The smiling faces of Paris Hilton and Ryan Seacrest made surprise looks before the Louisiana Senate for Friday's hearing on prohibited gaming.

No, they weren't personally in attendance, but the world-famous celebs were notably included in a slide presentation on social and sweepstakes casinos - the questionable sites using both totally free casino-style games and lucrative rewards, such as cash, gift cards or cryptocurrency. In one advertisement, the fist-pumping Seacrest is seen plugging Chumba Casino, where anybody can 'bet totally free,' while a crop-topped Hilton holds a chip for sweepstakes operator, Wow Vegas, in the other.
bet9ja.com
The sites are just 2 cogs in the multibillion-dollar market that now finds itself besieged by claims. In the eyes of many gaming corporations, not to point out lawsuit plaintiffs and state regulators, sweepstakes gambling establishments function as conventional gambling establishments, just without the oversight, consumer securities and tax laws. So not only can they prevent the steep 24-percent federal sports betting levy, however sweepstakes operators aren't based on regulatory difficulties like anti-money laundering and responsible-gaming protections.

One operator, Australia-based Virtual Gaming Worlds (VGW), reported $4 billion in earnings in 2015 alone. Now the company faces accusations of illegal sports betting in a New york city claim that declares VGW utilizes star endorsers to 'develop a veneer of authenticity' around its item. (See VGW's statement listed below)

'I'm unsure" if you do not trust us, you can trust Paris Hilton" is a winning message for companies running multibillion-dollar prohibited operations out of locations like Malta, Isle of Man, or US mail drops,' Friday's presenter, Howard Glaser of gaming corporation Light & Wonder, told DailyMail.com.

Sweepstakes endorsers consist of a variety of stars from sports betting lovers Drake and DJ Khaled to swimmer Michael Phelps, along with NBA stars Karl-Anthony Towns and Paul George - none of whom provide any differences between traditional gaming and sweepstakes play.

Paris Hilton is seen plugging Wow Vegas, one of numerous sweepstakes casinos discovered online

Ryan Seacrest urges fans to dip into Chumba Casino, where numerous - but not all - video games are complimentary

Drake has a handle social sweeps casino, Stake, that he routinely promotes on social networks

Read More

Donald Trump 'set to name NBA team owner as US ambassador to Italy'

Instead, advertisements generally focus around the social aspect of the casinos, while omitting the capacity for actual gambling losses.

Others lure customers with pledges of prizes. One such operator, Stake, ran a social networks ad displaying Drake's automobiles, airplanes and estates before rotating to video of the rapper playing online casino-style games.

'Daddy, why do we have a lot money?' read the very first caption on the screen.

Another caption described: 'Because I never gave up.'

The discrepancy between sports betting sites and social or sweepstakes gambling establishments is a bit intricate, but operators of the latter insist they're not included with the former.

A spokesperson for a market trade group, the Social and Promotional Gaming Association (SPGA), discussed its members are not in direct competitors with online casinos and sportsbooks. Furthermore, according to SPGA data, the majority of the gamers on social-sweepstakes gambling establishments are playing for free.

'Most social sweeps clients never ever purchase,' the SPGA representative informed DailyMail.com. 'The minority of consumers who make purchases do so in quantities far smaller than the normal deposit or wager size at real-money online gaming websites.'

Social gambling establishments offer customers an opportunity to play casino-style video games with friends. Players have the option to buy worthless currency often described as 'gold coins,' which can not be exchanged genuine money, but can be utilized to open various functions within the video games.

But within the world of social casinos exists sweepstakes video gaming, enabling customers to get other currency known as 'sweeps coins' that can be exchanged for cash or other rewards.
bet9ja.com
And therein lies the potential for monetary losses, like the ones claimed by complainants in Florida, Georgia, New Jersey and New York. One gamer informed the Washington Post he lost more than $100,000 on sweepstakes gambling establishments in the previous year after continuing to purchase more coins in pursuit of cash and other things of value.

The Philadelphia 76ers' Paul George is seen promoting an International Poker event

Social sweeps casino Stake ran an advertisement flaunting Drake's cars, airplanes and mansions

Karl-Anthony Towns of the New York City Knicks is another NBA star plugging VGW's Global Poker

Traditional online casinos are banned in all but 7 states, which has helped to sustain the appeal of sweepstakes casinos.

Anyone over the age of 18 can access the sweepstakes websites, which don't require usually need identification. However, websites like Chumba will request IDs from players attempting to withdraw any funds.

Many websites, like the crypto-compatible Stake, permit customers to send mail-in requests for totally free sweeps coins, offered the gamers follow painfully specific guidelines. What's more, players are frequently rewarded with sweeps coins just for signing up, therefore giving them a reason to try their hands at any number of casino video games for an opportunity to win - or lose - real money.

So why are sweepstakes websites allowed to run in 48 states, while online casinos are banned in all however 7?

According to the stakeholders, their item is the free casino-style gaming, and the real-stakes competition is just a method of promoting their bread and butter.

'Social sweepstakes video games are just a type of online home entertainment,' an SPGA spokesperson told DailyMail.com by email. 'No purchase is required to dip into social gambling establishments with sweepstakes rewards. Consumers never ever need to pay for an opportunity to win rewards. That lack of a purchase requirement - or" consideration" - is a vital distinction between social sweeps and traditional online gambling sites like casinos.'

Think of the way that McDonald's utilizes its annual Monopoly game to promote its food: Customers aren't paying to gamble, but rather they're buying hamburgers and fries that offer them the possibility to win financially rewarding rewards, such as a $1 million jackpot.

And without a purchase requirement, or 'factor to consider', the video game itself doesn't satisfy the meaning of gambling in the US.

'Sweepstakes are a long-standing method for promoting all kinds of everyday businesses in the United States, everything from hamburgers to magazine memberships to coffee and home improvement shops,' the SPGA representative told DailyMail.com. 'Sweepstakes promotions are regularly used by a who's who of household names like AT&T, Chase, Home Depot, Marriott, Starbucks, and Wal-Mart.'

But to many gambling industry insiders, that argument does not cut it.

For starters, gaming lawyer Daniel Wallach mentions, McDonald's Monopoly game does not run forever. Rather, it has a well-defined beginning and end, therefore recommending the sweepstakes is not the fast-food giant's main product. Instead, the sweepstakes is being utilized to promote genuine items like french fries, shakes, and the Filet-O-Fish.
bet9ja.com
'They do not last permanently and they're normally not connected to casino-style games of opportunity,' Wallach told DailyMail.com. 'They're simply cash giveaways.

'The sweepstakes [gambling establishments] have none of the qualities commonly connected with McDonald's-design sweepstakes promos,' Wallach continued. 'Besides running in perpetuity, the sweepstakes gambling establishments offer" casino-like" payments, normally 80 percent or more of profits, whereas the typical payment percentage for a temporary promotional sweepstakes is a minor share of the earnings earned by the business [usually less than one percent]'

Wallach fasts to liken the online social sweeps casinos to the web coffee shops that emerged in Florida, offering clients the chance to play casino-style games for genuine rewards. A lot of those brick-and-mortar establishments have since been shuttered over allegations of prohibited gambling.

DJ Khaled is among a number of star spokespeople for VGW's Global Poker brand name

Now, Wallach argues, social sweeps casinos ought to deal with similar scrutiny.

'These distinctions are not arbitrary,' Wallach stated of social sweeps gambling establishments. 'They have consistently been mentioned by courts and state chief law officer as crucial consider determining that a sweepstakes promo remained in truth a guise for unlawful sports betting.'

One of the gambling establishment market's leading trade companies, the American Gaming Association, is now pressing legislators to examine sweepstakes operators and, in many cases, enact new legislation on the issue.

'Consumers are being deprived of securities and states are giving up substantial tax and profits chances as this gambling replaces that conducted through controlled channels,' read a well-circulated AGA memo.

And after that there are the complainants who have sued social casinos in more than a dozen states.

Sweepstakes gambling establishment operators paid a combined $14.2 million in four separate cases in Kentucky without confessing any misdeed, according to the Washington Post. Meanwhile VGW consented to pay $11.75 million in one class-action suit, saying the settlement was made to avoid legal costs and continued litigation.

Michael Phelps has actually signed a handle the VGW Group, which owns Global Poker

In the newest lawsuit, which is largely similar to its predecessors, New York state residents Lamar Prater and Rebecca Pratt both declare to have lost well over $1,000 to VGW, which is explained in the filing as an 'illegal gambling business. '

Apple and Google have also been called as accuseds in claims for hosting the sweepstakes sites. But unlike VGW, neither tech company reacted to DailyMail.com's demand for remark.

'We typically do not talk about before the courts,' a VGW representative informed DailyMail.com by means of email. 'However, we note that this claim has only just been filed with the court and VGW has not been formally served.

'We have complete self-confidence in our compliance with all laws and regulations where we operate, and stay confident about the future,' the spokesperson continued. 'We continue to use our free-to-play video games throughout many of North America, as we have for more than a years, producing not just excellent games, user experiences and home entertainment, however also ensuring this is done securely, properly and at the highest level of requirements.

'More broadly, we 'd repeat that class actions and other litigations and arbitrations are fairly common across the online social games market (and the US more broadly), and our standard practice is that we mean to vigorously protect any claim which might be brought against us.'

The issues in between conventional online sports betting and sweepstakes gambling establishments could prove problematic for some celebrity endorsers.

Towns, a star center with the Knicks, and the 76ers' George both endorse VGW's Global Poker brand while the NBA is partnered with standard gaming titans like FanDuel and DraftKings.

'It's paradoxical that expert athletes are hawking unlawful sports betting 'sweeps' websites while at the exact same time the leagues wish to forecast a strong stance versus prohibited gaming - especially when attempting to tamp down the occasional sports betting scandal,' Glaser informed DailyMail.com.

It was just 8 months ago that Toronto Raptors forward Jontay Porter received a lifetime restriction from the NBA over accusations he conspired with gamblers. However, to be clear, Porter's scandal is unassociated to anything involving social or sweepstakes casinos.

In addition to VGW, Apple and Google are being demanded hosting supposedly illegal gambling websites

Regardless, Glaser sees sweepstakes gambling establishments as a significant problem for leagues such as the NBA.

'I 'd expect that a league crackdown on professional athletes backing sweepstakes websites is a matter of when, not if,' Glaser included.

Neither an NBA spokesperson nor the gamers' representatives reacted to DailyMail.com's demands for comment. For that matter, spokespeople for Drake, DJ Khaled, Hilton, Seacrest and Phelps also disregarded to react to DailyMail.com emails.

Asked if their celeb endorsers have a responsibility to explain to consumers the differences and resemblances between iGaming and sweepstakes gambling establishments, VGW insisted there is absolutely nothing more that requires to be done.
bit.ly
'We have complete confidence in our influencer and ambassadorial collaborations, and our company practices more broadly,' the representative stated. 'A few of our values are" our players precede" and" we do what's right", and we put our worths at the core of everything we do.'

Glaser, an outspoken challenger of sweepstakes sites, sees things in a different way.

'Celebrities who provide their names to dubious illegal sports betting websites are, at a minimum, putting their track records at risk as well as courting civil and class actions by consumers who allege harm,' Glaser said. 'There is likewise some danger that state regulators and state chief law officers rope star endorsers into enforcement efforts for helping with prohibited gambling.'

New YorkNBADrakeParis Hilton