Might want to get the paperwork
Atlanta-based daily fantasy sports operator PrizePicks has agreed to a settlement with the New York State Gaming Commission in which it will pay a $15 million fine and stop offering real money contests in the state. It will continue to offer free-to-play games.
The agreement says that PrizePicks has operated in New York since mid-2019, even though it “has not been, and is not, authorized to offer IFS [interactive fantasy sports] in New York pursuant to Article 14 of the Racing Law.” It also points out that the company does not have a temporary permit, either.
Though company officials signed the agreement, they also said within that PrizePicks “operated in New York in a good-faith belief that it had the ability to do so.”
The dollar amount, which is technically $14,969,688, was determined by the revenue PrizePicks generated from June 4, 2019 to December 31, 2023, plus a penalty based on the number of days contests were offered to people in New York. The fine must be paid by March 1.
The New York State Gaming Commission said that PrizePicks was in full cooperation during the full investigation. Nothing about the settlement prevents PrizePicks from applying for the proper license.
PrizePicks wants to “modernize” New York’s daily fantasy laws. It told Legal Sports Report, “As safer, skill-based DFS contests like ours rise in popularity, we will work constructively with policymakers on thoughtful legislation that allows New Yorkers to play the contests they love, ensures strong consumer safeguards, and generates tax revenue for the state.”
It’s sports betting
PrizePicks is not nearly as well-known as market leaders DraftKings and FanDuel, but, if what my eyes have told me the last few months is true, it did commit to a strong marketing push during the just-ended football season.
And while PrizePicks says it is a daily fantasy sports site, it’s really a sports betting site. Its contests are essentially prop bet parlay competitions. For the “Pick ’Em” games, users select two to six player stats and decide whether the player will go over or under that stat during that contest. An example given on the site is LeBron James over or under 23.5 points in a game against Atlanta.
So they are player props and since you have to pick two to six of them, it’s a parlay. The more picks in the parlay, the higher the payout. It’s not DFS – it’s sports betting.
“Pick ‘Em Arena” is similar, except users are competing against others to get the most correct picks.