Ilkka Seppänen, Siru Mobile
Siru Mobile is sponsoring Betting on Football 2017, the fourth edition of the largest international football and betting trade conference at Chelsea FC’s Stamford Bridge.
Ahead of the 3-5 May event, we spoke to Siru Mobile Co-founder and Head of Customer Operations Ilkka Seppänen about why football is such an attractive sport for betting, how the market is changing from a consumer perspective and how betting and football stakeholders can work more effectively together.
SBC: Why is football such an attractive sport for betting?
IS: Football is often accompanied by very powerful emotions and people live through the game like there would be no tomorrow. Betting definitely adds extra tension to the most interesting games by increasing the intensity of the action and thus enhancing the pleasure. 90 minutes is a significantly long time to thrill everyone in a match.
Now people bet not just on the outcome, but on other aspects and combinations of outcomes. You can bet on the first and last goalscorer, the correct score, the half-time score, number of goals, whether there will be a sending-off, a hat-trick, penalty or the amount of corners. In what other sport is a customer able to choose from such wide range of new bets for one and a half hours of play time?
SBC: From a consumer perspective, how is football betting changing?
IS: Obviously live bets will surely pull more and more consumers in (this has been seen in the increase of destinations year after year). Of course new technologies; goal cameras and possible video reviews will also affect the power of attraction. From a consumer perspective, there are more reflective dimensions. These new technologies have a powerful impact on the micro-moments during which the consumer is encouraged to make necessary actions.
SBC: How can betting & football stakeholders work better and more effectively together?
IS: The companies should focus on content marketing and make sure they’re the storytellers of sports, so they can play even bigger part in creating and sharing stories about the sports world. Interactivity is increasing when gaming companies are not just betting platforms. Luckily for us all, this is already happening to a great extent.
SBC: What new technology do you feel will have the biggest impact on football betting?
IS: Mobile live betting and mobile deposit methods. The game becomes more interesting as consumers are able to bet on certain situations, e.g. will he make this penalty shot, what will happen next or will team A be the next to score. Quick bets on the fly through mobile devices can also be pushed out or suggested to the consumer.
In situations like these, it is important to also have a way for the consumer to quickly make a deposit, and this is where carrier billing shines brighter than any other deposit method. In addition to other evolving technologies, most likely video reviews will play a big role. They will significantly impact the results and events.
SBC: What key agenda, debate or discussion do you want to hear at BOFCON 2017?
IS: I’m particularly keen to hear discussion around: ‘Creative approach – Innovation in Football betting’ and in addition to this the importance of micro-moments and driving business growth by utilising mobile payments technology.
Source: SBC News
