A major player in the global gaming industry, Playtech, has chosen Ohio as its first entry point into the U.S. sports betting market.
Playtech will be supplying its proprietary software to betting kiosks across the state. Dozens of Ohio locations were set to go live in time for Super Bowl Sunday, according to the company.
Playtech has partnered with Gold Rush Gaming, an Ohio Type C-licensed vendor, to supply the physical kiosks in the Ohio sports betting market. Gold Rush’s Illinois affiliate, Gold Rush IL, specializes in video gaming terminals and operates in over 650 locations across Illinois. The Ohio partnership will be that company’s first entry into sports betting.
Playtech brings global sports betting experience to Ohio first
Playtech supplies software and management systems globally for several gambling sectors, including casino gaming, sports betting, virtual sports, bingo and poker. The company entered the U.S. iGaming sector two years ago, but the Ohio partnership is their first foray into the U.S. sports betting market.
“We’re confident that Ohio is the ideal place to start, leveraging our expertise and strong track record to deliver Self-Service Betting Kiosks across the state,” said Jonathan Doubilet, U.S. managing director/VP operations, said in the press release. “We’re excited for this type of gaming to expand and look forward to introducing further products across the growing US market.”
Lottery Commission adds new kiosk locations to master list
The Ohio Lottery Commission updates its list of Ohio businesses licensed to add betting kiosks, along with their vendor partners, every Friday. Gold Rush joined the list for the first time on Feb. 10 with 32 businesses set to add its kiosks.
The kiosks are mostly found in bars and restaurants, but the licenses are open to businesses as varied as golf courses and truck stops.
The total number of Ohio kiosk host locations jumped by 46 last week, up to 844 total. The initial tally of Ohio locations ready to add kiosks on Jan. 1, the state’s sports betting start date, was 771.
The list of live kiosk locations will continue to grow in the coming months as gaming companies roll out the technology in partnership with local businesses. The Lottery Commission has pre-approved over 1,500 locations. The Ohio Casino Control Commission has approved over 1,100 total.
Gold Rush is the fifth kiosk provider fully licensed in Ohio
Playtech is the second tech company to announce a forward step last week. Elys Game Technology received final certification last week, paving the way to provide kiosks at Ohio businesses under its Type C license.
Elys and Playtech are the fourth and fifth out of seven total Type C licensees to be fully operating.
Only four of the seven kiosk suppliers currently have partnerships and are supplying kiosks:
- Intralot: 732 partnerships
- betIGG: 49 partnerships
- Gold Rush: 32 partnerships
- Ubet: 31 partnerships
Elys Game Technology, BetSkybox, and J&J Ventures are all licensed to supply kiosks but did not have any partnerships listed as of the Feb. 10 list update.
50 potential Elys locations would push Ohio to around 900
In a September press release, Elys reported plans to deploy kiosks at more than 50 retail locations in partnership with Wright Bet Ventures.
Michele Ciavarella, executive chairman of Elys, said, “These efforts have reached agreements with more than 50 retail host locations including bars, restaurants, delis, bowling alleys, truck stops and a variety of other such businesses throughout the state within the first 30 days alone.”
If Elys launches kiosks in 50-plus locations, the total number of kiosk locations in the state will push 900. That still leaves over 600 retail locations licensed to offer kiosks waiting to partner with a licensed supplier.
