New Jersey approvals clear six Atlantic City casinos to launch online

The Division of Gaming Enforcement (DGE) in New Jersey issued Transactional Waivers Friday to online gaming companies partnered with six of the seven Atlantic City casinos that will launch online gaming sites on November 26th.

The waivers enable Borgata, Caesars, Golden Nugget, Tropicana, Trump Plaza and Trump Taj Mahal to go live on that date with thier online poker and casino offerings, while Resorts and its online partner PokerStars continue to wait for approval.

A spokesperson for PokerStars told Gaming Intelligence: "Our application remains under review by the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement and we remain committed to working with the Division to complete the review process."

But the wait is over for the rest. bwin.party received a waiver to begin transacting with Borgata, as did GameAccount (Trump Plaza); Feritta (Trump Taj Mahal); Amaya (Caesars, Borgata, Golden Nugget and Trump Plaza); Gamesys (Tropicana); 888 (Caesars' and Bally's); and Bally Technologies (Golden Nugget).

The DGE also said Friday that eight other companies were considered eligible to receive a Transaction Waiver, once they enter into an agreement with a casino licensee or platform provider and request the waiver.

The companies that have passed a preliminary investigation are Paddy Power, Scientific Games, Williams Interactive, Genesis Gaming, Betable, Evolution, Pala Interactive, and Rush Street Interactive.

The DGE added that it continues to review other companies who have filed for Casino Service Industry Enterprise (CSIE) licensure, ancillary casino service industry enterprise licensure and vendor registration. It will publish an update list of authorised vendors on Friday November 15th.

Update 11/11/13: Shares in 888 Holdings plc (Co. Data) (LSE:888) were trading up 1.76 per cent at 156.50 pence per share early Monday morning on the news. 888 chief executive Brian Mattingley commented: "The award of our license approval to operate as an internet gaming services provider in the  State of New Jersey alongside Caesars Interactive is another milestone for 888. New Jersey is an important market as we continue to re-launch the brand in the US market.

Shares in bwin.party digital entertainment plc (Co. Data) (LSE:BPTY) were trading up 5.02 per cent at 127.60 pence share early Monday in London. The company said it was "delighted" to have been awarded a transactional waiver by the DGE pending full licensure. "Operating under the land-based casino licence of our partner in New Jersey, Borgata Casino, we intend to launch poker and casino games under both Borgata's and our own brands, including partypoker.com," the company stated.

Betfair Group plc (Co. Data) (LSE:BET) was trading up 1.07 per cent at 991.50 pence per share in London at 08.45 GMT, while Paddy Power plc (Co. Data) (LSE:PAP) fell 0.05 per cent to €61.82 per share.

Among north American companies, Amaya Gaming Group (Co. Data) (TSX:AYA) shares closed up 3.48 per cent in Toronto Friday at CAD$8.02 per share, while Scientific Games (Co. Data) (NASDAQ:SGMS) closed up 3.50 per cent in New York at US$18.05 per share. Bally Technologies Inc. (Co. Data) (NYSE:BYI) also climbed on the news, closing in New York Friday up 1.98 per cent at $71.14 per share.