell their ticket online.
Furthermore, casinos can still use the internet to make in-state communications of sports bets. In its ruling the Court said DoJ interpretation of the act would have an odd and even inexplicable outcome.
Moreover, after a review of the Act’s legislative history, the court determined Congress’s aim wasn’t to have an odd result.
In that regard, the court upheld the lower court’s natural interpretation of the Wire Act. That’s, the Wire Act applies only to wire communications of sports-related wagers.
Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel
For Michigan’s Attorney General, the ruling was a great relief. It meant the state would continue to get the much-needed revenue, from online lottery ticket sales.
Had they lost the appeal, then according to 2018’s DoJ’s legal opinion, any form of bet or wager placed or paid for online, would have become illegal.
Nessel led a coalition of 17 jurisdictions in filing the appeal. The appeal was in support of the New Hampshire Lottery Commission, along with its two online vendors.
The vendors are NeoPollard Interactive LLC and Pollard Banknote Limited. The other 17 jurisdictions that supported the amicus brief filed by Michigan are:
- Alaska
- Colorado
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- The District of Columbia
- Idaho
- Kentucky
- Maryland
- Minnesota
- North Carolina
- Ohio
- Rhode Island
- South Dakota
- Tennessee
- Vermont
- Virginia and Wisconsin
Nessel said that as the AG, he felt that preserving that critical revenue for the state was incumbent on him. He said that he felt grateful for the bipartisan effort it had taken to receive that ruling.
He concluded by saying, “Thanks to the ruling, Michigan schools and first responders, will continue to receive the funding they need. And such an outcome should not be hindered by party affiliations or politics.”
Use of Online Gaming Revenues in Michigan
Indeed, in the 2018-2019 Fiscal year, Michigan’s School Aid Fund received over $1 billion from the state’s Lottery program. This was possible because of the revenues the government-operated lotteries have got in 2017.
For instance, the Michigan Bureau of State Lottery (MBSL), along with 46 other state lotteries, raised over $80 billion in revenues, in 2017. The net proceeds of these funds, is what the state uses to support public education.
Other sectors are also benefiting from proceeds of online lotteries. They are senior citizens, environmental protection, college scholarships, public infrastructure, among others.
For stakeholders running online casino slots, poker, and other games of chance for money, the ruling called for celebration. But not for sport betting business, who must now place their hope on Congress to change the law, or for the Supreme Court.
It is possible for a sports book and bettor to be in the same state. And that permits their transaction under Murphy v. NCAA U.S Supreme Court ruling in 2018. The ruling gives states powers to control online sports betting within their jurisdictions.
But, their data can still cross state-lines, and that will make them violate the Wire Act. That is likely to happen because of how sports betting apps send data online.
The apps often route or store their data, in data centers located in a handful of states. So, most app communications from states must cross state-borders, before they complete.
What’s the Future of Online Sports Betting?
As the uncertainty of the future of online sports betting continues, states have continued to embrace it. Even as it is that it contravenes the Wire Act, over 25 states have gone ahead and authorized different forms of online sports betting.
And most fans are gladly choosing online sports betting over placing wagers at retail stores. So far, operators have to deal with the existing tension between state-authorized online sports betting, and the Wire Act.
Most sports operators have taken comfort in the way state-authorized cannabis businesses operate. They are operating without prosecution, despite being illegal under federal law. They do so under unofficial federal government protection.
This is after the federal government instructed U.S. Attorney’s offices to reduce the marijuana charges. They must now “consider” any marijuana charges, before they file them.
Since the sports books are operating in a similar environment, they may find themselves in a similar situation. That is, the Supreme Court fails to intervene, the DOJ offers new guidance, or Congress takes new legislative action.
Overall, the online gaming and sports industry seems to be growing in leaps and bounds every other year.
