Betfair operates in the burgeoning global market of 'remote' gambling, ... Betfair is
a registered bookmaker operating a ... real-time, as a football match unfolds,.
Market Context
most remarkable stories in internet innovation, and is one of Oracle’s “four hottest databases in the world”.The success of its innovation is reflected in its dominance of the betting exchange market – estimated at 90%, with over 100,000 customers betting each month. Betfair’s success has been recognised by a host of prestigious awards, including the 2003 Queen’s Award for Enterprise in the Innovation category. A year earlier, the company’s co-founders, former professional gambler Andrew Black, and ex-city businessman Edward Wray, were awarded the Ernst and Young Emerging Entrepreneur of the Year award. In 2004, Betfair won the CBI/Growing Business Award for ‘Company of the Year’, winning it again in 2005 – the first company ever to retain the award. Betfair also won the ‘Editor’s Choice of the Year’ & ‘Betting Exchange Firm of the Year’ at the 2005 Inside Edge Awards. Betfair has also set benchmarks for transparency and social responsibility. An example was its decision to launch a rescue package for customers of Sporting Options, a rival exchange that collapsed in November 2004, leaving millions of pounds of punters’ money unaccounted for.This action was partly responsible for winning Betfair the Socially Responsible Operator of the Year at the 2005 e-Gaming awards. Betfair’s gesture was described as “above and beyond the call of duty” by the judging panel. Betfair’s success has been matched by remarkable growth. Named in the 2005 Sunday Times Tech Track 100 as the seventh fastest growing technology company in Britain, Betfair has grown from a handful of employees in November 1999 to 620 employees in November 2005. It has also rapidly expanded its offering, launching an online poker room and a set of innovative exchange-based games. One of the fastest-growing poker rooms on the internet in 2004/05, Betfair Poker now has over 60,000 registered players, and has ambitions to be the largest poker room in the world.
Betfair operates in the burgeoning global market of ‘remote’ gambling, which has transformed the gaming sector, and encouraged more punters into the market. Betfair has revolutionised the industry. Unlike traditional bookmakers, such as Ladbrokes and William Hill, Betfair allows its customers to take either side of the bet, as well as request their own odds, and bet in-play as events unfold. Betfair is a registered bookmaker operating a unique risk-free betting exchange, a model that fundamentally differs from traditional bookmakers. As Betfair’s customers set the odds and amounts, Betfair takes no risk in the transaction. The success of online gambling has created a crowded market, with over 2,400 gaming and gambling websites in the world generating over £12 billion profit in 2005 (Source: GBGC report November 2005).
Personality and Goals better value to the punter, as there THINGS YOU DIDN’T KNOW... is no bookmaker building in a margin Betfair stands for value, choice, fairness, to his price. integrity, and transparency.The company Co-founder Andrew Black’s grandfather, Sir Betfair’s in-play betting allows punters also welcomes winning customers and Cyril Black was an anti-gambling lobbyist. to match bets between themselves in takes no position in the markets it operates. Andrew Black was once a code-breaker, real-time, as a football match unfolds, It merely opens, manages and then settles working at GCHQ. or even until a horse crosses the line. the markets once the result is known. The site itself is a bustling global This is a stance that has prompted Betfair marketplace of betting and interaction. Betfair’s forum allows its to lead the way in the drive for transparency in sport and gambling. members to discuss whatever takes their interest and attracts over These qualities have been demonstrated in Betfair signing 16 10,000 messages a day. Betfair also plans to provide an increasing Memoranda of Understanding with various sporting bodies around amount of interactive gambling content, including stats, form, results, the world including UEFA and the Jockey Club.These are informationopinion and previews of many of the events the company covers. sharing agreements which are designed to help in the fight against The most recent additions to the Betfair product are Exchange corruption in sport, allowing sporting bodies unprecedented access Poker and Exchange Blackjack.The rapid success of these has to betting records. prompted Betfair to unveil a new suite of products to challenge Equally Betfair stands for outstanding technical excellence and the established gaming market. Betfair Games are based on the innovation in the online world. It employs some of the sharpest company’s exchange platform, but allow punters to bet on minds in technology, attracted by the opportunity to work on a automated events such as a hand of poker or a game of blackjack. ground-breaking and award-winning site. Already immensely popular, these could revolutionise the gaming market in the same way as Betfair has invigorated sports betting. www.betfair.com
Products and Services Achievements
The heart of Betfair’s service is its pioneering exchange betting concept, allowing members to bet against each other rather than a traditional bookmaker.The fundamental benefit of this is that it allows a punter to take an opinion that a team or an individual horse would either win or not win, and bet accordingly.This provides considerably
Betfair is a true pioneer of the internet age. Betfair’s award-winning betting exchange engine matches up to five million bets per day, some 15 times more transactions than the London Stock Exchange, and serves over a billion page impressions per week. It is one of the
HISTORY
2000 – The Sporting
2001 – Betfair
2002 – Betfair announces a
2003 – Betfair
Exchange Ltd launches Betfair.com from its offices in Russell Square, London.
matches £1 million in seven days for the first time.
merger with competitor Flutter.com, as well as its sponsorship of Fulham Football Club.
wins Queen’s Award for Enterprise, in the Innovation category.
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2004 – Betfair launches Betfairpoker.com and hosts its first online poker tournament with £100,000 prize money.
2005 – Betfair announces Channel 4 Ashes 2005 cricket broadcast sponsorship and is granted a license in Austria, its first outside the UK. Exchange Poker launches, combining its exchange platform and poker product. Furthermore, Betfair records the highest-ever single-market turnover, matching £36 million on the fifth Ashes Test match.
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