DraftKings, Simplebet Ink Multi-Year Micro-Betting Accord

Posted on: August 24, 2021, 07:44h. 

Last updated on: August 24, 2021, 10:16h.

Todd Shriber @etfgodfather Read More
Expertise: Financial, Gaming Business, Mergers and Acquisitions.

Today, DraftKings and Simplebet announced a multi-year agreement to bring real-money micro-betting to the DraftKings sportsbook.

DraftKings Simplebet
DraftKings CEO Jason Robins, seen above in an interview with CNBC. His company inked a micro-betting deal with Simplebet. (Image: CNBC)

Micro-betting is an emerging derivative of in-game or live betting – areas operators are pushing into in an effort to boost handle and drive fan engagement. Whereas a traditional in-game bet might revolve around scenarios such as a baseball team scoring in their half inning, or other game-specific situations (point spreads, totals, etc.), the micro-betting concept offered by Simplebet goes even further.

For example, Simplebet’s baseball offerings allow bettors to wager on whether a pitcher’s next pitch will be a ball, strike, or put into play. Users can also bet on a pitch count during a particular at-bat, or whether a batter will get a hit, be retired, or get on base in another way.

Bet whether the plate appearance will result in a Single, Double, Triple, Home Run, Strikeout, Walk, or Other. The market is repriced after every pitch, so you can bet on the current plate appearance as it’s happening, or bet on an upcoming plate appearance. The market results (will be revealed) prior to the first pitch of the next plate appearance,” the company says of its plate appearance result offering.

Simplebet also offers micro-betting concepts for the NFL and NBA and is rolling out college football offerings this year. Those are the first micro-betting services for college sports.

DraftKings Long Eyed In-Game Betting

Boston-based DraftKings has made no secret of its plans to forge further into live betting. In 2019, the operator rolled out a related product coinciding with Wimbledon, while inking a live wagering accord with the NBA.

In a 2020 interview with Barron’s, CEO and co-founder Jason Robins noted in more mature sports betting markets, such as the UK, live wagering is immensely popular with bettors, driving as much as 75 percent of revenue at British sportsbooks.

Confirming that there’s ample room for growth on this front in the US, in-game betting here isn’t anywhere close to percentages seen in other markets. By some estimates, live wagering accounts for less than 20 percent of the handle at Nevada sportsbooks.

“Under the agreement, DraftKings will be able to offer Simplebet’s micro-betting products for the NFL, MLB, and NBA, and a new suite of college football products,” according to a statement issued by the companies.

The financial terms of the deal weren’t disclosed.

Micro-Betting Is Tech-Heavy Endeavor

While there’s interest among US bettors for live betting, some are concerned that the endeavor is only suitable for slow-moving sports, while others voice frustration that sportsbook operators don’t yet have the technology to rapidly process bets on outcomes such as balls and strikes and made or missed shots in the NBA.

Simplebet is looking to allay those concerns. The privately held company raised $15 million earlier this year, bringing its total capital raised to $50 million.

“The recent funding is being used to enhance the company’s existing NFL, MLB, and NBA products by adding dozens of derivative micro-markets, launching new sports, introducing new subcategories of micro-markets, such as Scripts, expanding engineering resources to enable more efficient customer integrations, and exploring other strategic opportunities,” according to Simplebet.