Poll: How will Betfair's fixed-odds platform fare?
Is the exchange betting operator at risk of undercutting its core revenues by launching a fixed-odds solution?
With just three weeks until the start of the European football championships on 8 June, Betfair have announced the launch of a ‘next generation sports site’ allowing customers to place bets on both the exchange, and a new, OpenBet-supplied fixed-odds platform.
The Daily Telegraph reports that Betfair’s 4 million customers place around 30% of their bets with other operators due to the difficulties in quickly launching markets for in-play odds on the exchange, something which the company is keen to rectify with the fixed-odds launch.
Betfair has been bullish about releasing the product for the company’s core UK market by the start of the Euros, rolling it out in smaller markets to stress-test the integration, but with only three weeks to go will this be enough time to convince punters to leave other sites and spend their money on the new offering?
There are many potential pitfalls to the integration, such as the potential for outages, which have dogged the company in the past. In March last year the exchange site went down for over six hours one day, which could be disastrous should a similar incident occur during the championships and perhaps damage the brand in customers’ eyes.
Indeed, the proximity of the traditional betting solution alongside the company’s flagship exchange product may well be seen as confusing for customers, prompting them to choose one or the other rather than seamlessly move between platforms as the operator clearly hopes.
As a result there is the possibility that punters will select one or the other product on which to place their bets, either cannibalising amounts wagered and liquidity on the exchange, or undermining the investment in the fixed-odds site.
At a time when operators need to ensure their systems are as durable and reliable as possible, are Betfair making a huge mistake in launching a new product ahead of one of the biggest betting events of 2012? Have your say by voting in the poll on the right hand side of the page, or visit the eGaming Review Linkedin group.