Genius Sports Proving It's Not Ready to Slow Down

Genius Sports saw an opportunity to expand their reach within the exploding global legal sports betting scene and has been aggressive to say the least in their attempts to take it. Already "a global leader in digital sports content, technology and integrity services”, Genius Sports has been on an expansion tear recently and a couple moves last week cemented their status as an elite brand.

Genius Sports has a pretty good grip on the data distribution angle in the legal sports betting industry, especially in the US scene. This past week, the data provider has taken steps to increase their reach and expand their offerings with the purchase of FanHub, free-to-play game and software creators as well as Second Spectrum, a company dedicated to Artificial Intelligence and its integration into the legal sports betting sphere.

What Fanhub Brings to the Table

The first major Genius Sports move of last week was the acquisition of FanHub which allows for a more personalized betting experience for Genius Sports clients in the US and around the world. A better overall experience is hoped will lead to higher fan engagement and related customer retention.

“The acquisition of FanHub will provide our sports, betting and media partners with exciting new content platforms that entirely complement our established data, video and marketing solutions," said Genius Sports CEO Mark Locke. “This transaction is expected to expand Genius Sports' global audience and reach while accelerating the convergence of sports, betting and media to engage the modern fan.”

FanHub is not a new name within the legal sports betting space. It has been one of the global leaders in free-to-play (F2P) games and fan engagement solutions for years thanks to their top-tier proprietary technology.

Last week's deal brings with it not only a host of experience in the legal sports betting space but also FanHub's impressive lineup of F2P games, including fantasy sports, trivia, bracket challenges, pick 'em, and polling games. Also included is FanHub's existing relationships with the NFL, MLB, MLS, Betway and PointsBet.

What Second Spectrum Brings to the Table

With Genius Sports' second deal of the week, they signalled that they are all-in on the tech side of the legal sports betting business. In what has been reported as a $200 million deal, Genius takes over Artificial Intelligence data tracking and analytics provider Second Spectrum, which like FanHub brings high-level pre-existing relationships with EPL, the NBA and MLS into the Genius Sports fold.

“We are thrilled to join the Genius Sports family,” Second Spectrum CEO Rajiv Maheswaran said in the release. “Second Spectrum’s mission to be at the forefront of innovation in the sports ecosystem in combination with the scale and drive of Genius Sports will rapidly accelerate how content is created and experienced and bring significant value for our partners and clients.”

Second Spectrum is described as a fully integrated sports AI provider that offers its clients tracking, analytics and data visualization services used to maximize the betting experience of its clients. It allows

for the most up-to-the-minute stats transmissions for teams, leagues and data partners in the legal sports betting space.

Second Spectrum allows Genius Sports to reach a completely different level in regards to their customer experience.

Other Prudent Genius Sports Moves

FanHub and Second Spectrum are add-ons to the good work that Genius Sports had done in the months prior. Perhaps the company's biggest coup came about six weeks ago when they became the exclusive distributor of valuable NFL gambling data to sportsbooks in a deal that is estimated to reach $1 billion upon maturity. That deal alone put Genius in the forefront.

Prior to that, Genius sports has been busy forging relationships with the NBA, Premier League, NCAA, NASCAR and PGA Tour on top of their NFL partnership. When added up, Genius Sports has more than 500 organizational partnerships around the world.

Then there is their deal with blank-check company dMY Technology Acquisition II which allows Genius Sports to be a publicly traded company and ultimately raise capitol for even more expansion. As it stands now, Genius Sports has a reported $145 million cash on hand with no financial debt.

Looking Ahead

Companies will keep searching for new ways to separate themselves in the crowded and competitive legal sports betting world. Genius Sports has been a major player in that search and has managed to bolster their brand through recent partnership and acquisition deals.

The need for unique and complete sports betting experiences is growing by the day and Genius is expected to be at the forefront of all. With cash on hand and a fair share of momentum, expect to hear a lot more from Genius Sports going forward.