Pulse
ACQUISITIONS & EXPANSION SPORTCALLER
I also think the niche approach might work well by looking at off-centre sports and markets you can bet on. It’s obviously very difficult to go head-to-head with a DraftKings so where do you go if you're not in the top three but have ambition?
Look at what Sky Bet achieved in the UK - they used its broadcast station and made a huge commitment to the execution of the brand. Closer to my home in Ireland, Paddy Power proved the point that “personality goes a long way”. It'll be interesting to see how it plays out over the next five or 10 years.
Current US focus is on acquiring players. When do you expect retention to become the goal?
I think US operators need to be nailing their acquisition whilst also addressing their retention. It is going to be a land grab for the next three to four years
Over the years, we were probably more of a product company than a sales company. We take great pride in making quality products with our brilliant product managers and engineers.
We do free-to-play very well, which is going to help Bally's engage and activate its audience. Alongside Bally's' huge Sinclair Broadcast Group partnership, this will help them grow an audience in pre-regulated states. We understand how to convert and retain players from a free-to-play game into a real bet through to a long term, active customer. If we deliver on each of these, then we will have played an important role in Bally’s success.
What does the acquisition mean for SportCaller's future? What does the deal mean for your current client relationships?
It is business as usual. When we closed the deal on Friday 5 February, we were back to work on Monday doing the same job. We are still looking after our clients such as Flutter, Kindred and Entain and have a large team dedicated solely to our B2B clients. At the same time, we have another part of the team working on the Bally's F2P roadmap.
and at some point, someone is going to break the mould and seriously devote resources to CRM. I think that as markets mature a little bit more,
operators will give budget to the team responsible for
retention as it’s definitely worth investing in.
Focusing on the US market, as more states come online, do you expect challenger operators to infiltrate the current status quo of giant corporations sweeping markets as they open up? How can operators with a lower budget and brand awareness capture the attention of US bettors?
I think and hope there will be some new entrants because the gaming industry worldwide needs an injection of personality to raise its game in terms of innovation. However, the US market has quite a high-ticket price to play. Due to the state-by-state regulation and its licensing model, I think there is space on a local level. You may have some challenger brands as some of the larger states open up such as New York, California, Florida or Texas.
I don't think they are mutually exclusive. I think US operators need to be nailing their acquisition whilst also addressing their retention. It is going to be a land grab for the next three to four years and at some point, someone is going to break the mould and seriously devote resources to CRM. I think that as markets mature a little bit more, operators will give budget to the team responsible for retention as it’s definitely worth investing in.
What is the difference between an acquisition- focused game and a retention-focused game?
Prize and position. Te big difference is that they have got a different prize structure. An acquisition game has a huge jackpot whereas a retention game is more of a rewards programme for regular play. Retention games are not front and centre of a sports betting app, it's a habitual game that players come back for.
Te games that were popular in the UK and Europe three years ago were acquisition games. Now looking at William Hill, Coral, Kindred, and Paddy Power, they are retention games. Around big events such as Cheltenham, you want to bring players in on each day of the festival and if you can get them to transition onto the sportsbook, that's the Holy Grail.
Retention games are a more interesting product challenge as they are subtle compared to the sledgehammer approach of acquisition games. Acquisition is simply about trying to grab an audience and bring them in the door.
Finally, what are your personal goals in the months ahead?
Taking a deep breath! I am really looking forward to continuing my role running SportCaller and working with Bally's. Removing the financial existential threats means I can better focus on our products and the medium to long-term.
NEWSWIRE / INTERACTIVE / MARKET DATA P93
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