PlayUp Fined And Barred From Providing Sports Betting In Ohio

Regulator punishes company with $90,000 fine for offering illegal gambling previously
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If PlayUp Interactive is going to offer online sports betting in Ohio, it won’t be anytime soon.

The company agreed under a settlement agreement announced Wednesday by the Ohio Casino Control Commission that it will withdraw its application for a mobile management services provider license and pay a $90,000 fine.

The settlement and penalty stem from the commission’s findings that PlayUp previously accepted wagers illegally from Ohioans using its slots+ product. The online product is no longer offered, but for a period starting in April 2015 PlayUp marketed it as a legal gambling game when it had no such status, according to the commission.

The OCCC first raised the issue publicly in December after investigating PlayUp’s application as a partner of JACK Cleveland Casino to provide mobile sports betting in the state. PlayUp, which has online sportsbooks in New Jersey and Colorado, was not permitted on Jan. 1 to join 16 other operators that launched in Ohio, including JACK Entertainment’s betJACK sportsbook, which is affiliated with its casino.

At Wednesday’s monthly meeting, where the commission unanimously approved the settlement agreement, it was noted that PlayUp had also agreed to refrain from seeking any gaming-related license in the state for a period of at least four years. The company will notify the OCCC at least 90 days in advance before filing any future application.

Also, PlayUp agreed to provide $30,000 in restitution to Ohioans who experienced losses using its slots+ product. Slots+ is a game designed using historical horse racing data, rather than a random number generator, to determine wins and losses while playing games resembling slots.

No representative of PlayUp appeared at the meeting to offer comment on the settlement.

An OCCC letter in December accused PlayUp of “engaging in false, deceptive, misleading, or otherwise impermissible advertising … by advertising the slots+ product as legal gaming in the state of Ohio.”

Photo: Shutterstock

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