Transition in the US Sports Betting Market: What Role Data Tracking Can Play
Sports betting in Europe, especially in England, is a strongly flourishing business – in the US however, it is still in its early stages.
Prior to May 2018, it was illegal to bet money on sports events outside of the state of Nevada. But after the US Supreme Court overturned the PASPA (Professional and Amateur Sports Provision Act) it has been up to each state to determine and pass its own regulations and laws regarding sports betting.
Recently, all eyes in the US were focused on one event – March Madness, the most prestigious US-College Basketball tournament. After the laws for sports betting were loosened, the American Gaming Association estimated that 8.5 billion dollars were bet on this years’ tournament. The previously illegal sports betting market is estimated to have had an annual volume of 150 billion dollars until the law was changed. Such sums indicate great market potential and these numbers make it even more desirable to gain access to the market.
The loosening of regulations will give KINEXON more opportunities and ways to continue establishing itself in the US sports market. The current use of KINEXON includes performance and tactical analysis for clubs and leagues. Whether it be for basketball, football, ice hockey, soccer or handball. Position and performance data is recorded during sports events and practice sessions and is transmitted to an analysis tool which displays the data in real-time. There are two key factors to understanding the sports betting market and the added value KINEXON would give:
Factor 1 – Latency in live betting: Latency in this case describes the delay between the live recorded match and the appearance of the image on the spectators’ device. Usually the image is seen on the screen with a few second delay from live time. Low latency times have a positive effect on the perception of the game and for fans who place bets, a longer latency time is a major disadvantage. That is because live betting is strongly dependent on time sensitivity, pushing fans to place their bets as quickly as possible – which is a problem solved by KINEXON’s real time feature. Our system guarantees the data being available at the same time the game is played, therefore allowing bets to be placed down to the second.
Factor 2 – New metrics for betting: Thanks to the various metrics recorded by KINEXON, additional items can be made available for betting. For example, KINEXON could make it possible to bet on the fastest sprint, hardest shot or highest jump. This would result in a better viewing experience and greater fan commitment, as well as potential new revenue streams in the sports industry.