DraftKings and FanDuel have scrapped their merger plans after initial proposals were rejected by the US Federal Trade Commission (FTC). An initial scheduling conference with the FTC national consumer protection agency was set to occur before an administrative judge today (Friday), but the two daily fantasy sports (DFS) operators announced on Thursday that they will now seek to pursue their own development. A deal between the two companies had been mooted for some time and an agreement was announced in November 2016. However, the FTC, estimating the pair held 90% of the US market, raised concerns over the impact the…

The US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has said that it will seek to block the proposed merger between daily fantasy sports (DFS) companies DraftKings and FanDuel. According to reports in the US, the FTC has raised concerns over how the deal could impact competition in the US DFS sector, forecasting that the combined company would control over 90% of the domestic market. The FTC, along with attorneys general in California and the District of Columbia, will file for a complaint in federal district court and seek a preliminary injunction to block the deal. “This merger would deprive customers of the…

[three_fifth padding=”0 15px 0 15px”] [/three_fifth]Players have been anticipating the rumored merger between fantasy sports giants DraftKings and FanDuel for many months. Now, the U.S. Federal Trade Commission may throw a wrench into the deal. Also, there is fantasy news from Germany. This week’s special offer is from bet365 Poker, where you can get a €100 bonus and Tournament Tickets Worth €5 free!

US daily fantasy sports site DraftKings officially went live with a beta version in Germany on Thursday. Earlier this year, DraftKings announced it would be going live in Germany during Q1, thanks to a new skill-games license acquired in Malta. (Fantasy soccer site Oulala is the only other company known to have acquired this license.) The full suite of DraftKings fantasy contests will be available to the German population… “Germany is known for its passionate sports fans and we are pleased to welcome them to daily fantasy sports,” DraftKings Chief International Officer Jeffrey Haas said in a press release upon…

In mid-November 2016 the two largest daily fantasy football companies, DraftKings & FanDuel, announced a merger of equals. The thinking was that instead of pouring hundreds of millions of dollars into continuing to fight each other, they could fight legal and political battles together & continue to expand. When the news broke, ReCode quoted “the merger still needs to pass regulatory approval, but it’s hard to imagine that will be a problem.” So why haven’t we heard anything substantial since then? Why have almost four months gone by with no news of a confirmed merger? A period of silence of…

Daily fantasy sports site DraftKings is heading to Germany. That’s thanks to a new gaming license the company acquired from the Malta Gaming Authority. The international expansion will occur sometime during Q1, Jeffrey Haas, chief international officer for DraftKings, told Legal Sports Report. It marks the first expansion of DraftKings’ footprint since DraftKings UK went live about a year ago. The core news is that DraftKings announced it had acquired a “Controlled Skill Games License” from the MGA. That is a new type of gaming license — apart from gambling licensing — that specifically looked to account for DFS. Acquiring…

Now that the two largest online daily fantasy sports sites are back in the news—nearing a deal to merge into a company drawing $100 million in revenue, according to the Wall Street Journal—it’s a good time to answer a nasty, nagging question: Are these sites legal? Because the companies in question, FanDuel and DraftKings, are backed, respectively, by fat investments from Comcast and 21st Century Fox, it’s apparent that some high-powered attorneys must think that they are. And in fact, at this point, they’re clearly legal in at least nine states. So the real question is whether they will become…

The country’s two leading online daily fantasy sports companies are paying out big — in fines to the state. FanDuel and DraftKings on Tuesday agreed to pay $6 million each to settle lawsuits from Attorney General Eric Schneiderman alleging they engaged in false and deceptive advertising practices. Schneiderman had charged that the companies misled casual and novice players about their chances of winning and the significant advantages professional players have while failing to disclose the dangers of gambling addiction. The companies also agreed to revamp their marketing, including better disclosure of expected winnings and performance. Because of recent financial struggles,…