SBC News Voice of the Sports Betting Industry
As 2019 comes to a close SBC looks through the year to highlight major news that you might have missed in the sports betting world.
This fifth edition looks at May and more specifically at key improvements needed in horseracing, the mobile betting preference of customers, 1xBet’s entry into the US market and Golden Race’s African success.
HBF survey highlights areas for improvement in the industry
A Horseracing Bettors Forum (HBF) survey published earlier this week has identified a number of factors which set out the ways the horseracing industry and associated betting activities can be improved.
The survey, which received 1024 responses, was created to gain a cross-sectional view of the racing industry from bettors with the hope of using the survey to prioritise future improvements.
The report, which addressed a variety of aspects of wagering in the UK horseracing industry, detailed: “The survey asked a range of questions designed to assist HBF in prioritising its future activities. A number of questions gave respondents the opportunity to provide their own views on how racing could be made more attractive as well as what additional information should be made available.”
STATSCORE: Focusing on fully customised mobile betting services
Treating the diversified online betting business as one misses the proper scope, writes Jakub Myszkorowski, Chief Commercial Officer at STATSCORE, who thinks that while it would be an “obvious truth” to highlight changes in the market since it became digital, customer preferences are now more and more specific to mobile betting – a sector firmly on the rise.
Let the numbers talk. According to the PEW Research Centre, 76% of adults in advanced countries own a smartphone (in countries such as South Korea, Israel, Sweden and the Netherlands this tops 85%), while even in emerging countries the median sits close to 50%.
Real-time data from GSMA, a trade body that represents the interests of mobile network operators worldwide, suggests that there are over 8.98 billion mobile connections in the world – more than the total population – which confirms that many use more than one device.
1xBet gets ready to enter the North American market
Just three weeks after 1xBet sponsored Betting on Sports America in New Jersey, we caught up with Alex Sommers – the company’s director of affiliate marketing – to discuss entering the US, and why 100 million adult bettors is a good indicator of the country’s potential to house the world’s largest gambling market.
Sommers stated: “At 1xBet, we always put our customers first and we try to accommodate all of their wishes. What’s more, with our professional team of developers, we are ready to meet the extra needs of American customers, should this be required.
“Americans are just as keen on sports as Europeans, so we know these markets will be popular as well. At the same time ‘Player vs Player’ and ‘Player vs Team’ is just a small part of our huge platform. We have a big variety of markets in which each user can find the appropriate market.
“We think that gambling should be a type of leisure and entertainment. At the same time, our company will adhere to the relevant US regulatory requirements on this issue.”
Eight out of 10 virtual bets in Africa placed through Golden Race
Eight out of 10 bets placed on virtual sports in Africa last year were facilitated by Golden Race, through either the company’s Golden Box or Online platform.
That was one of the key messages from the firm’s CEO Martin Wachter as part of an interview at the Betting on Sports America conference in New Jersey.
Wachter also spoke about the strategic rollout of the HD 3×3 Basketball game, why in-play and cash out components for virtuals remain ‘a little bit fresh’ for the US market, and how he expects 2019 to be an ‘absolute record’ for Golden Race.
Wachter stated: “We were looking at a game specified for the US market, and we didn’t want to follow the others. 3×3 Basketball provides a new experience with some really nice tools such as cash out functions.
“The game has been designed to offer an experience that is as close as possible to traditional online real-basketball betting. It features real action moves, real voice-over commentators, and odds from in-house bookmakers. Also, operators are given complete customisation and branding options, as well as on-demand scheduling.”
