Peter Staples talks to Betfair CEO, Tim Moore-Barton, about Betfair’s new pricing model:
Tasracing has welcomed a decision by Betfair to lower its commission rates on Tasmanian racing.
As a result, it will be cheaper for Betfair’s customers Australia-wide to bet on Tasmanian racing compared to NSW or Queensland racing.
Tasracing chief executive officer Dr Eliot Forbes said the company had worked closely with Betfair in a variety of ways since its arrival in Australia and was confident the lower commission rate would deliver a good outcome for Tasmanian racing through increased wagering activity.
“We know that Tasmania’s closed participant pool combined with market-leading digital form data products already makes Tasmanian racing appealing to Betfair’s sophisticated customer base,” he said.
“We see strong potential for increased demand flowing from the new lower commission rate.”
Betfair chief executive officer Tim Moore-Barton agreed that the changes would likely result in increased wagering activity on Tasmanian racing.
“Our customers are very price sensitive and this change will turn attention to Tasmanian racing away from the more expensive states,” he said.
“In addition, Tasracing deserves credit for being forward looking and innovative with digital products like StrideMASTER that delivers unique biometric and in-depth form data for Tasmanian thoroughbreds.
“Data like this resonates very well with our customers.”
From 7 July, a commission rate of six per cent has been applied on all racing codes in Tasmania.
This is down from 6.5 per cent.
Meanwhile commission charged to customers of Queensland and New South Wales exchange markets has increased from 6.5 per cent to eight per cent.
The change is reflective of the fee structure Tasracing applies to Betfair – a structure strategically designed to maximise wagering revenue growth.
Mr Moore-Barton said the new differential rates across states demonstrated Betfair’s commitment to offering attractive low-margin products for the sophisticated segment of the wagering market, rather than this money leaking to illegal offshore operators.
Go to the Betfair website
Go to Tasracing’s Punters’ Dashboard