The North Carolina Lottery’s sports betting committee met for just over 30 minutes Wednesday, sharing suggested tweaks to the state’s second batch of legal sports betting rules. 

The suggested changes need to be approved by the full lottery commission next week before taking effect. The proposed alterations came after the commission received public comments on the originally proposed rules through Nov. 27. 

Additionally, the committee shared a small update on operator applications for future sports betting sites. 

Mobile operators are beginning to work through application materials, according to members of the committee. The committee hopes to receive applications for mobile sports betting operators by Dec. 27. 

“As of this morning, we have had 11 operators request an application, we’ve had eight service providers, we’ve had 24 suppliers, so 43 total requests,” said Sterl Carpenter, the lottery’s deputy executive director of gaming compliance and sports betting. 

Multiple major brands are supposed to enter the North Carolina sports betting market. Among them are bet365 North Carolina and ESPN BET, which have announced partnership deals with professional sports franchises or venues in the state. ESPN BET is partnering with a PGA Tour venue in the Quail Hollow Club, while bet365 is working with the NBA’s Charlotte Hornets. 

Other operators like BetMGM, Caesars Sportsbook, DraftKings, Fanatics Sportsbook, and FanDuel are also expected to make a push to enter North Carolina’s mobile wagering market. 

It’s unclear when exactly mobile sportsbooks will be allowed to launch in the Tar Heel State, but the lottery has previously stated that legal sports betting apps will go live after the 2024 Super Bowl in February. The law requires mobile platforms go live by mid-June.

Among the notable proposed alterations to rules at Wednesday’s committee meeting was removing a prohibition on operators being able to purchase naming rights to sports facilities or racetracks. The rule also would have prohibited naming rights in certain areas of sports facilities. 

The committee’s staff discussed the rule following public comment and believes those types of marketing integrations aren’t an issue. They shared that a company logo in a stadium, for example, doesn’t induce customers into wagering. By removing the rule, it opens up marketing possibilities for operators. 

Another proposed rule tweak focuses on marketing affiliates. Operators are permitted to work with marketing affiliates, but a suggested change would prevent operators from compensating affiliates according to net revenue generated from bettors who signed up through the affiliate. 

The full commission is scheduled to meet on Dec. 13, and it’s expected the proposed changes will be approved at that time.