for early access to the latest igaming videos!
and get the latest igaming news first!
Genius Sports believes there’s an opportunity to apply its extensive experience in sports data and integrity services to assist prediction market operators.
The company collaborates with various sports leagues and sportsbooks, providing them with official data and technology solutions. However, any potential partnerships with prediction markets would need to align with gaming regulations to avoid conflicts.
During a quarterly earnings call, CEO Mark Locke emphasized the importance of compliance with state laws and regulatory standards. He noted that if sports event contracts are deemed acceptable, it could lead to significant growth opportunities for the company.
Genius can provide official league data
Genius Sports places a high priority on the perspectives of regulators and commercial partners, as noted by Locked during a recent call with investors and analysts.
“As they evolve and mature, prediction markets may provide a meaningful new opportunity for Genius Sports in expanding the addressable market,” he added.
“While these products are nascent, they are evolving rapidly, and the need for Genius official league data, marks and logos, and integrity solutions will only grow as prediction markets become more sophisticated. This means that we are extremely well placed should we decide to engage.”
Earlier this year, Genius Sports communicated with the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), describing sports event contract trading as a “significant potential growth and innovation” area. The company urged the CFTC to utilize its expertise for better regulation of the sector.
On Tuesday (Nov 4), Locke reaffirmed the company’s commitment to collaborating with key stakeholders, including league partners like the NFL, gaming regulators, and existing customers, as well as prediction market operators, to explore future steps.
He expressed confidence in their ability to seize this opportunity, stating,
“We are confident in our ability to capitalize on this opportunity in a responsible and sustainable way if we feel all of the requirements we need to be in place to participate in this market are met.”
Prediction markets continue to expand
Since 2021, Genius Sports has held an exclusive deal to distribute official NFL data to sports betting operators and media brands, with this agreement recently extended. The company also partners with the NCAA and collaborates with major sportsbooks such as ESPN Bet, Caesars, FanDuel, bet365, and DraftKings.
Several of these partners are preparing to introduce event contracts, with FanDuel working alongside CME Group on a new platform and DraftKings acquiring Railbird, a licensed derivatives marketplace.
At the same time, legal and regulatory challenges persist, particularly for platforms like Kalshi. Kalshi has faced scrutiny for its use of official NFL logos, and the NCAA has reached out to express concerns about the platform’s implications of an official partnership with the college sports governing body.
Despite its multiple legal battles, Kalshi recently announced that it had signed a data partnership with STATSCORE, though this collaboration does not include the major leagues’ official data partners. It also became the official prediction partner of the National Hockey League (NHL) last month.
Source: SBC America
