Published: January 27, 2022 at 04:01 am.
Last update: January 27, 2022, 09:32 am.
In case you haven’t heard, mobile sports betting in New York is all the rage these days. As the largest state to launch a multi-operator system, New York has quickly established itself as the largest sports betting market in the country, and that’s with some certified operators – such as Bally’s Corp. – They’re still on the sidelines.
And according to Bally’s CEO, you don’t expect the company to launch its New York app any time soon.
Sue Kim spoke with CNBC reporter Contessa Brewer earlier this week. He said that BallyBet won’t be released until “sometime in April,” and that he’s okay with missing out on the next Super Bowl.
We have a long-term plan,” Kim said. “I think part of that is why our plan may not have been fully absorbed by the public markets. Public markets tend to be very short-term.”
Since Bally’s Corp. (NYSE:BALY) stock reached a 52-week high of $75.92 last March, the stock has been trending lower. After a slight rally last fall, stocks continued their decline and reached a 52-week low of $26.11 just last week.
Kim attributed the low price to the game industry’s excessive public spending on promotion. That will eventually show up in poor income reports, he said.
Despite this, the stock rebounded this week after Standard General, a hedge fund that owns a 20 percent stake in Bally’s, offered to buy the remaining shares for $38 per share. Kim is the Managing Partner of Standard General. However, he told Brewer that he stepped down as Pali’s president in the deal.
A special commission from Bally’s is studying the show. According to the Standard General’s proposal, the deal will only take place if the commission signs it off.
Waiting for the “wave of unification”
He said long-term sports betting play would involve a downturn in the market. While New York will have nine operators competing when they all launch, Kim noted that other states have more licensees — or the ability to offer more.
In Indiana, for example, BallyBet is one of 13 operators. However, the state law that legalizes sports betting allows up to 39 sports betting apps to obtain licenses.
“We think the current version of sports betting is actually not a great business,” Kim explained. “It’s good business, not great business. We think there will be a wave of consolidation that will justify promotions. But most importantly, I think people will stop competing with just free money, but people will start competing with the product.”
Kim did not elaborate in the interview what this product might look like. However, in early December at the SBC North America Summit – in another interview with Brewer – Kim described the current sports betting environment as a niche for a niche market.
He explained that only a small number of people with cable or live-streaming packages watch sports regularly. Of these people, only a fraction of them bet on point spreads and money lines.
“I think the kind of opportunities that will come in the next generation…[are]more of an integrated experience where the average fan, anyone watching a game, feels like, ‘Oh, I can place a bet, or see what happens next’” He said at the SBC Summit. “It will be more dependent on luck, and less dependent on skill. It will be a much broader diversion path, because everyone is going to take a shot.”
New York Promus Concern Chem
Kim also seemed shocked at how the first wave of mobile sports betting apps was operating in New York during the first two weeks.
Brewer told me he thinks the smaller number of operators, along with a 51 percent tax on gaming revenue, will lead to a “slightly more reasonable” approach to customer acquisition and promotion.
It’s kind of funny, like literally, without slandering all our colleagues and industry participants, but you can literally open an account with one (player), open an account with another (player), get your free promotional money, bet… in different ways on the same game And you will win in one of them. I don’t know why not everyone does that,” He said this week.
It may not necessarily be as easy as Kim portrays it. Free bets and promotional opportunities vary between the six operators who currently live in New York. In many cases, there are certain conditions and restrictions imposed on the credits or rewards received.
What is available in New York
PointsBet, launched this week, offers an initial risk-free bet of up to $500 and a risk-free Points bet of up to $1,500.
Caesars, the current market leader in the state, is offering $300 in free bets to new customers who win $20 on their first bet. BetRivers is offering a bonus of $250 for first time deposits
DraftKings offers an initial risk-free bet of up to $5,000 if new users make an initial deposit of $1,000 or more. Both BetMGM and FanDuel offer risk-free first bets of up to $1,000.
These specials are only for first time customers using this specific application. For example, a person who created a DraftKings account in New Jersey will not be eligible to offer the first bet for this New York operator.
According to data from the New York State Gaming Commission, the four sportsbooks launched on January 8 — BetRivers, Caesars, DraftKings and FanDuel — reported a handle of more than $600 million for the first nine days of operation. It is not known exactly how much sign-up bonuses, site credits, or risk-free bets contribute to the handle.
Besides BallyBet, the other New York operators awaiting approval at all are Resorts World and Wynn Interactive.