DraftKings to Enhance In-Play Betting Offering With Simplebet Acquisition

Digital sports entertainment and gaming company DraftKings plans to enhance its in-play betting offering by acquiring Simplebet.

The proposed transaction has been approved by the boards of directors of both companies but is subject to the receipt of required gaming regulatory approvals and other customary closing conditions, DraftKings said in a Wednesday (Aug. 28) press release.

Simplebet provides micromarket pricing and content for sports betting, according to the release.

The incorporation of its proprietary machine learning (ML) models into DraftKings’ pricing and technology platform would create highly accurate betting opportunities during every moment of the game; improve the quality, breadth and speed of data throughout the DraftKings trading lifecycle; and unlock a faster and more frictionless experience for DraftKings’ customers, per the release.

“Live betting represents an area for potential growth for online sports betting, and the proposed acquisition would allow DraftKings to leverage Simplebet’s proprietary technology to create an in-play wagering experience that moves at the speed of sports,” Corey Gottlieb, chief product officer at DraftKings, said in the release.

DraftKings and Simplebet have already been long-term collaborators, Chris Bevilacqua, co-founder and CEO of Simplebet, said in the release.

“This transformative acquisition, upon completion, will marry our best-in-class AI and machine learning technology with the DraftKings product offering, enhancing the customer experience for a new era of real-time, in-play gaming,” Bevilacqua said.

This news comes about six months after DraftKings announced that it reached an agreement to acquire Jackpocket, a digital lottery app. When announcing the acquisition, executives said they expected there to be significant overlap between Jackpocket and DraftKings, together with an opportunity to cross-sell their product offerings.

DraftKings reported Aug. 2 that it saw a revenue bump in the second quarter, primarily due to continued healthy customer engagement, efficient acquisition of new customers, expansion of its sportsbook product offering into new jurisdictions, higher structural sportsbook hold percentage and the impact of the acquisition of Jackpocket, which closed on May 22.

“We will continue to capitalize on the healthy customer acquisition environment for the rest of 2024 which positions us to achieve $900 million to $1 billion of adjusted EBITDA in 2025,” DraftKings CEO and Co-Founder Jason Robins said Aug. 2 during the company’s quarterly earnings call.