Redefining Betfair Poker

In the early days of the European poker boom the British sports betting firms were riding high, and the fastest rising was the innovative betting exchange, Betfair. The hugely popular sports betting site acted as a rich recruitment ground for poker players with a magical balance of recreational players and some serious grinders. Its active forums also helped build a sense of community and it quickly became the largest member on the now defunct, but at the time substantial, Cryptologic poker network. And then things started to go a bit wrong.

Betfair surprised the industry by leaving the Cryptologic network and set up on its own after buying out poker site Poker Champs and its associated technology firm. It was a logical step for the firm who were in the enviable position of having their own in-house sports betting platform and wanted to be viewed more as a technology firm than a gambling one. Owning its own poker software would allow tighter integration and, naturally, greater profits.

The new head of poker at Betfair, Daniel Svard, says it was a smart decision at the time looking at the big players now who all own their own software. But things didn't quite go to plan. A vocal number of Betfair's large and loyal player base did not like the new software at all and it's perhaps fair to say it was the right decision, wrong software.

Betfair are no small time poker site, but they should be much much larger. Meeting Daniel Svard at their huge modern waterfront offices in West London you realise the scale of the sports betting side of the business. And with over three million customers around Europe, with a propensity for peer-to-peer betting, it seems like poker should be a natural fit within the business. Nonetheless there is still the impression the firm has yet to find its way in poker, despite its huge potential and player base.

The firm's decision to move from its standalone platform to the bwin-owned Ongame Network then is a big step. And the man tasked with managing this turnaround looks relaxed at the challenge ahead. InsidePoker Business tried to find out where the sleeping giant of online poker goes next.

InsidePoker Business What has stopped Betfair from being one of the top ten firms to-date?

Daniel Svard We are happy as a company with how it is all going. For us at Betfair it was pretty clear where we were going wrong about 6 months to a year ago. Betfair saw what we needed to do to be better, as a company. What we are trying to do with our brand is to become more customer focused. As part of this revamp we will be introducing a customer loyalty scheme. Throughout the years we have run promotions that have been appreciated and fruitful. This is why we are introducing the face value loyalty scheme, which means the customer will be able to see new features and new capabilities within that scheme over time.

IPB How do you view Betfair compared to your competitors at the current time?

DS The clear difference to me is the amount of time our customers spend with us compared to other sites. Overall satisfaction of our customers is paramount to us. At Betfair, we have a lot of poker customers; we also have a lot of very good sports exchange customers. Betfair's blend is something that is slightly unique, with the sport exchange allowing us to attract new recreational poker players.

IPB What do you feel Betfair can learn from the big poker brands?

DS The one thing they are obviously doing well at is focusing on the customer. I think some key sites have that ability, and many have an understanding of the poker playing community and what the customer actually needs. Now we have this ability as well and we are rolling it out across several platforms of Betfair.

IPB Can anyone actually catch PokerStars at this moment in time?

DS In terms of liquidity, no and we have to ask the poker playing community what is enough liquidity and what is a good poker experience? You have to focus on what type of liquidity you need to be attractive. I feel we are well balanced at this present time.

IPB Who do you think your core audience is, what level of player?

DS We have fantastic sports fans, they are very core to us and are a big chunk of our customer base. Fans of sports enjoy playing poker, and we need to understand how to provide poker for them, which is not the way for the poker only brands. It needs to be more of an entertainment offering. Then we have the poker fans that just enjoy playing the game. We really invest a lot of time and effort in this area. That's where we are, and how Betfair has shifted as a company.

IPB Does that mean you are aiming at the more recreational area?

DS No, I think we are aiming at fans of poker. We fully understand both areas of our poker business. Both recreational and the more serious poker player.

IPB So is the loyalty scheme the key difference?

DS It is one of several schemes and various other promotional elements Betfair have launched recently. One noticeable difference is the tie into sports. I also feel we provide a unique experience for the customer. As you now know we are sponsoring the Amateur Poker Association and Tour (APAT), which will be a key partnership for us. APAT is doing what we are doing; focusing on the grassroots poker community, and running tournaments that are just the right buy in.

Read part 2 of this interview Here