FanDuel fantasy sports site joins tech lobbying group

Daily fantasy sports is getting new representation in Washington. 

The online company FanDuel announced Thursday that it is joining the Internet Association, a trade group that represents dozens of technology giants from Yahoo and Google to Facebook and Twitter. 

{mosads}The company, based out of New York, is the largest single-day fantasy sports website. Differing from traditional fantasy sports, the site allows for customers to set sports lineups for single games and get payouts throughout the season.

Fantasy sports is largely exempt from wider federal bans on online gambling, like traditional sports betting. Customers pay an entry fee to join a league and receive cash payouts if they win. The group does not, however, consider its business model sports betting.

“As FanDuel continues to grow and redefine how sports fans play fantasy sports on the Internet, it was critical that we joined the Internet Association to participate and engage on important policy issues affecting Internet companies,” the company’s CEO said in a statement. 

Along with other sites, such as DraftKings, FanDuel has turned fantasy sports into an industry worth millions of dollars. On its website, FanDuel boasts about paying out $20 million a week. It has 125 employees and funding of $88 million to date, according to the company. 

“FanDuel’s perspective will be a great asset as we continue to work together to advocate for pro-Internet policies that foster economic growth and empower users,” Internet Association President Michael Beckerman said in a statement. 

— Updated at 1:28 p.m. to clarify FanDuel does not consider itself a betting website.