#5: The Sports Media Giant No One Is Talking About, Yet

Kyle: Hasn’t gotten a ton of attention in wonky betting circles because don’t think anyone understands the reach of Jake Paul, but is Betr poised to be the sports-media-gambling brand the space has been waiting for? Is it Barstool without the baggage? Their social reach appears to be instantly massive. Like, this feels like the first app that’s thinking differently.

Media is always behind the 8ball with things they do not understand or simply do not fit into a simple box for consumption. For the same reason we love BetFanatics' ability to compete on lower spend due to massive database, BetR takes to next level with differentiated microgaming product AND owned audience of Jake Paul.

I’m just fascinated that you have effectively a brand new media company with insane view numbers on TikTok and YouTube, a proven entertainer, and a unique gambling app. It’s the sort of thing DK and FD are desperate to have. Barstool has the media side right now, but the app is not as differentiated as this.

Safe to assume BetR gets into the casino game as well? Could we be looking at the 2 new faces of gaming moving forward, Fanatics and Betr? DK and FD finally on the defensive?

Yes, word on the street is casino and fantasy are both on the table. I suspect their free-to-play game in states where they’re not licensed yet (which is almost all states) has strong download numbers. Converting these people is another matter, but Paul, like Portnoy, has that unique ability to get his fan base to jump. It also helps that the app is different and focused on micro live betting. Will lend itself to streaming games, and probably positions them better than others who don’t have the OG live betting DNA.

You see this???? Did we somehow miss the press push or was this more of a test?

Well, since it was on our site, I certainly did see it…. But this sort of came out of nowhere and was a surprise to many. So, few thoughts:

1) Um, if I was a rights holder (FOX, CBS, NBC, so on) I’d be losing my shit. Watching on a phone isn’t a fringe event anymore. So there’s that. Surprised the NFL has the flexibility to do this.

2) “This partnership included the rights for Genius Sports to distribute low latency video feeds…” would LOVE to know what this means technically. Latency with streaming (it’s about 40 seconds with YouTube TV) is a real problem for live betting (see Paul, Jake), so what about the deal with the NFL reduces this latency? Super interesting and the holy grail to redefining live betting (see Paul, Jake!). 

This all reminds me of high frequency trading: how big is the delta between the live data used for live betting and the stream? How much has Genius and the NFL shrunk it to make this work? Huge questions.

Is that a crack at me for taking a day off? Are we about to see NFL/Sportsbook/Media stream to bet deals as the next evolution? NFL/MGM/NBC - NFL/DK/AMAZON and so forth. NFL is big winner, but once again we are potentially seeing old school media giants in the crosshairs.

When you own the rights, you own the relationship. The most important variable in all of this is the following: how much does the NFL need the scale of traditional TV and networks to maintain and grow its brand? That’s really the only thing stopping them from selling the rights piecemeal to Amazon, Netflix, Apple, DK, Caesars and more. The mass viewing of live TV is still important to the #brand. But that importance is diminishing every day. More people watch through some streaming service, young people are more likely to multitask (ie watch on phone and bet), and you can do things with viewing experience through streaming you can’t do on TV. The NFL has already determined for TNF that losing ~20% of viewers or more is OK because Amazon backed the truck up and enough people can still watch the game. In the short-term, to your point, I still think books will have to partner up with a network or streamer as part of comprehensive rights packages.

And 100% right on old school media giants. NFL somehow had the contractual right to air a SNF game in an app that didn’t exist a year ago. Wild!

Hmmmm….. Penn/Barstool getting some pushback from regulators in Massachusetts. DraftKings certainly has some sway here as local employer and casino license partner…..do we think some political shenanigans are at play here?

Always political shenanigans. I think most likely is a bunch of commissioners read that NYT article about Dave’s (already well known!) gambling habits and had to play their role. Now, whether a Penn competitor happily forwarded them that article and highlighted the section about his gambling issues in the past is another matter.  

Ironically, Mass will be the biggest slam dunk for Penn-Barstool given that it’s Barstool’s home turf. Then again, it’s also DraftKings’ home turf…. some might call this a turf war.

Modern version of Sharks vs Jets…. We may need some photoshop here of Jason Robins fighting Portnoy. That is the extent of my theatre knowledge and references

I asked Dall-E for “a broadway style image of two internet moguls fighting each other in Boston” 

The bots still have some work to do.

WTF…. AI not taking over the world just yet.

Two years ago, I reached out to Spanfeller about possibility of working with Deadspin (owned by GO Media) to help them make money as a sports betting affiliate. One of best positioned brands to do do. Was told writers union would block our content services. Probably worth high single-digit millions to a brand like Deadspin. Would have created jobs.

Isn’t it illegal to light money on fire?

This is part of the “Win Ohio” strategy for Tipico…… the 2nd tier operators are desperate and simply have no clue how to pull players away from the market leaders or how to be a first experience app in a state launch.

“Our research revealed that our customers are almost as passionate about attending concerts and music festivals as they are about watching and betting on their favorite sports,” said Adrian Vella, CEO of Tipico North America “Our new customers can enjoy exclusive benefits at venues such as KEMBA Live! and Agora Theatre.”

Woof.