Social sports prediction operator Fliff will soon have a new Head of Legal and Government Affairs in Greg Small, who currently serves as the Executive Director for the Indiana Gaming Commission (IGC). Small announced his jump from the regulatory world to the industry side of things on LinkedIn earlier this week. His last day with the IGC will be September 20.
Fliff is a social gaming operator that uses federal sweepstakes law to offer its players the possibility of winning cash prizes in most states. This business model is taking the US by storm at the moment, mostly in the form of sweepstakes casinos. Fliff differs from those in basing its products on predicting the outcome of sporting events rather than on play-money casino games.
In his new role, Small will help Fliff navigate the legal complexities that inevitably come with an emerging industry. Sweeps-based businesses have also recently launched a trade organization, the Social & Promotional Games Association (SPGA), to advocate for the model and educate government officials about how it works.
His immediate replacement at the IGC will be Dennis Mullen, the regulator’s General Council, who will continue to serve in his current role at the same time.
During his tenure, Small oversaw the launch of Indiana’s 13th retail casino, the Terre Haute Casino Resort. He also reorganized the IGC’s law enforcement division and streamlined the licensing process for individuals.
Indiana’s Online Gambling Expansion Efforts on Hold
Indiana has been a poster child for the benefits of online gaming. It legalized online sports betting in 2019 and was able to launch its market within the same year. The tax revenue produced by Indiana sports betting was held up as a positive example of what other states stood to gain if they followed suit, which many ultimately did.
Because of that success, the real money gambling industry pinned a lot of its hopes for iGaming expansion in 2023 on Indiana. In states where both are available, real money online casinos tend to beat sportsbooks for gross revenue by a factor of at least two. The potential for Indiana online casinos was high.
However, that effort fell victim to what some called “fiscal note poisoning.” A financial assessment appended to the bill came to the conclusion that regulated online casinos would damage the state’s retail casino industry, which soured the mood.
There was no second attempt in 2024 because of a political scandal. Former House Representative Sean Eberhart pleaded guilty to corruption charges related to dealings with one of the state’s retail casino operators. He has since been sentenced to one year plus a day in prison and a $25,000 fine.
Senate President Pro Tempore Rodric Bray and House Speaker Todd Huston stated up front that they would not consider any gambling expansion this year because of the pall those events had cast on the industry’s involvement in the political process.
Sweeps Operators Fill the Void
Indiana is not alone in disappointing online casino players with its failure to legalize. New York, Illinois, and Maryland have likewise come up short in their efforts.
Where real money online casinos have been legalized, the market has proven more challenging than most stakeholders expected. The high cost of licensing and compliance, coupled with intense marketing spending by the top operators has driven many smaller brands out of the market, or out of business entirely.
The sweepstakes business model has arisen in direct response to those challenges. Although they’re not real money gambling products, many players see sweeps apps as the next best thing and safer than illegal offshore gambling sites.
Sports betting expansion has been comparatively successful, with 38 states having some form of legal sportsbooks. So, sports prediction sites like Fliff aren’t as common as social casinos like Chumba or Funzpoints. However, the competitive pressures in those markets are even more intense than they are for online casinos. Moreover, two very important markets haven’t yet adopted real money sports betting: California and Texas.
As a result, we could see more Fliff-like businesses hit the market soon. Just this week, two smaller, former sportsbook operators—ProphetX and Novig—announced they are making precisely that pivot.
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