Today (Wed, 15th December), Channel Four Racing enters the world of sports betting with the launch of its own online betting exchange. The exchange was developed by 4Interactive, the interactive division of Channel 4 in partnership with BETDAQ, the world’s second largest betting exchange operator.
The betting exchange is available via the Channel 4 website – www.channel4.com/racing – and provides a live betting service to registered users on its terrestrial sports. The new service is launched on the back of a number of recent initiatives by 4Interactive supporting Channel Four Racing including re-launching the website and the broadcast of alternative camera angles offering exclusive live race coverage to interactive viewers.
Channel 4 has been central to the emergence of exchanges in the last four years through its coverage of betting markets by John McCririck and Tanya Stevenson on programmes such as The Morning Line and Channel Four Racing.
Dave Kerr, Channel 4’s Head of Sport commented: ‘At a time when the future of horseracing on Channel 4 is uncertain we are actively pursuing ways to generate additional commercial return from the sport and a betting exchange is a logical way of achieving this. It is a further addition to the comprehensive service that we already provide punters.’
‘Exchanges have dramatically improved the way that many dedicated bettors enjoy their involvement with sports betting, added BETDAQ’s Rob Hartnett. ‘This partnership with Channel 4 will bring the concept to an even broader audience and further hasten the growth of a sector that has risen from nothing to an estimated annual turnover in excess of £2 Billion per annum in four short years.’
Paul Whitehead, Head of Business Development at 4Interactive added: ‘The new betting exchange is one of a number of initiatives recently launched to enhance Channel 4’s coverage of horseracing. The popularity of these services demonstrates the value to viewers of making Channel 4 content available across a range of interactive platforms.’
Betting exchanges differ from regular bookmakers in that they provide a facility for individuals with a different opinion on the outcome of an event to come together and bet against each other. The exchange sits at the centre of every transaction, and acts as facilitator and stakeholder. It settles the bets in favour of whoever has won and charges a small commission from the winnings of each customer in each market.
For more details contact:
Hannah Walker, Channel 4
Tel: 07971 598287 Email: hannahwalker@localdial.com
Rob Hartnett, Managing Director BETDAQ UK
Tel: 00353 86 8063307 Email: RHartnett@BETDAQ.com
Vicky Martin, Channel 4
Tel: 0207 306 3636 Email: vmartin@channel4.co.uk