Sea Hunter

What is Sea Hunter?

Taken together, the cases provide further ammunition for the anti-gambling lobby at a time when it is already facing political pressure, tax increases and demands for tighter restrictions. Each apparently avoidable failure makes it harder for the industry to argue that existing regulation is sufficient.

Yet Dan Waugh, partner at Regulus Partners, pushes back against the idea that enforcement notices reveal a fundamentally non-compliant sector.

“Operators failing compliance checks is never a good look,” he says. Campaigners often claim that financial sanctions are priced in and that the Commission should revoke more licences, although Waugh does not believe operators view settlements merely as a cost of doing business.

About Sea Hunter

Stakeholders have yet to determine their response to the bills, with educational campaigns and collective actions on the agenda. Coordination with political leaders in the city of São Paulo is also under way.

Reinaldo Carneiro Bastos, president of the São Paulo Football Federation, expressed concern about the bill, saying: “If the city’s clubs lose this revenue, it will create a disparity that extends to the pitch.”

According to him, advertising from betting companies is a primary revenue source for the clubs. Opponents from other states would be able to retain such advertising, creating a competitive disadvantage, particularly for Corinthians, Palmeiras and São Paulo.

What is Sea Hunter?

“Technology changes the equation,” he says. “If we can make development faster and significantly more cost-efficient, creators can afford to experiment again.

“I’ve said before that I think we’re moving towards the end of the traditional reskin model. Players don’t need another 100 versions of effectively the same game.”

“The ambition is to give talented creators the freedom to try more ideas.”