Four Things We Learned from Kambi’s CEO Becher
Kambi is a sports betting solutions provider to licensed operators. It is trusted by more than 40 partners on six continents. CEO, Werner Becher, is ensuring its sportsbook business doesn’t take a backseat as the company pivots to a more modular approach. With an eye on new partnerships, Becher sees Kambi as the home of premium sports betting solutions.
A competitive edge
Becher believes that offering a more bespoke approach to clients will add a new revenue stream to the sportsbook business. The newly launched Odds Feed + is an example of Kambi’s competitive edge. This high-quality Odds Feed is available through a single API integration. What puts the quality of these odds ahead of rival feeds is that Kambi’s sportsbook actively manages and trades them. It has a wealth of data and experience because of its support of partners in many different countries.
Becher has plans for a more diverse partnership structure in the future. He doesn’t want to rely too much on a handful of operators. The partnership landscape keeps shifting as evidenced by the exit of large players like Leo Vegas and Kindred.
The BetPARX’s sports betting app is an example of a successful app based on the Kambi platform. Its success shows how market-leading products can offer an edge in a highly competitive industry. Sports bettors in the U.S. can place all kinds of bets conveniently using the app.
Cost savings
Becher aims to make the platform work harder and smarter. It is assessing whether all its teams are the right size. This isn’t just a belt-tightening measure but reflects the impact AI is having in the workplace. It is revolutionizing how employees work. Those who need to write articles for marketing purposes are using generative AI to increase their productivity. Automation of many manual tasks is improving productivity. This is causing unprecedented shifts with job losses and plenty of upskilling and reskilling taking place. AI use is already showing productivity gains at Kambi. With the team assessment, this could mean that team reductions will happen.
Taking on big players in the industry
Becher believes that Kambi’s high-performance products can compete at a top level. He isn’t afraid of the big powerhouses like DraftKings. Kambi’s long-term extension with Rush Street Interactive is an example of this. The extension secures an essential revenue stream for Kambi and shows its commitment to supporting the success of its partners.
Becher wants to keep appealing to mid-sized operators and large sportsbooks with in-house platforms. Kambi’s modular products can meet a diverse range of needs. They can enhance the delivery of any operator regardless of their sports betting strategy and how much they need to outsource.
Brazil and beyond
Brazil is expected to become one of the largest global regulated sports betting markets. Becher says that the immaturity of the market in Brazil and pending regulatory shifts make setting targets in the country tricky. He voices the importance of learning lessons and taking a more strategic approach to gray markets.
Kambi learned lessons from its early entry into markets in the U.S. and Netherlands and the setbacks it faced. It will need to evaluate each pre-regulated market carefully before entry.
If a market doesn’t show any material risk from a licensing perspective, Kambi would be open to entering it pre-regulation. Becher is keeping an eye on regions in Latin America moving towards regulation. He also points out the rise of the Asia-Pacific region and what the sports betting market could become there.
