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Fantasy Gambling Sites Like
NBX.com Popping Up |
A “growing universe of sports ‘fantasy wagering’ Web sites ... have emerged in recent years” that effectively allow U.S. consumers “to engage in legal online gambling,” according to Bobby White of the WALL STREET JOURNAL. Players on Pickspal.com can earn points that are “converted into prizes such as concert tickets” or even cash on sites like NBX.com. On some sites, actual money sometimes “does change hands,” as NBX lets members buy “extra points, which are later wagered on events.” Many of the sites — including Pickspal, Faniq.com, NBX, Fanlete.com, Pickheads.com and Wagerline.com — do not receive enough visitors to be measured by research firms, but several of them said that “traffic is spiking up and in some cases doubling from a year ago.” Wagerline said it has nearly 90,000 subscribers, while Pickspal claims slightly over 100,000. Many of the sites “rely on Internet advertising for revenue,” as users do not have to pay to join them, and Wagerline has “attracted advertising from offshore gambling Web sites.” Both Wagerline and NBX said that the “federal crackdown on online gambling has not yet hit advertising on their sites.” White writes PicksPal “blends social-networking elements, such as friends lists, with sports site features, such as injury reports.” Subscribers at NBX can “listen to podcasts of matchups recorded by former professional athletes.” The site also allows members to “display their predictions for sporting events and see how they match up with friends” (
WALL STREET JOURNAL, 10/19).
