By
Lisa Spencer
Senior Editor Updated: 25 December 2024
Lisa Spencer Senior Editor
As a Senior Editor at Betting.US, Lisa Spencer is a valuable member of our expert team. With a Master’s degree in Applied Mathematics, Lisa is adept in gambling theory and analyzing odds. She contributes by writing online sportsbook reviews and finding competitive markets to help our readers make an informed choice.
As the senate continues to discuss federal laws for sports betting, its judiciary committee will host a hearing on December 17 at 10 am. While the exact purpose and contents of the hearing are not stated, the hearing is titled “America’s High-Stakes Bet on Legalized Sports Betting”. Read on to learn more about the members and possible topics of this hearing.
The hearing will be presided by Committee Chair Dick Durbin and will include Senators Mike Lee and Peter Welch. Recently, both senators wrote a letter to the FTC, urging for the investigation of FanDuel and DraftKings for allegedly using anti-competitive business practices. Some of the other senators in this hearing are:
Richard Blumenthal is another member of the committee, who recently introduced the SAFE Bet Act. Currently, the act is facing scrutiny from the industry and even responsible gambling organizations for its proposals. As such, it will be a significant topic of discussion, although it has not yet been formed as a bill.
Senators Mike Lee and Peter Welch have written a letter to the Federal Trade Commission and Department of Justice, requesting an investigation of DraftKings and FanDuel. The senators cite public reports claiming that after the merger of the two companies was blocked, they have been working together to stifle competition. That includes using the Sports Betting Alliance to prevent smaller companies from working with payment processors, leagues or vendors.
After their merger to monopoly was blocked, it seems that FanDuel and DraftKings have arguably acted as one company, violating our antitrust laws.
If the merger had succeeded in 2017, the companies would dominate 90% of the daily fantasy sports market. That’s why Lee and Welch believe these recent actions are the companies working together to create a monopoly and prevent smaller ones from entering the market. The letter asks FTC Chair Lina Khan and Attorney General of the Antitrust Division Jonathan Kanter to investigate and take action to protect competition.
While neither DraftKings or FanDuel have provided comments on the antitrust allegations, they have had to deal with other issues. DraftKings is being sued by its former employee Arun Venkantenswaran for $250,000 in damages. The employee submitted a parental leave request for all sixteen weeks of paid leave offered by the company, but was instead fired a day after the request was submitted.
Even though the commission has set a high priority for statutory violations, I do want to recognize this was an incident that involved three wagers for a total of $11.
Meanwhile, FanDuel had to pay $10,000 in fines to the Massachusetts Gaming Commission. The reason is that they offered wagers on in-state teams who were not on the field of a specialty tournament. After inadvertently opening March Madness wagers for Boston College’s team before they were on the field, they voided and self-reported the bets.
Another point of discussion at the hearing may be the SAFE Bet Act. It is a proposal to place some federal legislation on sports betting and has garnered some criticism. The Act would introduce a national gambling age of 21 and ban advertisements from 8 am to 10 pm. Operators and some teams are also against the ban on in-play betting.
If we are going to address this as a public-health issue, we have to address all types of gambling.
The SAFE Bet Act also features some provisions for responsible gambling like creating a national self-exclusion list and having the US Surgeon General conduct an annual survey on the scope of problem gambling and gambling-related harm experienced by online sports betting. While some advocates agree with the ideas, they also believe they’re not broad enough and only cover sports betting.
While it’s unclear what will be discussed at the hearing, the topics could be important for the future of sports betting in the US. The FTC and DOJ have not agreed to an investigation yet, but if they get involved, the industry may see stronger oversight in the future. Meanwhile, the SAFE Bet Act proposal will likely not be approved in its current form and will need to be discussed further.
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