The CEO of MGM Resorts International has thanked the Nevada Gaming Commission (NGC) for their actions tackling prediction markets in the state, emphasizing that the medium should face similar rules to those around sports betting.
The state’s regulators were some of the first to take action against prediction markets, having sent a cease-and-desist order to operator Kalshi in March, and eventually earned court victories against both Kalshi and Crypto.com as both companies were denied temporary injunctions.
The NGC was also one of the first regulators to warn operators entering the prediction markets space, with both DraftKings and FanDuel later pulling their license applications in The Silver State. The two gambling giants also resigned from the American Gaming Association over opposition to their ventures in the predictions space.
And MGM CEO Bill Hornbuckle thanked the Nevada board “for its clarity around predictive markets and predictive gaming” in a hearing last week, while also arguing that such platforms are essentially sportsbooks under a different name and should therefore face the same rules, regulations and taxes.
“The clarity helps us. Obviously, we have some work to do in some other states and you’ve probably all followed that story closely,” said Hornbuckle.
“It’s fascinating. It is without a doubt sports betting, full stop. And so we’re going to do everything we can to keep an eye on activity cases and ultimately see what we can do to make sure it comes in line with proper regulation and proper tax,” he added.
Hornbuckle has previously admitted that BetMGM would “be a fast-follower” if sports predictions markets “were to break through”, and while the market has not become as big as sports betting in the US, both FanDuel and DraftKings have announced the launch of predictions platforms in the near future, with several operators looking at alternative revenue streams in states where sports betting is still illegal.
