Delaware Lottery’s igaming contract up for grabs after RfP issued

The Delaware State Lottery has issued a Request for Proposals (RfP) for its exclusive igaming contract which has been held by international operator 888 for a decade. 
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The Delaware State Lottery has issued a Request for Proposals (RfP) for its exclusive igaming contract which has been held by international operator 888 for a decade

Calling upon interested parties to submit proposals for the provision of gaming content and operations, the lottery seeks to partner with a company capable of providing internet gaming solutions, player account management platform and operational and support services. 

Delaware Lottery seeks a gaming vendor to provide online gaming and betting options, and a primary vendor to offer management services such as PAM and support services.

Under the RfP, interested parties will be able to offer online casino games such as table games, video lottery, poker, bingo and keno as well as sports wagering. The contract would be an initial five-year period with options for renewal.

Prospective licensees will have to fulfill several requirements to be considered for the exclusive contract as the lottery aims to have the process completed by ‘late spring’ of 2023. 

First, any prospective licensee must have operated in the US for at least one year and have at least one live client in the US, through either a government-owned or commercial organization, to which it has provided PAM, support services or games. 

Secondly, the applicants must have a minimum offering of 30 games or online sports betting platform as the lottery desires a wide breadth of gaming options for players in the First State. 

Further, any primary vendor must have provided its services in the US for at least two years, highlighting the lottery’s requirement for an experienced lineup.

Interested parties must submit any written question by Feb 3 with submissions due by Feb 17. 

Following the submission deadline, between Mar 1 to Mar 15, the state lottery will open dialogue with vendors, and negotiations with selected partners will commence on Mar 24.   

This is all with the goal in mind of closing the process by “late spring”, with operations set to commence “no later than Nov 1”.

The RfP comes after 888 has spent a decade operating Delaware’s online gaming portfolio on an exclusive basis. However, there is now doubt over whether it will maintain this position; last week the operator noted declines in its online sector when it published its trading update for 2022. 

Despite this, it is understood that 888 will be submitting an application in a bid to hold onto its contract.