Business of Betting Podcast

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.

On this episode of the Business of Betting Podcast, Jason is joined by Paris Smith, the former CEO of Pinnacle. Hear them discuss: 00:47 - Thoughts on the US 02:45 - When Paris beat Jason in a poker tournament 06:42 - The low margin sportsbook model 10:37 - Her tenure at Pinnacle 13:53 - Comparing Pinnacle to bet365 16:31 - Her take on the exchange model 20:40 - Departing Pinnacle after 17 years as CEO 23:07 - The importance of getting peer support 26:14 - Life living in the Caribbean ⚡️ Follow BoB on Twitter/X ⚡️ Follow Jason on Twitter/X ⚡️ Apply to be a guest: businessofbetting@gmail.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On this episode of the Business of Betting Podcast, Jason is joined by Jesse Learmonth, host of The Betting Startups Podcast. Jesse has interviewed almost 100 industry startup founders, and has a unique lens on the industry's early-stage ecosystem. He has been in the industry for 14 years as a founder, an executive at Pinnacle Sports, and advisor to several industry startups. Timecodes: 00:54 - Launching The Betting Startups Podcast 04:01 - Choosing a podcast format 06:42 - Authenticity in interview-based podcasts 09:31 - Areas of pushback on startup founders 13:45 - Competing on price in sports betting 19:41 - Why the low-margin model isn't more mainstream 24:27 - Why BoB hasn't had a new episode in 3 months 25:27 - Partnership announcement between BoB and The Betting Startups Podcast 27:56 - Future plans for BoB and call for guests 30:29 - Jason and Jesse's boring video backgrounds Follow us on: https://twitter.com/bettingpod / @businessofbetting Get in touch: https://twitter.com/jasontrost businessofbetting@gmail.com #business #betting #podcast #businessofbetting #smarkets #exchange #sportsbook Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On this weeks edition of the Business of Betting Podcast, Jason is joined by Joey Levy from Betr. With the backing of social media personality and boxer, Jake Paul, Joey is the Founder and CEO of Betr which is the first direct-to-consumer micro-betting focused sports betting company. Betr has also launched a new media venture for the next generation of sports fans. Betr is setting out to disrupt legacy gambling and legacy media, with a mission of making sports and betting Betr. Timecodes: 00:46 - Who is Joey Levy and what is Betr? 07:46 - What type of product is Betr? 09:51 - What is the vision with Betr? 13:21 - Customer / revenue numbers 18:35 - What is it like working with somebody else's code? 21:43 - What is Joey's view on the Friedberg hypothesis? 31:48 - What is the goal with Betr? 35:23 - What does Joey want to be when he grows up? #betting #business #exchange #podcast #smarkets #betr Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On this weeks edition of the Business of Betting Podcast, Jason is joined by Vinit Bharara, Co-Founder & CEO of Mojo. After just over two years working as an attorney in New York in the late 1990's, Vinit decided to change career paths and become an entrepreneur. Vinit is now onto his fifth start-up with Mojo which is the first ever licensed sports betting stock market. Timecodes: 00:20 - Introduction 02:05 - Vinit's background story 03:55 - Vinit's early days as an entrepreneur 05:30 - What kind of entrepreneur is Vinit? 06:45 - What is Mojo? 10:23 - The mechanics of Mojo 22:39 - Mojo's business of model 24:22 - What is becoming a bigger part of Mojo? 27:23 - Why was Mojo set up? 29:43 - What does Mojo class itself as? 33:33 - What is next for Mojo? 34:44 - What does Vinit want to be when he grows up? #betting #business #podcast #businessofbetting Download SBK: https://getsbk.com Follow us on Twitter - https://twitter.com/sbk Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On this edition of the Business of Betting Podcast, Jason is joined by Evan Kirkham, Co-Founder & CEO of Outlier. Having previously worked as an attorney for over 10 years, in October 2020 Evan launched Outlier as a startup CEO and hasn't looked back since almost three years down the line. Outlier is a first-of-its-kind sports betting platform where sports fans can browse, analyze, and execute bets with confidence. Timecodes: 00:35 - A message to fans of the podcast 02:38 - Getting to know Evan Kirkham 07:18 - What is Outlier? 08:30 - Why did Evan launch Outlier? 12:45 - Is this a good time to be a startup? 15:23 - Outlier's business model 17:09 - What makes a customer want to join Outlier? 19:48 - Where do Outlier get their insights? 20:45 - Discussion on the different sports data providers 23:44 - Who are Outlier's competitors? 25:56 - Sports betting in Texas 30:26 - Evan's vision for sports betting 33:59 - What does Evan want to be when he grows up? Follow us on: https://twitter.com/bettingpod / @businessofbetting Get in touch: https://twitter.com/jasontrost businessofbetting@gmail.com Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On this edition of the Business of Betting Podcast, Jason is joined by Chris Bevilacqua, Founder & CEO of SimpleBet. With a passion for sport held from an early age, Chris started his career as part of the video production team at NBC, making promos for NBA & NFL games. After a successful period in the TV industry in which Chris won awards, he decided to launch SimpleBet in 2018. SimpleBet is a B2B product development company using machine learning and automation to make every moment of every sporting event a betting opportunity. Timecodes: 00:30 - Introduction to SimpleBet 01:13 - Chris' passion for wrestling and the lessons it has taught him 07:53 - Chris's background story 16:18 - The future of live sports broadcasting 23:50 - Why did Chris co-found SimpleBet? 26:38 - The SimpleBet product and how it generates money 28:35 - Does SimpleBet have competitors? How does it stand out? 30:09 - Example of a SimpleBet market which can't be found elsewhere 31:16 - How do SimpleBet get their data? 35:25 - Will the likes of Draft Kings start to do this themselves? 36:55 - The makeup of the business & what's next for SimpleBet 41:42 - What does Chris want to do when he grows up Follow us on: https://twitter.com/bettingpod / @businessofbetting Get in touch: https://twitter.com/jasontrost businessofbetting@gmail.com #business #betting #podcast #businessofbetting #smarkets #exchange #sportsbook Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On this edition of the Business of Betting Podcast, Jason is joined by Soo Kim, Chairman of Bally's Corporation. Soo is the founding partner of investment firm Standard General L.P. & is the firm's Managing Partner & Chief Investment Officer. Soo has a wealth of experience in the investment space, but has also been involved in the evolution of the gaming industry. Timecodes: 00:57 - Soo's background 03:30 - What kind of entity is Standard General? 05:09 - The structure of a Hedge Fund 07:55 - Types of investment 13:15 - What does Soo class himself as? 17:35 - Bally's thesis 23:48 - How does Bally's differ from its competitors? 25:07 - Bally's acquisition strategy 26:56 - Raising share price 29:39 - Could the physical and online business be separated? 30:47 - Soo's view on sports betting 33:11 - What does Soo want to be when he grows up? Follow us on: https://twitter.com/bettingpod / @businessofbetting Get in touch: https://twitter.com/jasontrost businessofbetting@gmail.com #business #betting #podcast #businessofbetting #smarkets #exchange #sportsbook Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On this edition of the Business of Betting Podcast, Jason is joined by Dustin Gouker, Consultant at Catena Media. Dustin's story began in the newspaper industry where he worked as a journalist for a number of years before venturing into marketing. In 2015, Dustin began to report on the sports betting and online poker industry for Legal Sports Report. His latest role was as a Vice President at Catena Media in charge of content. He is now acting as a consultant for Catena Media, while deciding what he would like to do next in his career. Timecodes: 02:10 - Dustin's background 04:15 - Daily Fantasy and Sports Betting 10:45 - Dustin's opinions on sports betting in America 14:50 - Jason v Dustin on regulation 33:15 - What does Dustin make of 'The Big Four' in the US? 35:40 - Dustin's view on a company like Smarkets 43:25 - Next steps for Dustin Follow us on: https://twitter.com/bettingpod / @businessofbetting Get in touch: https://twitter.com/jasontrost #business #betting #podcast #businessofbetting #smarkets #exchange #sportsbook Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On this edition of the Business of Betting Podcast, Jason is joined by Joel Simkins, Managing Director in Houlihan Lokey's Technology Group. Joel began his career as a leading equity analyst before successfully transitioning to investment banking where he has gained a wealth of experience in the gaming industry. Jason and Joel cover a range of topics such as regulation in the industry, discussion on some of the leading sports betting companies, Joel's advice to young entrepreneurs and much more! Follow us on: https://twitter.com/bettingpod / @businessofbetting Get in touch: https://twitter.com/jasontrost #business #betting #podcast #businessofbetting #smarkets #exchange #sportsbook Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.