This article is featured on iNTERGAMINGi – Issue 5 – SiGMA Tech and Innovation issue.
It’s not just the tech that matters, it’s what you’re able to do with it…
Paolo Personeni – Managing Director, Managed Trading Services
When it comes to running a successful sportsbook today, two key fundamentals include data and technology. With today’s crowded gaming industry, and the speed at which technology is evolving, it’s more about how you can fashion these two aspects together to make the most out of an offering. After all, sportsbooks need to go a step further and stay ahead of the game to gain that extra margin and create differentiation that will ultimately help their profits.
To achieve this, it’s about utilising the right expertise and innovation at the right level to manage and deliver data and technology in risk free and therefore commercially viable ways. This is one of the reasons why Sportradar’s risk management and trading solution, Managed Trading Services (MTS) continues to prove popular in markets across the world.
MTS has recently been expanded with the announcement of Sportradar’s acquisition of a brand-new platform. Our ongoing development of our betting products and services has always been steered by the question, ‘What do sportsbook operators need?’ and, as a global company, we want to answer this for as many different sized operators as possible, no matter where they are in the world.
As such, we have made MTS as flexible and customisable as possible. And, with the new platform, this is no different. For operators just starting out, this means they have everything they need to establish a sportsbook from scratch. For mid to larger operators, they might be in need of upgrading their platform or finding new ways to stand out from the crowd or safeguard their operations. These days there is a lot of pressure on sportsbooks to offer the most coverage on sports, the fastest yet most reliable data, the ability to operate across channels, added features to ensure punters are entertained and engaged, whilst having the ability to oversee and manage risk to ensure the right pricing is in place and protect from losses. It’s hard to know where to allocate time and resources to be able to achieve this.
This is where utilising the right services and cutting-edge innovation can really help. The platform, for example, is multi-channel, allowing operators to offer features across mobile, online, retail and other emerging technology. Due to its flexibility, operators can offer a suite of betting services across the one system through the one central integration. This can be a combination of their own in-house offerings together with Sportradar’s, for example, or utilising Sportradar’s complete services, including everything from odds to Betting Stimulation and Live Streaming for the sports they want, with the level of risk management and trading they want too. Essentially, this means operators can shape their business how they like by being able to configure the platform based on their requirements. With all services completely platform agnostic too, operators can still use them with whatever platform they wish to use. The possibilities are endless.
Adding on the technology and expertise behind Sportradar’s Managed Trading Services (MTS) allows sportsbooks to go even further in terms of maximising turnover and ensuring their business is secure. MTS utilises a team of academically-backed sports mathematicians and scientists, together with machine learning and AI to monitor and analyse sports markets across the globe on a 24/7 basis. Using machine learning algorithms, the team creates a range of odds and rating models to help bookmakers deliver the most reliable odds available. Such technology is also utilised by our MTS experts to profile and manage players for added security and to enhance user experience.
Similar to the platform, MTS can be customised so it can be used at whatever level is required. For larger operators, for example, this may mean adopting our Integrated Trading Services (ITS), which allows them to retain control over their own trading where needed, whilst utilising MTS for areas where they may not be as adept. Other operators may want to outsource their risk management and trading completely using Fully Integrated Services (FTS), which, again, together with the platform, provides peace of mind knowing they have two very important pillars of a successful sportsbook in place. MTS also allows operators to expand their offering into different areas and markets, using Sportradar’s specialist traders for certain sports only, for example, while they take care of areas where they are more attuned. Additionally, with MTS, sportsbooks have full access to our pre-match and live data odds, Betting Stimulation and Live Streaming, which again can be seamlessly integrated onto their own platform, or together with Sportradar’s new platform.
This makes the process of starting a sportsbook less daunting. It also means smaller, more local bookmakers have access to all the resources they need to get ahead within today’s crowded market, while mid-tier operators are better able to revitalise their sportsbooks in bespoke ways. For larger operators, it provides options for them to upgrade and continue extending their offering in to new markets. So again, it’s not just about having data and technology, it’s about how you’re able to use it to suit, and therefore boost, your own unique offering.