15 Types of Player Data Named in Massachusetts Sportsbook Inquiry

The inquiry was sent on October 9 and published by the regulator on October 14. It deals with marketing decisions, not just the technology behind them. MGC has not imposed a new ban or required changes to current promotional systems.

15 Player Data Categories Under Review

The five-page MGC letter contains eight sections. The second identifies 15 categories of player information that operators may use in their marketing systems.

A review of the list shows three groups of data:

• Betting activity (8): wagering frequency, number of bets, amount wagered, average stake, session frequency or duration, time since the last wager, sports or markets selected, and types of bets;
• Financial data (3): deposits and withdrawals, net wins or losses, and gross gaming revenue attributed to an individual player;
• Account and promotional data (4): response to previous offers, use of promotional credits, account tenure, and VIP or customer-value status.

The list does not mean every sportsbook uses all 15 categories. MGC wants operators to identify which information enters their marketing decisions.

Player losses receive particular attention. The regulator asks whether rising losses, deposits or betting frequency can lead to additional promotions. It also wants to know whether gambling-risk indicators affect promotional targeting.

Manual Approvals and Individual Bonus Records

The letter covers more than software marketed as AI. Systems using fixed rules are included, even when an employee reviews the recommendation before an offer goes out. Operators are also asked to name their outside technology suppliers and the person responsible for overseeing these tools.

Three sections deal with the offers themselves. They cover the selection of customers, the type and value of a bonus, and the timing of promotional messages. One example concerns a player who has stopped betting or reduced activity. MGC wants to establish whether this changes the number of messages sent to that account.

The document also examines automated testing of promotions. It asks about predicted customer profitability and whether sportsbooks treat players with recent heavy losses differently from those with similar betting activity but smaller losses.

Player Losses and Promotion Records

There are separate questions about gambling risks. Operators are asked to describe any safeguards that prevent increased losses or more frequent betting from making a player more likely to receive another promotion. Where an outside vendor supplies the model, MGC requests details of the assurances received about harmful gambling behaviour.

The final section turns to individual decisions. MGC gives the example of a customer identified as Patron A who received Promotion X on a particular date. It wants to establish whether the operator can retrieve the data and model factors behind that decision.

Employee overrides and recordkeeping are covered in the same section. The commission also seeks information on whether an operator can calculate the share of a player’s promotions influenced by AI or machine learning.