Hack or not: picking sports and cashing out (legally) | Hacker News Reader

Hack or not: picking sports and cashing out (legally)

blog.sportschimp.com

22 pointsadsahay18 comments

I can't tell from their website what exactly they do. Do you have to buy in for real money to win real money? Or do you play with play money that they allow you to cash out for real money if you get enough of it?

Either way, this is certainly illegal in at least 6 US states. Believe it or not, you can't have games of chance with cash prizes even if entry is free in some states. Nobody ever gets prosecuted for doing that though.

Hi Matt, it is the latter. I looked up your website and would love to chat more if you are up to it.

Sure. I am the founder of a YC company that originally did a Fantasy Sports for money product. While not an attorney, I did spend tens of thousands on them and learned a lot about applicable law.

My advice of course is to do the same if you haven't already. I'll be happy to give you my impressions but I'm no substitute for a lawyer who understands the ins and outs of your product. I can at least recommend a good one in the field of gaming law.

I love this stuff! I used to be in this whole jazz, with a website I co-founded named CentSports that was along the same lines as this, and I would love to chat if y'all have time! Really awesome stuff guys(gals) ! Skype: "JustBivIt" Email: bentechwild@gmail.com

Can't believe I'm meeting all sorts of cool guys in this thread - expect something in your mailbox soon. :)

Guys, I have absolutely no idea what this service is. I know it has something to do with sports, and is your unique take on it to supposedly keep it legal, but when you are doing something that isnt straight forward you need to explain what it is if you want people to try it out. You really need a "how it works" page, because going to the site says absolutely nothing. Also, have a link to tell people what B$ are and actually write out "bitcoins" [is that what B$ are?].

//EDIT: Just saw that B$ are banana bucks. How do people get these and what happens when they "cash out?" I watched your "intro" video [which wasnt very prominent on your homepage] and still dont really have answers to most of the questions I raised

As far as the legality, I really wouldnt be so sure about your 3 prong test, ESPECIALLY if you dont have a lot of money to fight the DOJ. Will they come after you? Depends on how big you get and how well you hide, but if they do come after you, you cant just say "Sorry, we thought it was legal" and shutdown the site and expect them to stop going after you.

When you say, "Furthermore users can’t wager or bet on teams, they simply pick which team they support in a match." What does this mean? Why would a user "pick" a team? What happens if they pick a team and that team wins? What happens if they pick a team and that team loses?

From the article: If you have a grand or more in Banana Bucks (or B$, our virtual currency)...

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The only model they could legally work is:

Allow people to gamble with real money if it's legal where the person lives, and force them to use fake money if they live where gambling is illegal.

Even if Americans have to leave the country to receive their payouts, American courts will still likely find this site in violation of anti-gambling laws.

yea, the us gov't has made it pretty clear that what matters is where the customers are located, so while they dont care if an american gambles online from canada, an american cant gamble from america and then go to canada to get his money.

To clarify. There is no buy in. In no point of the game do you actually use your credit card, cash, sheep's wool or any form of a tradable commodity to buy-in.

how do customers get banana bucks? what happens when they cashout banana bucks?

You don't have to pay to participate? So what? Casinos have free versions too you know. Or are they insinuating that you can win $s without investing any B$s?

As a sidenote, claiming that there is no wagering, is also false. Chosing and supporting a team does involve wagering, only the wager is static and proportionate to the participants. Then there is a formula that adds up and/or devides wagers to the participants.

Love what you guys are doing. I admit that I'm curious about how you plan to build a revenue model that can supplement that kind of outflow, but I'm sure you guys are thinking about it.

Thanks for the Betable shoutout as well :)

We'll chat soon, David.

As a developer interested in this space (and as a gambler at heart), am disappointed that I need a Facebook account to even check this app out.

That said, I like the idea and love that you are willing to take some risks in these gray areas. I'm rooting for you. Now let me in!

Yeahhhh, good luck with that defence when the man comes knocking.

And Tumblr seems to be down. Thank you Murphy.

Its a grey area but at least someone's trying something. Sports Betting won't stay illegal for long.

I love this sports betting app...its soo much fun

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