Canadian online gambling company betting on success

Toronto Sun
 
Canadian online gambling company betting on success
Wild Casino

During the COVID lockdown people stuck at home found new ways to amuse themselves:Netflix binging, bread baking, de-cluttering.

And online gambling.

Between the pandemic driving brick-and-mortar gambling to online platforms and the recent changes that made sports betting legal in the U.S, online gambling has had a huge spike in popularity.

Now a Canadian company joining the action is betting they have the perfect formula for success.

Influencer Interactive Inc. (i3), has launched Blitzbet, a sort of one-stop shopping destination for online gambling and sports betting that includes gratis sport content and commentary from the experts.

Blitzbet, which has a listing on the Canadian Securities Exchange (CSE: BETS,) gives players access to North American and International major league sports betting as well as hundreds of casino-style games.

And they have a secret weapon: Blitzbet has partnered with Dan Bilzerian, a high profile poker celebrity and influencer who brings 52-million social media followers to the table.

Bilzerian’s presence is a game-changer.

His in-your-face playboy style, involving pneumatic women, luxury cars, piles of cash and other displays of wretched excess may not appeal to everyone, but it’s a magnet to men aged 20 to 40 — which just happens to be the main online gambling demographic.

Biltzerian’s involvement in the company immediately reduces the high cost of customer acquisition to almost nothing.

Chris Neville, president and CEO of i3, says the big struggle with all gaming companies is the vast amounts they have to spend to attract customers.

One leading online sports betting outfit, Neville said, has spent about $800 million over the last several years to build their database.

“They now have one million active customers and spent $800 million on branding and marketing to build that database of 10 million,” said Neville.

“With Dan Bilzerian on board, our cost of acquisition per customer is technically zero.”

He offers a recent example. Bilzerian did a 15 second Instagram post for a blackjack tournament — and they immediately got 107,000 registrants.

And they’re using Bilzerian’s presence as part of prize packages — you can win a day with the influencer, go on his private plane and go to a game with him, for example, a huge draw for this particular crowd.

“We’re trying to make sports betting and casino fun and cool for the millennials,” said Neville, “and how we do that is provide experiences money can’t buy.”

Then there’s linemovement.com, a sister brand to Blitzbet that offers top analysts — hockey’s Nick Kypreos and Doug MacLean, for example — with talk and tips on sports teams and players.

And it’s all free.

“With a lot of sites, if you want content, you have to pay a monthly subscription. We have writers and content producers and video and no paywall. We’re trying to create great content in every sport:  MMA, basketball, PGA, hockey, MLB.  We have a people lined up to do NFL content when we launch … it’s a one-stop shop where you can get all your stats and all the information you need.

“And if you’re interested, you can make a bet, play in the casino, do a live dealer game, play poker — whatever you wish.”

Neville said that people want good content and they want entertainment, “And especially now with COVID-19, watching sports and placing a bet or playing in the casino is their thing, because they can’t go to a movie or go out to dinner.”

The online gambling market in Canada is $1 billion annually; the global market is about $60 billion and growing every year.