

Business of Betting Podcast
Business of Betting Podcast
A podcast covering the sports betting industry from the perspective of bettors, operators, and industry insiders. Hosted by Jeff Edelstein, Senior Analyst at InGame.com.
Episodes
Mentioned books

Mar 15, 2024 • 33min
E206 - James McLoughlin from Stirling Mac
On this episode of the Business of Betting Podcast, Jason is joined by James McLoughlin from Stirling Mac.
Hear them discuss:
01:53 - Are US sportsbook product companies or marketing companies?
05:44 - The importance of price as part of the betting product experience
09:30 - Lean marketing tactics for operators without billion dollar marketing budgets
12:00 - How to successfully market betting apps using app store optimization
15:17 - Acquiring users and customers organically
20:27 - James' experience working at Betfair, and why exchanges are on the retreat in sports betting
23:05 - The popularity of political betting markets
24:51 - Examining the current prediction markets for the 2024 US presidential election
29:00 - Critiquing Smarkets' marketing strategy
30:31 - What James wants to be when he grows up
⚡️ Follow BoB on Twitter/X
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⚡️ Apply to be a guest here
---
This podcast is presented by Optimove, the #1 CRM Marketing solution for the iGaming industry. Since 2012, Optimove has served iGaming Operators from startups to industry leaders. Today, 4 out of the Top 5 US Operators Personalize Player Experiences with Optimove. iGaming operators know their growth journey begins and continues with Optimove, the #1 CRM Marketing solution for the iGaming industry.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mar 8, 2024 • 39min
E205 - Antonino De Rosa
On this episode of the Business of Betting Podcast, Jason is joined by Antonino De Rosa.
Hear them discuss:
01:50 - Magic the Gathering, Dungeons & Dragons, and chess
06:06 - How Antonino found his way to the Pinnacle trading floor
07:44 - Why the low vig sportsbook model isn't more popular
12:09 - The reason that sportsbooks screwed up the 2020 US presidential election markets
15:10 - Antonino's thoughts on exchanges, and why he doesn't use them
17:57 - Running a basketball betting syndicate, and how it operates
21:25 - The difference between PPH and an agent system
23:54 - Building a model to create an edge
25:00 - Betting at scale using a network of runners
30:48 - How Antonino would like to see the betting industry evolve
32:46 - Stake factoring versus guaranteed minimum bet limits
⚡️ Follow BoB on Twitter/X
⚡️ Follow Jason on Twitter/X
⚡️ Apply to be a guest here
---
This podcast is presented by Optimove, the #1 CRM Marketing solution for the iGaming industry. Since 2012, Optimove has served iGaming Operators from startups to industry leaders. Today, 4 out of the Top 5 US Operators Personalize Player Experiences with Optimove. iGaming operators know their growth journey begins and continues with Optimove, the #1 CRM Marketing solution for the iGaming industry.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Mar 1, 2024 • 21min
E204 - Matt Restivo from OddsJam
On this episode of the Business of Betting Podcast, Jason is joined by Matt Restivo from OddsJam.
Hear them discuss:
01:00 - Life in Boulder, CO
02:46 - The recent ruling on the 14th Amendment in CO
04:45 - Introduction to OddsJam
07:07 - Overview of arbitrage and value betting
10:48 - Preserving betting account longevity
13:30 - 10-year vision for OddsJam
14:52 - Sourcing pricing data to power OddsJam's tools
17:06 - OddsJam founding story
18:55 - Company size and traction
⚡️ Follow BoB on Twitter/X
⚡️ Follow Jason on Twitter/X
⚡️ Apply to be a guest here
---
This podcast is presented by Optimove, the #1 CRM Marketing solution for the iGaming industry. Since 2012, Optimove has served iGaming Operators from startups to industry leaders. Today, 4 out of the Top 5 US Operators Personalize Player Experiences with Optimove. iGaming operators know their growth journey begins and continues with Optimove, the #1 CRM Marketing solution for the iGaming industry.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Feb 23, 2024 • 37min
E203 - Will Martin from LiveDuel
On this episode of the Business of Betting Podcast, Jason is joined by Will Martin from LiveDuel.
Hear them discuss:
01:22 - The Irish political landscape
04:20 - Origin story of LiveDuel, and why Will felt a new exchange was needed in the market
08:15 - How LiveDuel is differentiating itself from the incumbent exchanges
09:54 - Will's opinion of what Smarkets could have done differently with its exchange
13:02 - How LiveDuel is utilizing blockchain technology, and why it is the right technology for sports betting
18:19 - The mechanics of DAO's and how that governance model can be applied to exchanges
21:02 - Benefits of blockchain technology for transaction processing
23:19 - How blockchain helps with liquidity provisioning through automated market making
27:19 - Using oracles to resolve markets through consensus
31:49 - Challenges of fundraising to build an exchange business
35:37 - Regulatory licensing strategy for LiveDuel
⚡️ Follow BoB on Twitter/X
⚡️ Follow Jason on Twitter/X
⚡️ Apply to be a guest here
---
This podcast is presented by Optimove, the #1 CRM Marketing solution for the iGaming industry. Since 2012, Optimove has served iGaming Operators from startups to industry leaders. Today, 4 out of the Top 5 US Operators Personalize Player Experiences with Optimove. iGaming operators know their growth journey begins and continues with Optimove, the #1 CRM Marketing solution for the iGaming industry.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Feb 16, 2024 • 34min
E202 - Manu Gambhir from Xpoint
On this episode of the Business of Betting Podcast, Jason is joined by Manu Gambhir from Xpoint.
Hear them discuss:
02:24 - Introduction to Xpoint
03:45 - The geolocation provider landscape in the US market
05:20 - Primer on geolocation regulatory requirements
07:50 - Competitive dynamic of geolocation providers in the US
11:26 - The technical complexity of building geolocation solutions
18:04 - Lawsuits and legal challenges around IP rights
20:27 - The regulatory complexities of operators building their own geolocation solutions internally
23:38 - Xpoint's commercial traction in the US market
25:56 - Manu's view on the state of the industry in the US
29:06 - Enforcement (or lack thereof) of offshore operators serving the US market
33:07 - What Manu wants to be when he grows up
⚡️ Follow BoB on Twitter/X
⚡️ Follow Jason on Twitter/X
⚡️ Apply to be a guest here
---
This podcast is presented by Optimove, the #1 CRM Marketing solution for the iGaming industry. Since 2012, Optimove has served iGaming Operators from startups to industry leaders. Today, 4 out of the Top 5 US Operators Personalize Player Experiences with Optimove. iGaming operators know their growth journey begins and continues with Optimove, the #1 CRM Marketing solution for the iGaming industry.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Feb 9, 2024 • 29min
E201 - Paul King from OddsMonkey
On this episode of the Business of Betting Podcast, Jason is joined by Paul King from OddsMonkey.
Hear them discuss:
01:45 - a primer on matched betting & Paul's background with it
05:30 - the background and origins of OddsMonkey
07:50 - Paul's view of the sports betting industry
10:30 - bookmakers' attitudes towards matched betting
12:30 - the change over time in the value of bonus offers, and Paul's outlook for the future of bonusing
16:20 - the role that exchanges play in matched betting
19:55 - the ethics and legality of stake factoring and restricting customer accounts
27:07 - what Paul wants to be when he grows up
⚡️ Follow BoB on Twitter/X
⚡️ Follow Jason on Twitter/X
⚡️ Apply to be a guest here
---
This podcast is presented by Optimove, the #1 CRM Marketing solution for the iGaming industry. Since 2012, Optimove has served iGaming Operators from startups to industry leaders. Today, 4 out of the Top 5 US Operators Personalize Player Experiences with Optimove. iGaming operators know their growth journey begins and continues with Optimove, the #1 CRM Marketing solution for the iGaming industry.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Feb 2, 2024 • 44min
E200 - Joe Brennan Jr. from Prime Sports
On this episode of the Business of Betting Podcast, Jason is joined by Joe Brennan Jr. from Prime Sports.
Hear them discuss:
02:51 - using restaurant metaphors to explain Prime Sports' position in the market
10:52 - the parallels between the Costco shopping experience and sports betting
14:40 - why cricket is an underappreciated sport for betting
22:04 - the shift in how audiences are consuming live sports, and why that doesn't bode well for microbetting
24:37 - operating Prime Sports as "a reduced juice shop"
27:57 - where the red line is before the low-margin model is no longer viable in the US market
30:46 - why they think the current market leaders in US sports betting will change in the next 10 years
34:25 - what Joe would have done differently for Smarkets' US entry strategy
40:22 - what Joe wants to be when he grows up
⚡️ Follow BoB on Twitter/X
⚡️ Follow Jason on Twitter/X
⚡️ Apply to be a guest here
---
This podcast is presented by Optimove, the #1 CRM Marketing solution for the iGaming industry. Since 2012, Optimove has served iGaming Operators from startups to industry leaders. Today, 4 out of the Top 5 US Operators Personalize Player Experiences with Optimove. iGaming operators know their growth journey begins and continues with Optimove, the #1 CRM Marketing solution for the iGaming industry.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jan 30, 2024 • 32min
E199 - David Frohardt-Lane from DL Trading
On this episode of the Business of Betting Podcast, Jason is joined by David Frohardt-Lane from DL Trading.
Hear them discuss:
01:09 - David's background in high frequency market making
03:22 - Why David invested in Sporttrade's Series A funding round
05:20 - The price sensitivity of American bettors
07:54 - Comparing financial trading to trading sports betting markets
10:15 - Deep dive on DL Trading's role as Sporttrade's principal market maker
14:22 - The challenges of trading sports at scale
16:39 - Attracting liquidity to betting exchanges
21:58 - Revisiting the 2020 US Presidential Election on betting exchanges, and thoughts on the upcoming 2024 election
25:03 - David's thoughts on Smarkets
26:44 - DL Trading's B2B ambitions
29:59 - What David wants to be when he grows up
⚡️ Follow BoB on Twitter/X
⚡️ Follow Jason on Twitter/X
⚡️ Apply to be a guest here
---
This podcast is presented by Optimove, the #1 CRM Marketing solution for the iGaming industry. Since 2012, Optimove has served iGaming Operators from startups to industry leaders. Today, 4 out of the Top 5 US Operators Personalize Player Experiences with Optimove. iGaming operators know their growth journey begins and continues with Optimove, the #1 CRM Marketing solution for the iGaming industry.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jan 20, 2024 • 27min
E198 - Brad Allen from Eilers & Krejcik
On this episode of the Business of Betting Podcast, Jason is joined by Brad Allen from Eilers & Krejcik.
Hear them discuss:
01:34 - The origin of Brad’s weekly podcast, Zero Latency
03:05 - Brad takes control of the host chair and asks Jason questions
03:48 - Smarkets’ initial plans to enter the US market, and how that’s changed over time
06:46 - How Smarkets is localizing its core product to the US market
09:27 - Smarkets’ future prospects and opportunities in the US
11:31 - The allure of high margin products like same-game parlays
13:30 - Why Smarkets decided to build its own geolocation solution internally
17:17 - The B2B opportunity for Smarkets to commercialize its geolocation solution
18:58 - Brad’s view of the industry, and which operator he thinks could be a “game changer”
21:27 - Where ESPN Bet fits into the landscape since its launch
25:04 - Why Brad thinks that Rush Street Interactive is a good acquisition candidate
25:54 - What Brad wants to be when he grows up
⚡️ Follow BoB on Twitter/X
⚡️ Follow Jason on Twitter/X
⚡️ Apply to be a guest here
---
This podcast is presented by Optimove, the #1 CRM Marketing solution for the iGaming industry. Since 2012, Optimove has served iGaming Operators from startups to industry leaders. Today, 4 out of the Top 5 US Operators Personalize Player Experiences with Optimove. iGaming operators know their growth journey begins and continues with Optimove, the #1 CRM Marketing solution for the iGaming industry.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Jan 16, 2024 • 35min
E197 - Jacob Fortinsky from Novig
On this episode of the Business of Betting Podcast, Jason is joined by Jacob Fortinsky, co-founder & CEO of Novig.
Hear them discuss:
02:43 - The current controversy at Harvard, Jacob's alma mater
06:40 - Companies taking political stances, and how Jason and Jacob think about that within their companies
09:31 - Jacob's experience meeting Paul Graham, the founder of Y Combinator
12:04 - High concept overview of Novig
13:35 - Raising $7 million from investors to build Novig
15:30 - What Jacob thinks Jason should have done differently building Smarkets
17:48 - Attracting institutional liquidity providers to sports betting exchanges
20:05 - Sports betting as a zero sum game
24:14 - Price sensitivity of different customer segments
25:50 - Novig's recent launch in Colorado
29:42 - The Novig business model
31:09 - Why the Novig exchange had to launch as a fixed odds sportsbook
32:47 - What Jacob wants to be when he grows up
⚡️ Follow BoB on Twitter/X
⚡️ Follow Jason on Twitter/X
⚡️ Apply to be a guest here
---
This podcast is presented by Optimove, the #1 CRM Marketing solution for the iGaming industry. Since 2012, Optimove has served iGaming Operators from startups to industry leaders. Today, 4 out of the Top 5 US Operators Personalize Player Experiences with Optimove. iGaming operators know their growth journey begins and continues with Optimove, the #1 CRM Marketing solution for the iGaming industry.
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.


