October 2022

October 26, 2022

Catering to the next generation

Tom Waterhouse’s latest betting investment column examines social betting, which he sees as a key way to engage younger audiences.

As discussed in our January 2022 newsletter, wagering apps have maintained a consistent information architecture for decades, typically structuring their layout by featuring promotions at the top, then providing some high level navigation to the most popular sports and major racing codes.

We have a particular focus on companies that are revolutionising this traditional user interface and the broader user experience. In January, we discussed Voxbet, a voice and text to bet business, which bettors can use directly through Viber, Telegram and other popular messaging services, thus circumventing the need to bet through a bookmaker’s website/app.

Social betting

Another way that bookmakers can appeal to a younger, digital-native generation of bettors is by promoting the social aspect of betting.

Bettors have always discussed their top picks with their frien..

October 26, 2022

Ontario report

iGB’s new report on Ontario offers exclusive insight into Canada’s most populous province – the first to regulate betting and igaming.

When the Ontario market opened in April this year, it wasn’t quite brand new ground.

Anyone in the industry could tell you that the grey market in Canada’s largest province had been thriving for quite some time.

Still, bringing the province from grey to white offers certainty and new opportunities for many.

Six months on, we have a sense of the spoils available. Operators – excluding the lottery – brought in a combined CA$267m in the three months ended 30 September.

The biggest challenge in the province, however, may be marketing rules. Operators can offer bonuses, but may not promote them. As Marese O’Hagan writes in our progress report, that’s been difficult, but it hasn’t seriously dampened excitement about the jurisdiction.

And for now, those complying with the rules still need to compete with some unlicensed brands, which continue to do busin..

October 26, 2022

Saskatchewan to launch legal online gambling on 3 November

The Saskatchewan Indian Gaming Authority (SIGA) will launch its new online gambling and sports betting website on 3 November, marking the launch of legal igaming in the Canadian province.

PlayNow.com will be operated by the Saskatchewan Gaming Corporation (SaskGaming) as the only legal igaming website in Saskatchewan, offering licensed gambling to players on an exclusive basis.

This is in line with an arrangement announced last September, which was agreed by the Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations (FSIN) and the provincial government.

The PlayNow.com platform will be delivered by the British Columbia Lottery Corporation (BCLC) and based on a website of the same name that is operated by the BCLC in British Columbia.

Saskatchewan will become only the third province in which PlayNow.com is active, after its initial launch in British Columbia and also in Manitoba.

To support the launch, PlayNow.com has agreed a sponsorship deal with local Canadian Football League team the Saska..

October 25, 2022

SimWin Sports appoints former DraftKings VP as director

Virtual sports betting operator SimWin Sports has appointed former DraftKings VP Jamie Shea as non-executive director.

Shea has close to 30 years experience in the sports betting industry. She was at DraftKings for four years, where she held the role of VP of sportsbook operations for almost three and a half years and the role of VP of national VIP marketing for 11 months.

Before this, she worked at IGT as a sports betting and PlaySpot specialist and Caesars as a regional sales director.

jamie shea, non executive director, simwin

Currently, she is the chief marketing officer at Strive Gaming.

“Jamie is a real-money gaming all-star,” said David Ortiz, founder of SimWin. “Her work with Strive Gaming, DraftKings and other major players in the real-money gaming world makes her a huge addition to the SimWin team.

“We welcome her guidance as SimWin continues to push towards its first football season, during which she will be integral to the betting and fantasy elements of the game.”

I..

October 25, 2022

Bet365 to launch new products through expanded Genius deal

Genius Sports has signed a long-term extension to its official data partnership with online gambling operator Bet365, allowing the operator to launch new products powered by data from Genius-owned Second Spectrum.

Under the deal, Genius Sports will provide Bet365 with its exclusive portfolio of official data rights to a range of leading sporting events such as football’s English Premier League, the National Football League (NFL) and Nascar.

In addition, as the official data partner to the Mid-American Conference, Genius will provide Bet365 with the only official data feed for betting on National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) sports.

The deal will also cover a new range of betting products powered by AI-driven tracking technology from Second Spectrum.

“Expanding our partnership with Bet365, the largest sports betting brand in the world, demonstrates our commitment to delivering the most innovative and compelling products for our customers,” Genius Sports chief executive Ma..

October 25, 2022

NH sports betting revenue reaches nine-month high in September

Sports betting revenue in New Hampshire increased to a nine-month high in September, while the US state also posted year-on-year growth across revenue and handle.

Total gross gaming revenue for September amounted to $7.4m (£.5m/€7.5m), up by 68.2% year-on-year from $4.4m in the same month last year and 76.2% more than $4.2m in August this year. It was also the highest monthly amount since $8.0m was generated in January 2022.

Online sports betting was responsible for $7.7m in revenue for the month, but a $374,088 loss from retail sportsbooks pushed the figure down to $7.4m.

In terms of player spending, handle for the month stood at $78.2m, up 14.8% from $68.1m in September 2021 and also 80.2% higher than $43.4m in August this year.

Consumers wagered a total of $58.5m online during the month, while the remaining $19.8m was spent betting at retail sportsbooks across the state.

Tax generated from sports wagering in September reached $3.2m, with $3.5m coming from online, while retail’s..

October 25, 2022

Turnover up but gross win down for PointsBet in Q1 2023

PointsBet’s turnover in the first quarter of 2023 rose by 18.0% year-on-year to AU$1.15bn (£1.02bn/€1.17bn), yet its gross win was down by AUS$2.0m.

The results came as the business also revealed a change in US strategy to focus less on casual customers and more on high-volume bettors.

In total, AU$523.8m of the turnover came from US operations. Australia made up AU$611.9m of the turnover, while Canada contributed AU$20.9m.

Gross win, meanwhile, was AU$115.1m, down by 1.7% from AU$117.1m in Q1 2022.

Gross win in the US was AU$40.5m, while in Australia it was AU$73.0m. Canada contributed AU$1.6m to the gross win, after PointsBet launched in Ontario in April of this year.

The total revenue for the quarter – made up of B2B and B2C operations – was AUS$81.5m.

In terms of costs, advertising and marketing made up the highest expense at AUS$54.7m.

However, Aitken said that PointsBet had reduced marketing spend significantly in the first quarter.

“This year we took a measured approach ..

October 25, 2022

Golden Matrix to launch online casino site in Mexico

Virtual sports and gaming provider Golden Matrix is to launch a new, proprietary B2C online casino in Mexico on 1 November.

Mexplay will feature a range of online slots, table games and a sportsbook, allowing users to place bets on a wide range of sports and events.

The licensed site will also have tournament competition prizes similar to those offered by the provider’s RKings subsidiary in Great Britain. Mexplay content will be available in both Spanish and English.

Golden Matrix chief executive Brian Goodman said the Mexico launch marks the latest stage of its ongoing expansion strategy in Latin America, with plans to also enter other regulated markets across the region.

“This represents the next major step by our company to expand its B2C footprint,” Goodman said. “The recently acquired B2C operations of RKings now account for over 50% of our revenues and over 50% of our profits; similarly, we now expect important contributions to revenue and profit growth from our operations in..

October 25, 2022

American Gaming Association CEO on the rebirth and renewal of US gambling

Bill Miller could argue that his tenure has seen the most transformative period for the gaming industry since the American Gaming Association was established in 1995. He talks to Robin Harrison about sports betting, gaming expansion, Covid-19, safer gambling and the illegal market in this exclusive interview.

When Bill Miller took charge of the American Gaming Association (AGA) in January 2019, the US commercial gaming industry was poised for a period of explosive growth.

Legal sports betting, thanks to the repeal of the Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA), was rapidly spreading across the US.

The industry as a whole posted its fifth consecutive year of revenue growth for that year, with 2019’s total breaking records at $43.6bn.

The industry generated $10.2bn in gaming taxes for state and local governments with 21 of 25 commercial gaming states posting year-on-year revenue growth. This sum covers annual education costs for 832,000 elementary and secondary scho..

October 24, 2022

Kindred expands in US with Unibet tribal launch in Washington

Kindred Group is to launch its Unibet brand in the state of Washington through a partnership with the Swinomish tribe and its Swinomish Casino and Lodge in Anacortes.

Under the deal, which will run for six years and include a five-year right to extend, Kindred and Swinomish will launch a co-branded Unibet and Swinomish retail sportsbook at the land-based casino.

Online betting is currently not legal in Washington, with the exception of mobile-on-property betting while at land-based casinos.

The launch is subject to licensure and regulatory approvals and would mark the seventh US state in which Unibet is offering sports betting.

“We are very excited to expand our footprint in the US, and to do so together with the Swinomish tribe,” Kindred senior vice-president for North America, Manuel Stan, said. “The opening of a sportsbook lounge at the Swinomish Casino and Lodge will allow us to offer best in class sports betting experiences.”

Kindred added that it would continue to invest in ..

October 24, 2022

Arizona sports betting handle reaches $361.0m in August

Player spending on sports betting in Arizona jumped 24.3% month-on-month to $361.0m (£319.3m/€367.6m) in August, while revenue in the state also increased.

Sports wagering handle was ahead of $290.5m in July and also represented the second consecutive month of growth in the state. Some $359.2m was wagered online, with just $1.5m spent at retail sportsbooks.

Players won $323.8m from sports betting in August, leaving $36.3m in revenue for the month, up 65.0% from $22.0m in July.

After accounting for $8.5m in free bets and promotional credits, taxable revenue for the month was $27.8m, an increase of 85.3% from $27.8m in the previous month.

DraftKings led the market in terms of handle, processing $129.8m in bets, all of which were placed online. FanDuel was second with $109.7m in total bets, split $108.7m online and $1.0m at retail locations, then BetMGM on $58.2m in online wagers.

Turning to gross revenue and FanDuel narrowly claimed top spot with $11.7m. DraftKings was second with $..

October 24, 2022

ATG warns over impact of “global economic challenges”

Sweden’s former horse racing monopoly ATG said net gaming revenue was broadly level year-on-year during the first three quarters of its 2022 financial year, despite the impact of global economic challenges.

Total revenue for the nine months through to the end of September amounted to SEK3.9bn (£305.9m/€352.6m/$346.9m), a decrease of less than 1% on the same period last year.

ATG said that while the effects of the pandemic had continued to die down during the nine months, the business now faces wider challenges in the impact of the war in Ukraine and also global economic issues due to high inflation and the potential for an impending recession.

Chief financial officer Lotta Nilsson Viitala said it was difficult to estimate how much both of these factors would hit ATG, but admitted that the business would be impacted.

“We see tendencies towards our customers having less money left in the entertainment wallet,” Viitala said. “It is completely natural with the price increases and inte..

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Monthly Archives: October 2022