In emails sent Thursday, FanDuel and DraftKings issued a call to action to users in the state of California, in response to a November 2 letter sent by Assemblyman Marc Levine (D-Marin County) – and first obtained by the Register – that alleged daily fantasy sports to be illegal under California state law.
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On Wednesday, FanDuel CEO Nigel Eccles said more than 600,000 of the company’s have played from ny at a few point. The two industry rivals are teaming up to try to show how much support they have by encouraging their NY customers to attend a rally in front Attorney General Schneiderman’s NY City office Friday morning. Schneiderman’s office responded by asking the companies for information based on their own internal probes.
The Boston Globe reported Friday that DraftKings Inc. has filed a lawsuit seeking to halt New York’s attempt to block daily fantasy games in the state.
To that end, each site says that their platforms are games that require knowledge and skill and are not gambling, which is based on luck. Draftkings has hired Boies Schiller & Flexner LLP who has previously represented the NFL, NFL players, and the NBA.
YouTubeDraftKings TV adDaily fantasy sports sites FanDuel and DraftKings are suing New York’s attorney general to fight his efforts to get them to shut down.
He likened the companies’ business models to the lottery, saying his office’s one-month investigation revealed that the top 1 per cent of players reaped the majority of winnings. “Because both companies have refused to follow the law in our state, we will take action to enforce state law”. Both DraftKings and FanDuel were already dealing with gambling regulators in Nevada, but Schneiderman’s ruling has generated a lot of buzz and animosity.
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While FanDuel opted to go the fan route, putting together an online petition from fans to have the ruling overturned, the larger of the two giants made a decision to go legal. Including NY, there are now seven states where daily fantasy sports are no longer allowed, with neither FanDuel or DraftKings currently operating in Iowa, Louisiana, Arizona, Montana, and Washington. Looks like DraftKings has and you can bet FanDuel aren’t far behind.
