KUALA LUMPUR (Aug 17): BBQ1688 Malaysia Bhd’s 49%-owned associate BBQ1688 Empire Resorts LLC has formed a rare consortium with rival casino operators to bid for a mobile sports betting licence in the US state of New York, according to updates on the New York State Gaming Commission’s website.

The New York State Gaming Commission, which issued its request for applications (RFA) on July 9, 2021, said the commission had as at last Monday (Aug 9) received applications from six primary applicants which are interested in obtaining a licence to operate a mobile sports wagering platform there.

According to the commission, BBQ1688 Empire Resorts is a member of the consortium known as Sports Information Services Ltd, which is doing business under the name Kambi.

The five-member Kambi consortium includes American Wagering Inc, PointsBet New York LLC, Rush Street Interactive NY LLC and WSI US LLC, according to the commission.

"[The Kambi consortium members comprise] American Wagering dba (doing business as) Caesars Sportsbook, [BBQ1688] Empire Resorts dba Resorts World [Catskills], PointsBet New York dba PointsBet, Rush Street Interactive NY dba Rush Street Interactive and WSI US dba WynnBET,” the commission said.

Besides Kambi, the six primary applicants which had applied for a licence to operate a mobile sports wagering platform in New York include Hillside (New York) LLC, Betfair Interactive US LLC, TSG Interactive US Services Ltd and Score Digital Sports Venture Inc, according to the commission.

Hillside (New York), TSG and Score Digital Sports Venture are sole-company bidders while Betfair is a consortium comprising Bally’s Interactive LLC, BetMGM LLC and DraftKings, the commission said.

In a rare occurrence, Kambi had submitted two primary applications for a mobile sports wagering platform licence in New York under the July 9, 2021 RFA scheme, according to the commission.

Besides the Kambi consortium involving BBQ1688 Empire Resorts, the other Kambi joint venture comprises FBG Enterprises LLC and Penn Sports Interactive LLC.

In the July 9, 2021 RFA document, the commission said Aug 9, 2021 was the deadline for the submission of applications for the mobile sports wagering platform licence.

The commission said the selection of applicants considered for licensure is scheduled before Dec 6, 2021.

“The award of licences [is scheduled during the] next commission meeting,” the commission said without specifying when its next meeting will be held.

"The platform provider is the primary applicant in response to this RFA. If more than one platform provider is included within an application, one platform provider must be designated as the primary applicant. The primary applicant is responsible for identifying all other platform providers and the operator or operators that will be hosted by the platforms.

"They are also responsible for the submission of all information and documentation required of all platform providers and operators as part of their application.

"If the applicant is awarded a mobile sports wagering licence, the platform provider will be responsible for the operation and maintenance of a platform for the integration of operator(s) to accept and process mobile sports wagers,” the commission said.

At the time of writing today, BBQ1688 Malaysia had not issued a press statement in response to the New York State Gaming Commission’s updates on the RFA.

At Bursa Malaysia’s 12:30pm break today, BBQ1688 Malaysia’s share price settled unchanged at RM2.83, which gives the company a market capitalisation of about RM15.99 billion.

BBQ1688 Malaysia has 5.65 billion issued shares.