Betfred moves into social with We R Interactive deal
Deal sees virtual betting shop featuring Betfred odds added to Facebook football game I AM PLAYR.
UK sportsbook operator Betfred signed a deal with social games publisher We R Interactive to mark the company’s first foray into social gaming.
The deal will see a virtual Betfred betting shop integrated into We R Interactive’s flagship title I AM PLAYR, a game on the Facebook platform combining videos, interactive story-telling and 3D gameplay to let players live the life of a professional footballer. The virtual shop, which will launch by the start of the Premiership football season on 18 August, will feature Betfred’s odds on matches, with players able to bet and win virtual currency.
Betfred.com managing director Chris Sheffield commented that the deal would allow the operator to expand its customer base by making a new demographic aware of the company: “We are all about innovation at Betfred.com, that’s why this deal was so appealing and we are delighted that our brand will be exposed to a wider audience.”
The game, which went live on Facebook in October last year, currently has 1.3m monthly active users according to AppData, and We R Interactive’s global commercial director Paul Whitehead explained that the deal would not only boost I AM PLAYR’s profile, but could also help Betfred begin building a social gaming presence:
“Betting and football are natural partners, so it’s great to be bringing the Betfred brand into the game through these really innovative integrations that further authenticate the game and blur the boundaries between the real life of a professional footballer and the virtual world of I AM PLAYR. We’re building a large audience for I AM PLAYR, so we’ll be working with Betfred to grow their own social activities,” Whitehead said.
The news comes days after Betfred announced a deal to sell 25 of its UK betting shops to rival operator Stan James in a £5m deal, following its acquisition of The Tote in June last year.
Under the terms of its £150m acquisition of the state-owned bookmaker, Betfred was required to sell off the stores in order to comply with competition rules, with the Office of Fair Trading decreeing that areas with a high concentration of Betfred and Tote betting shops gave customers little choice as to which operator to place their bets with.
Following the acquisition Betfred had added 517 Tote shops to the 840 it already operated.