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What is Lock And Pop?
U.S. Patent No. 12,406,284, which lists Commerce Secretary and former Cantor CEO Howard Lutnick as its primary inventor, covers geolocation technology commonly used in sports betting.
Geolocation services, which are typically purchased through third-party vendors, are used by sportsbook operators to ensure that their clients are placing wagers from jurisdictions in which sports wagering is legal.
“During prosecution, the Examiner did not apply the material prior art or straightforward combinations presented here, which render every challenged claim obvious,” according to a DraftKings filing with the patent office.
About Lock And Pop
Cyprus is not the first market to consider whether to block its welfare recipients from using their benefits to gamble, Brazil introduced a similar ban in 2025.
During a session of the House Audit Committee last Thursday, members of parliament (MPs), the Data Protection Commissioner and representatives from the Welfare Benefits Administration Service (WBAS), the Gaming & Casino Supervision Commission and the National Betting Authority (NBA) convened to discuss ways to identify and restrict gambling activity among GMI beneficiaries, as reported by Cyprus Mail.
While the intention is to protect vulnerable households and ensure welfare is spent on essential needs, proposed measures are being complicated by legal, technical and privacy obstacles.
About Lock And Pop
“Looking back over the past two years, the regulation has achieved its primary objective: creating a safer and more transparent market. It has established common standards for all licensed operators, particularly around KYC, AML and responsible gaming, ensuring that customers receive a more consistent experience regardless of the platform they choose.”
Atucha praises the regulation and the regulators themselves for making entry into the market easy, as well as allowing them to be competitive against illegal operators. But the market hasn’t been without its challenges.
A 1% selective consumption tax (ISC) on the value of every online bet has been in force since 1 July 2025, after the original policy was scrapped from proposed regulations in July 2021.
