I will have a full report on the gaming summit and wagering conference once I get some time. But today one quote struck me, from Mark Davies, Managing Director of Betfair that I would like to share:
"Empirical evidence around the world undermines that argument (that operators will lose money by lowering takeout) quite dramatically," Davies responded emphatically. "Lower margin is where horse racing has to go in order to compete with all the other sports out there. Even if you are concerned about lower margin, what you should probably throw into the mix are the people who get involved at the margins because of the lower margins."
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Yesterday, the quote with the most cajones was Moira Fanning, on a panel of industry insiders, speaking to industry insiders:
Moira Fanning, Director of Publicity for The Hambletonian Society, was a panelist in this session, and she admonished attendees to quit referring to harness racing as a sport.
“It’s a gaming product, so let’s call it what it is,” Fanning said. “It’s not a sport.”
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3 comments:
re Fanning's remarks - Ooh, I bet that went down well!
Gaming implies that it is all luck, which is an insult to bettors. At the very least, it is a wagering product which requires skill to win at the betting part of it. But first and foremost, it is a sport.
I think she was right to use that language Scott. With slots, it is a gaming product because slots supply a ton of the purse money. Purse money comes only from two sources - betting and slots. Without either of them, we race for ribbons not money.
Biggest problem in racing? Horsemen caring only about Horsemen and Tracks caring only about Tracks. The latest salvo is the regisnation on Bill O'Donnell from the OHHA over the boards decision to side with the former President who led a failed boycott attempt and cause WEG to decide they will not negotiate with OHHA. With O'Donnell being out, there will never be an agreement with the OHHA and the horsemen will loose in the long run.
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