Regardless of an individual’s involvement with Fantasy Sports, it’s impossible to ignore the massive popularity and growth the industry has experienced over the past few years. There are a few very well known players in the Fantasy Sports industry, with a multitude of smaller players just trying to make their name/brand known and attempting to compete against the “Goliaths” of the industry.
The challenge of competing against these Goliaths can sometimes lead smaller / start up players in Fantasy Sports to seek short cuts for getting to market faster, cost savings, etc. Much like athletes who use performance enhancing drugs to be competitive against athletes using performance enhancing drugs, It’s often too easy for a small business to believe they can get away with ignoring a regulation here or there (after all, certainly their competition is taking short cuts too, right?)
The Fantasy Sports industry has seen its fair share of scandals in recent years such as the alleged “Insider Trading” between key players in the industry. Such disregard for the rules (and general un-sporting conduct) has made it more difficult for all businesses in the Fantasy Sports Industry, such as the temporary bans in some states and stricter compliance regulations all around.
The fines and penalties for not complying with the applicable rules and regulations around fantasy sports can be steep – impacting the individual business at upwards of $20k per incident, and harming the industry as a whole. Simple steps to maintain compliance, such as verifying the address, age, and identity of players, can not only help avoid fines, it can help avoid the legislative scrutiny that drives new regulations.
Other industries, such as lending and tobacco, have learned this lesson in the past – getting away with what you (think you) can doesn’t last, and the long-term costs far outweigh the short-term savings. In our next post we’ll discuss the simple ways that EVS can help Fantasy Sports businesses meet both the letter and spirit of compliance with applicable rules and regulations.
