The bill that was recently amended to authorize new market entrants into the West Virginia online sports betting market is progressing.
The Small Business Gaming Opportunity Act is 25% of the way through the state’s Senate.
WV Senate Bill 603 is on the docket again to help spread legal wagering within the Mountain State. Sen. Michael Maroney sponsored this latest update to the bill to allow both bars and restaurants in WV to provide online sportsbooks.
The bill is intended to help small businesses. There are several qualifications, including being under the gross revenue threshold.
If this bill completely passes, the state’s casinos will have the opportunity to partner with small businesses to act as management service providers. Under that title, these establishments can provide online sports wagering.
Those who partner with small businesses to bring these betting apps to the state can launch even more platforms. The bill reads:
“Each operator may provide one individually branded online sports pool website and accompanying mobile application that is offered and managed by a small business management services provider, in addition to the three individually branded online sports pool websites.”
Sports betting in WV could soon be expanding quite quickly.
WV sports betting expansion
The state appears as if it will add to the available WV online sports betting apps sooner rather than later.
If this law is set in place, it is a great opportunity for small businesses in the state and for the legal betting market.
In addition to the one new online sportsbook that the management services provider will oversee, operators will earn another new skin.
The committee substitute reads:
“Any operator that provides an individually branded online sports pool website and accompanying mobile application that is offered and managed by a small business management services provider, pursuant to subsection (b) of this section, may provide one additional individually branded online sports pool website and accompanying mobile application, in excess of the individually branded online sports pool websites and accompanying mobile applications authorized in subsections (a) and (b) of this section.”
This is great news for all of the WV sportsbook providers and something that they will certainly capitalize on. Another partnership and online wagering app can only bring in more betting and revenue over time.
A small business that wants to offer sports betting must become a management services provider prior to making a deal with an operator.
To qualify, the entity must average less than $10 million in annual gross revenue over the three years before the management service provider’s initial licensure.
They also must not have previously applied for or obtained approval to participate in online betting in any jurisdiction. Applications to be licensed by the commission as a service provider need to be pending for at least six months before they are approved.
Each applicant must pay a nonrefundable license and application fee of $1,000. Once licensed, management service providers have to renew the license annually for the same fee of $1,000.
