Wire SOUTH AMERICA
CAI wins US$36m arbitration case against Argentinian gambling authority.
ARGENTINA LAND-BASED CASINOS CAI wins US$36m Arbitration Case
Colombia - Gambling makes huge comeback The President of the Colombian Gaming Control Board (Coljuegos), César Augusto Valencia Galiano, has announced that between January and September 2021 the gambling industry reported a record in fees in gaming licensing and exploitation rights. Combined licensing fees added up to COP$499,452m, 97 per cent more compared to the same period of the previous year, when licence fees stood at COP$253,541m.
The figure also reflected an increase of 3.6 per cent compared to the amount registered in 2019 when licence fees amounted to COP$495,836m.
Uruguay - Bill to allow online casinos The Executive branch of the Uruguayan Government has sent a bill to Parliament that would permit both state and privately-run casinos to offer online casino games including poker roulette and slots.
The bill, signed by President Lacalle Pou, would give the General Directorate of Casinos of the Ministry of Economy and Finance authority to run online casino games, and gives the Executive branch permission to authorise private companies that already operate casinos as well as future licence holders permission to offer online casino games.
Mexico - Sports betting tender launched Mexico’s National Lottery published the draft of the tender for the contraction of services for its instant and sports betting games.
Launched via Mexico's Federal e-Procurement System CompraNet the tender will be open for both international and locally based companies and the contract will run from 2022 to 2028. The contract is valued between $2,944m pesos (US$ 146.5m) and a minimum of $1,177.6m pesos (US $ 54.7m).
The purpose of the tender is to update and improve instant and sports betting games offered by state- owned lottery Pronósticos para la Asistencia Pública (Pronósticos). Improvements will be made via its sales network in its 8,327 outlets nationwide.
Brazil - Rio de Janero postpones sports betting The Permanent Bidding Committee of the State of Rio de Janeiro, LOTERJ, has officially postponed the tender bidding process for sports betting and other games in the state.
The plenary of the Court of Accounts of the Municipality of Rio de Janeiro, (TCE/RJ) announced that it unanimously decided to uphold the decision, made by Deputy Councillor of the Rio de Janeiro State Audit Court, Andrea Siqueira Martins. On July 5, Siqueira Martins had suspended the tender while Counsellor, Marianna Montebello Willemman put forward several measures and indicated that further studies into a new bidding process might be needed.
P6 WIRE / PULSE / INSIGHT / REPORTS
A five-year legal battle has ended with Casinos Austria International awarded US$36m in compensation in a licence withdrawal dispute with Salta province.
In its decision of Nov. 5, 2021, an international World Bank arbitration court has awarded Casinos Austria International US$36m in its action against the state of Argentina after a five- year battle for compensation.
Te trigger for this legal dispute was the withdrawal of the licence for the CAI subsidiary ENJASA by the gambling authority of the province of Salta in August 2013, which was challenged by CAI from the outset. Te decision of the arbitration court describes the withdrawal of licences as ‘arbitrary and abusive.’
After failed legal challenges set before Argentina’s local authorities and courts, arbitration specialist, Florian Haugeneder, filed an arbitration lawsuit for CAI under the Bilateral Investment Protection Agreement between the Republic of Austria and Argentina.
Te arbitration action was filed with the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes on December 4, 2014. ICSID is an international investment dispute resolution organisation based in Washington,
DC, US, which belongs to the World Bank Group.
Te procedure under the file number ICSID Case No. ARB/14/32 ("Casinos Austria International and Casinos Austria Aktiengesellschaft v. Argentine Republic") first included the procedure for clarifying the jurisdiction of the arbitration tribunal, for which the arbitration tribunal ruled in favour of CAI. Based on this, the procedure for deciding on the matter itself followed, which is again successfully concluded in favour of CAI. Te decision is legally effective and enforceable.
Casinos Austria Director General, Bettina Glatz- Kremsner, said: “It was always clear to us that the withdrawal of licences was a political manoeuvre and an act of arbitrariness by the gambling authority in Salta conducted without a legal basis. Not only have we been proven right, but we are also pleased in regards to the high payment awarded to us. I would especially like to thank the Managing Director of CAI, Christoph Zurucker-Burda, and his team, who have led this dispute with great commitment over the years.”
Puerto Rico Puerto Rico Launches Sports Betting Tender
Puerto Rico’s Gaming Commission announced that it had submitted Sports Betting Regulation Number 9316 and Fantasy Contest Regulation Number 9317 to the State Department. Both bills went into effect on Monday (08 November).
As a result of the two new regulations the commission announced that it would be authorized to begin the evaluation processes for those wanting to offer sportsbetting and fantasy sports on November 22.
Te new regulations are part of Law 81 2019 Te Betting Committee Act. Te Act regulates sportsbetting and creates a gambling commission to oversee all sports betting. It also sets out a government policy for both landbased and online gaming, including sports betting, electronic game leagues and fantasy contests.
In March House Representative José
Rivera Madera filed resolution RC 319 to initiate a study into the potential size and scope of the sportsbetting and eSports betting market in the country. In June, a sportsbetting group was founded in Puerto Rico by Governor Pedro Pierlusi to accelerate the launch of sports betting and fantasy sports.
A number of operators are already making a move into the market depending upon regulatory approval. In September 2021, MGM and Casino del Mar at La Concha Resort announced that they had agreed a deal that would see BetMGM open a sportsbook at the resort’s casino as well as offer online wagering across the island.
If its licence is approved, BetMGM said it would expand its retail and mobile sports betting offerings to Puerto Rico, signifying the company's first market access agreement outside of the U.S. mainland.
Brazil
Playmaker has acquired Brazilian media company Grupo SuperPoker. SuperPoker provides a suite of online poker websites, social media pages, and online streaming services, producing a library of video and editorial content for poker fans in Brazil, one of the largest poker markets in the world. Playmaker’s acquisition of SuperPoker adds a team of over 15 experienced sales and gaming-related content experts based in São Paulo, Brazil. SuperPoker is the official Portuguese language streaming platform for the Brazilian Series of Poker (“BSOP”), European Poker Tour, Pokerstars Players Championship, World Series of Poker – Brazil Circuit, and the Pan-American Poker Tour (PAPT). Playmaker’s wholly owned subsidiary, Futbol Sites, with audience and business operations throughout the Latin American region, will manage day-to-day operations of SuperPoker and its suite of products.
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