Affiliates should be looking at licensing process

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Affiliates wanting to serve the online gambling industry in the USA have been advised to start looking at the licensing process now in order to be in position should the market open up as anticipated.

Writing for AffiliateInsider.com, Chris Grove suggested that states will follow the model used by New Jersey for its igaming industry and require affiliates to be licensed.

He explained: “I expect regulated online sports betting in the U.S. to closely follow the template set by the legal online casino market in NJ. If that ends up being the case, then affiliates will need to have some level of licensure in order to participate in the regulated online sports betting market.”

However he did say that the process may not be that arduous, especially if the affiliate is working on a CPA model

He added: “If you’re working on revenue share, things get far more involved. In almost every state, sharing directly in the revenue generated from gambling requires you to have a far higher level of licensure. You’ll almost certainly need an experienced lawyer, access to a substantial amount of information about your financial past, and a great deal of patience.

“One other twist: New Jersey was very clear about forcing affiliates to make a choice between regulated online gambling markets and offshore sites serving the U.S. market. Other states will force you to make a similar choice, if you haven’t already.”

He also advised affiliates to do their homework as to which markets are worth making business plans for as each area differs greatly from the others when it comes to gambling legislation.

“Study the states so you can appreciate what markets are and aren’t worth your time preparing for. Adjust your sense of the scale of the opportunity based on a realistic projection of how much of the market will actually be available for affiliates.”