NBC, PointsBet Enter Partnership for Sports Betting Integrated into Programming
In this new world of partnerships with sports betting companies, NBCUniversal has now paired with PointsBet – an Australian-based company made famous by its points betting method of increased winnings and losses.
Just last year, companies like ESPN have teamed up with Caesars Entertainment while FOX has an ownership stake in FOXBet through a deal with The Stars Group.
Terms of the NBC-PointsBet Deal
NBCU will also notch a 4.9 percent stake in PointsBet and get options for shares worth $105 million that will become available after five years.
The deal gives PointsBet access to NBC’s massive lineup of sports programming that includes the Olympics, NFL, NHL, NASCAR, IndyCar, PGA Tour, USGA, Churchill Downs, Premier League, Tour de France, French Open and many others.
“We are excited to begin this partnership with PointsBet, which will deliver unmatched sports betting engagement opportunities across multiple platforms,” said David Preschlack, president, NBC Sports Regional Networks, and EVP content strategy, NBC Sports Group.
“For NBCUniversal and PointsBet, this agreement provides considerable opportunities in the fast-growing sports betting marketplace, which is unique to this extensive and robust, multi-year arrangement. Looking ahead, we’re also excited about the significant activation opportunities that will come to fruition as sports betting continues to proliferate across the U.S.”
How Many States Have Legal Sports Betting in the U.S.?
Currently, sports betting is legal in 18 U.S. states with more to follow. PointsBet is presently operating in Indiana, Iowa, and New Jersey, with Colorado, Illinois, and Michigan all expected to be up and running within the next six months.
As part of the deal, these changes will take effect immediately between the two companies (according to Deadline.com):
– PointsBet will be incorporated in exclusive multi-platform gameday integrations across the eight NBC Sports Regional Networks, which are the only regional homes to MLB, NBA, and NHL teams, and deliver more than 2,200 live sporting events.
– PointsBet becomes an official partner of the NBC Sports Predictor app, which has more than 1.1 million downloads and is currently home to free-to-play games for four sports (football, golf, Premier League soccer, and NASCAR). With the new partnership, Predictor’s offering will be expanded, integrating PointsBet content throughout.
– Exclusive PointsBet odds integrations will be incorporated into Rotoworld, NBC Sports’ fantasy and sports betting digital property, which has been a market leader for two decades. Rotoworld provides fantasy sports and betting tools, plus daily insights and analysis on NFL, MLB, NBA, NHL, college football, golf, Premier League, and NASCAR.
– Exclusive multi-platform integrations with NBC Sports’ consumer golf brand Golfnow
– PointsBet features full Spanish-language functionality and will reach Hispanic sports fans via Telemundo Deportes and Telemundo broadcast stations.
– PointsBet will be the exclusive provider of odds, props, and trends for NBCSN and Golf Channel and their digital properties and Peacock, NBCUniversal’s new streaming service, and NBC Sports Podcasts.
More deals like this are certainly going to be on the horizon with the rapid growth of sports betting. We’ll see who the next one is, and just how big the deal will be.
