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Springfield City Officials Expect MGM to Honor its Obligations

 Springfield city officials continue constructive talks with MGM Springfield to collect the outstanding part of the April payment. Under the host community agreement, the casino property still owes around $2.3 million to the city.
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MGM Springfield had to pay $7.78 million, but on April 1, the casino made a payment of only $5.5 million, stating it was only a partial payment. Chris Kelly, President and COO of MGM Springfield said by that time that the casino would meet its obligations in full.
MGM Springfield Declared Situation beyond Its ControlIn March, however, MGM Springfield sought relief from certain financial obligations, filing a notice of “force majeure” with the city and claiming circumstances beyond the casino's reasonable control influenced its ability to meet all obligations. The casino pointed to the requirement from the Massachusetts Gaming Commission (MGC) for casinos to close down to help curb the further spread of the coronavirus.
Jose Delgado, an official spokesman for MGM Springfield noted this week that the talks with city officials continue on a collaborative and productive basis, as both parties have a clear view of what the nature of the coronavirus infection spread is and how it impacted the entertainment and hospitality industry.
Casino Struggles Continued After Re-OpeningSpringfield Mayor Domenic Sarno noted that city officials expect MGM to honor its legally binding contractual agreements, pointing out that the constructive dialog with both the casino and the MGC regarding the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on MGM's obligations would continue.
Since its reopening in early July, MGM Springfield continued to struggle following strict guidelines for operation, but mainly due to the limit imposed on its capacity.  Besides, certain games such as roulette and craps were not allowed to resume by the state regulator until last week when the MGC finally signaled their return.
MGM Springfield Contributes Directly and IndirectlyMGM Springfield contributes to between $24 million and $25 million to the city, according to official information from the city. The amount includes payments in lieu of taxes, community impact payments and development grants.
During its first year of operation, the $960 million casino property which opened in August 2018 contributed to the Massachusetts economy to the amount of $974 million, a recent University of Massachusetts study revealed.
Besides the annual contribution in terms of taxes and other payments, MGM Springfield continues with its capital investment program regarding a housing redevelopment at 13-31 Elm St, where the casino is expected to pump $16 million as per its own pledge. Se Die MGM Springfield also plans to open on its campus a Wahlburger's restaurant.
City officials noted they are content with the ongoing dialog with both the casino and the regulator, believing it was only a temporary situation as MGM had been honoring other various obligations to the community without interruption.



FanDuel Signs a First Gaming Partnership with MLB



* FanDuel becomes official gaming partner to MLB
* MLB now moves past royalty fee and focuses on data distribution
* This is a first partnership for FanDuel of this kindFanDueland MLB have signed a partnership making the daily fantasy andbetting firm the official data provider for the league.
FanDuel Joins Hands with MLB as Official GamingPartner Major League Baseball (MLB) has found a new partner in the face of FanDuel, one of the two daily fantasy sports platforms along with DraftKings, which have been operating the longest in the United States.
The Flutter Entertainment-owned company is now an official gaming partner to the League and it marks an important shift in the relationship between leagues and betting firms in the United States. Starting reluctantly, the NBA, NFL, MLB and NHL have all struck partnerships with gaming operators – whether it concerns data or just marketing opportunities.
This is a first for FanDuel as well, as the company hasn't had any official partnership agreements with any of the aforementioned leagues. Kip Levin, FanDuel President and COO had this to say on the occasion:
“Fantasy sports and sports betting have become a national pastime in their own right, so it's natural to join forces with MLB. MLB clearly understands how working together can be beneficial for baseball fans and both companies alike.”
Meanwhile, Kenny Gersh, head of new business ventures at MLB, added that baseball was one of the main betting products, and the partnership with FanDuel would help establish a better experience for customers and fans.
The Data Deals Leagues BrokerFollowing an ill-fated attempt to impose integrity fees, leagues have changed the tune, asking instead for partnership which allow for synergies and transfer of data. While some sports betting companies have been skeptic about official league data, arguing that they had been obtaining such information for years, others, such as Sportradar and Genius Sports, have agreed to benefit from this.
Excited to announce our multi-year partnership as an Authorized Gaming Operator of MLB!

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More details: pic.twitter.com/Nqu8IFEYIQ
— FanDuel Sportsbook (@FDSportsbook) August 15, 2019So far as the Major League Baseball goes, the League already has a number of partners to its name, including the MGM Resorts World and DraftKings, a main competitor for FanDuel. Dragon Tiger Meanwhile, MLB dropped the idea of charging a “royalty fee” as early as May, 2019.
Originally, the MLB was hoping to be paid a small fee so that it may ensure the integrity of sports that are being bet on, but it later focused on talking only about how it would produce and provide data.
Even Sportradar and Genius Sports have seen a reason in obtaining data from leagues directly despite these companies unchallenged resources and ability to derive statistically relevant information. Speaking to Forbes in May, the MLB had this to say:
“MLB invests significant resources and capital to produce a fast, reliable and rich data feed that will allow sports books to create more engaging products for our fans and generate additional revenue from the ability to offer more types of markets and keep those markets open longer.”
This has been the new narratives that leagues have upheld. Instead of trying to sell data to sportsbooks and betting vendors, athletic organizations are finally pooling their resources and looking for synergies instead.