Florida goes after social sweepstakes casinos

• Florida is targeting sweepstakes casinos in the latest push by the Attorney General
• The complaints filed against the operators seek to secure permanent injunctions against their operations
• Florida’s AG joins the list of officials and regulators to have acted against the sector

Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier has announced two lawsuits against operators of social sweepstakes casinos, arguing that they breach state laws and must stop offering their products locally.

Two of the most prominent sweepstakes casinos targetedin Florida

The AG’s Office has taken action against Stake and VGW, with the latter operating multiple brands,including LuckyLand, Global Poker and Chumba Casino.

In the complaints, AG Uthmeier argues that the operators and the brands are engaging in illegal online gambling and violate Florida’s gambling laws and the Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act.

In a statement, the AG Uthmeier directly attacks the concept of sweepstakes and social casinos.

"These so-called ‘sweepstakes’ and ‘social casinos’ are illegal online gambling operations. If it looks like a casino, takes real money like a casino, and pays out like a casino, it is a casino, and it is illegal under Florida law.

These companies have been preying on Floridians, including minors and seniors, with deceptive marketing, and 24/7 access, while dodging our state’s licensing, taxation, and consumer-protection requirements. They must be stopped," the attorney general said in the statement in which he argued against the sector.

AG Uthmeier’s Office addressed the popular counter-argument put forward by operators of such websites, expressing that the dual-currency model was "intentionally created" to disguise the real-money gambling.

Use of dual currency is a problem for Florida’s AG

The complaints specifically named Sweeps Coins and Stake Cash that are bundled with Gold Coins, purchasable by players. The Stake Cash and Sweep Coins can be redeemed or cashed out as cryptocurrency, gift cards, or even cash with a minimum play-through requirement.

This and the fact that the platforms offered games of chance such as slots, blackjack, roulette and poker, have led the AG’s Office to conclude that the operators were in breach of state gaming laws.

The AG’s Office hopes that through the filing of the latest complaints it would be able to obtain permanent injunctions against the operations, citing the fact that Florida only allows slot gaming at limited locations.

Earlier this year, Kentucky's AG Russell Coleman filed three separate lawsuits against prediction markets and sweepstakes operators, joining his colleagues from across the country in trying to rein in these activities.

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