View From The C Suite
Gaming CEOs have been center stage at G2E, with comments from PENN's Jay Snowden, Betr's Joey Levy, DraftKings' Jason Robins, and FanDuel's Amy Howe making today's newsletter.
The Bulletin Board
NEWS: PENN CEO Jay Snowden and ESPN’s Mike Morrison talk ESPN Bet at G2E in anticipation of its November launch.
BEYOND the HEADLINE: In a new survey, the media picks Fanatics over ESPN by nearly a 2-to-1 margin.
NEWS: The top headlines from Day 3 of G2E. DraftKings CEO Jason Robins and FanDuel CEO Amy Howe share the stage at G2E.
NEWS: Betr’s Joey Levy talks past, present, and future with EGR Global.
AROUND the WATERCOOLER: Where is the best place to find and reach out to problem gamblers? The answer might surprise you.
STRAY THOUGHTS: The Gambling Files big get, and G2E is pretty much over.
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PENN-ESPN Discuss ESPN Bet with Analysts at G2E
In meetings with analysts, Penn CEO Jay Snowden and ESPN Vice President of Sports Betting & Fantasy Mike Morrison outlined the coming months for ESPN Bet.
From reporting by CDC Gaming Reports, the pair put forth several interesting nuggets.
The plan is for a November launch, with most features available at launch, per Truist Securities analyst Barry Jonas.
Analysts expect a two-to-three-week marketing ramp-up prior to the official launch.
One area ESPN Bet will initially lag in is SGPs, which could shrink its hold percentages compared to its peers.
In a glass-half-full moment, Snowden also pitched a November launch as positive, as other firms may have backed off their marketing spend by that point. That sparked a discussion on X about the best time for “challenger brands” to launch.
ESPN “is highly focused on making ESPN Bet work and is very engaged with PENN Interactive,” J.P. Morgan analyst Joseph Greff said. “To us, it sounds like the working relationship is starting strong, with meaningful buy-in from the folks in Bristol.”
That mirrors chatter I’ve heard about the relationship between the two.
But the big question is, can ESPN Bet deliver? We’ll soon find out.
Beyond the Headline: Media Favors Fanatics over ESPN
According to a media survey conducted by Hot Paper Lantern, reporters are bullish on ESPN and Fanatics, with a lean towards Fanatics being the most likely competitor for the current market leaders.
57% of reporters feel Fanatics ecommerce loyalty ecosystem is the stronger user tool, compared to ESPN’s user base (43% of reporters).
65% of reporters noted Fanatics as the brand they felt would earn enough market share to shake up the Big Four.
70% of reporters envision both brands could earn a realistic combined market share of 11-20% within two years.
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G2E Day 3 Roundup
Wednesday saw FanDuel CEO Amy Howe and DraftKings CEO Jason Robins share the stage at G2E for a wide-ranging discussion.
On competition, from Legal Sports Report: “There’s always going to be new companies entering the market. It’s always going to be competitive. But I think that’s great. That’s the purpose of legalization,” Robins said. “And I think we need to do a better job of differentiating and cleaning out some of the illegal stuff. But in the legal market, anyone who says [‘It’s over,’] I don’t feel that way.”
Howe called underage betting one of her biggest concerns and tried to draw a line around 21, noting that DFS is typically 18 or 19. This is a strange argument as FanDuel’s DFS contests are 18+ in many states, and a handful of states allow 18+ sports betting.
There are also a couple of no-context quotes from the session I want to include from the X accounts of Ryan Butler and Sam McQuillan. (I will have a lot of thoughts on each of these at some point in the future).
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Betr CEO Discusses Strategy, RG, and DFS
Sticking with my CEO theme, EGR Global posted an interesting and wide-ranging interview with Betr CEO Joey Levy. Here are some of the highlights, but I highly recommend heading over to EGR and reading the entire interview.
The most interesting topic broached was Betr’s strategy to reach its ultimate goals.
Levy outlined three core components:
Product: A simple, intuitive product that offers instant gratification.
Media: A culture of original and short-form content built for social media.
Investment: The ability to create an ambitious plan and differentiate itself from its competitors.
Per Levy, “I believe in our approach of creating [a] culture to develop a real brand, then differentiating it, and winning on product simply and intuitively.”
Levy was also asked about the increased scrutiny DFS 2.0 products are facing - Betr was a victim of unfortunate timing, having launched its Pick’ Em product as the situation was escalating.
Levy said Betr Picks was “clearly a skill-based fantasy sports game” that satisfies the UIGEA description of fantasy sports. As Dustin Gouker has noted, the UIGEA doesn’t legalize fantasy sports, but many states do use the UIGEA definition in their fantasy sports laws.
The topic of responsible gambling also came up during the interview, as Betr has implemented two policies of its own volition: Banning credit cards and setting mandatory deposit limits for any customer 21-25.
Levy stated that betting should be entertainment, and people shouldn’t be allowed to gamble “with money they don’t technically have.”
Around the Watercooler
Social media conversations, rumors, and gossip.
This is a great point by Jamie Salsburg, who notes that we might be barking up the wrong tree when it comes to problem gambling outreach.
And this tweet, on a related note, from Alun Bowden.
Stray Thoughts
My friends over at The Gambling Files podcast just released a two-part interview series with Andrew Rhodes of the UK Gambling Commission - what is referred to as a “get” in the industry.
You can listen to both parts here, and you should also sign up for their Substack.
And for my closing thought: G2E is a four-day event, but in truth, it’s more like a two-and-a-half-day event. Monday is education-only, Tuesday and Wednesday are the full show (education and showroom), and Thursday is nursing a three-day hangover breakdown day, with most heading out of town.
So that means it’s back to the regular grind beginning today; so long, G2E 2023.