Can DraftKings Make TV Betting Work In Deal With DISH?


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DraftKings and DISH TV

DraftKings has announced a “first of its kind” partnership to integrate betting into DISH TV.

The deal will see a DraftKings application added to the DISH TV Hopper platform. That can be accessed by saying “Launch DraftKings” into the TV remote or from the Apps Menu.

Customers won’t be able to bet directly via that application but will be able to initiate bets. Initiating a bet prompts a text message to complete the transaction in the DK app.

Customers will also be able to set recordings and watch the live sports that correspond with those bets or daily fantasy sports teams.

Immersive experience

“Our deal with DISH TV and the technology behind it immerses customers within a next-generation viewership experience and reaches these fanbases in a completely new way,” said Paul Liberman, president of product and technology and co-founder at DraftKings.

“This is a unique opportunity for fans to watch games and engage with our real-money products while the technology also allows for further innovation ahead.”

DISH TV customers can initiate bets for NCAA basketball, NBA, and NHL via Hopper.

DISH TV president Brian Neylon said the integration had potential applications across Dish’s 5G wireless buildout in the future.”

DraftKings stock climbed 4% in the early hours of trading after the news.

Do customers want TV betting?

TV betting is not a new concept but has never really taken hold in other markets around the world.

UK bookmaker Sky Bet famously spent several million pounds on developing a TV betting system that ultimately took just a handful of bets.

Of course, that technology has come a long way since the early 2000’s.

The announcement also prompted a small dip in FuboTV’s share price. The company has pledged to integrate betting into its sports streaming service.

In any event, US sportsbooks in general and DraftKings in particular have been hellbent on finding ways to increase their exposure and to tie together watching and betting on sports.

The DISH deal certainly accomplishes both, but it’s not clear exactly how additive it will be for DraftKings’ bottom line, although it should be additive in terms of engagement of existing bettors and DFS users.