FanDuel (PDYPF) is launching a first-of-its-kind nationally distributed television network, FanDuel TV, the company announced on Thursday.
FanDuel TV will include a linear cable television network and a new OTT Platform called “FanDuel+,” which will be free to download for FanDuel users.
The network will be flanked by popular sports media personalities including former NFL Network star Kay Adams, Pat McAfee, and Bill Simmons.
“We intend for FanDuel TV to sit at the intersection of live sports and interactive content and believe Kay [Adams] is the best example of an on-air talent who can bring fans closer to the narratives of the games they care about most,” FanDuel Chief Commercial Officer Mike Raffensperger said in a press release. “Our goal is to provide fans compelling programming to watch and wager on in tandem with our mobile app.”
The new network will be “broadly distributed” on linear television through relationships with Comcast Xfinity (CMCSA), Spectrum (CHTR), Verizon FIOS (VZ), DirecTV, and others while the streaming platform will be featured on staples such as YouTube TV (GOOG), Hulu (DIS), AppleTV (AAPL), Roku (ROKU), and Amazon (AMZN).
Other highlights of FanDuel TV include a daily 11 a.m. ET show hosted by Adams, more than 3,000 hours of live sports including international basketball games, horse racing analysis, and further content from McAfee and Simmons that will be announced later.
‘The acquisition engine is getting stronger for us’
Competitors in the space, including DraftKings (DKNG) and Penn Entertainment (PENN), have invested heavily on the content side but have yet to reach the scale of an entire network.
Last week, Penn announced it expects to complete its purchase of Barstool Sports in February 2023.
For gambling companies, original content is another way to draw users to the betting platform. The strategy centers around consumers attaching to media personalities like Simmons or McAfee and following their gambling plays or promotions on the FanDuel Sportsbook.
FanDuel has already been a dominant player in the space. The company boasts 51% market share of gross gaming revenue among sportsbooks in the states where it operates, according to the company’s most recent earnings release, and just posted its first profitable quarter with an adjusted EBITDA of $22 million for the second quarter.
In a sector where cost of acquisition per customer is watched very closely, the Street will be closely monitoring how much investment FanDuel puts into the new network and what the returns will be.
“We’ve always been very efficient at how we bring customers onto the platform,” FanDuel CEO Amy Howe told Yahoo Finance on Aug. 12. “We’ve always had a strong brand, one we’ve engaged with phenomenal talent like Pat McAfee. We have innovations with TNT and Turner. The NBA was a big part of Q2 this year. The acquisition engine is getting stronger for us everyday.”
Josh is a reporter and producer for Yahoo Finance.
Click here for the latest trending stock tickers of the Yahoo Finance platform
Click here for the latest stock market news and in-depth analysis, including events that move stocks
Read the latest financial and business news from Yahoo Finance
Download the Yahoo Finance app for Apple or Android
Follow Yahoo Finance on Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Flipboard, LinkedIn, and YouTube
,,,
