Is sportsbetting totally different?

[AceMaster]

I know that obviously the market is different and the payout is probably % of losses, but what I am wondering is if the same basic principles apply. Create a site with some valuable info and SEO the heck out of it, etc. I would think that sportsbetting fans would really want to find good tips on what to bet on and they would stick around someone who was right a lot. Anyone know? This might be a good way to get some extra income coming in.

[kingcobra]

Well I don't have a sportsbetting site although I do promote it a bit and it's an area I do know a fair bit about.

First in terms of getting paid the default is percentage of losses which will work best for losing players but you have to realize that this is a game of skill and there are players who are positive EV at this. I've always had positive results over time for instance and there's quite a few good cappers who do. Now Joe Blow may not be very good but if he's buying good plays this isn't going to be the ideal situation. To make matters worse if you're selling plays yourself and promoting the affiliate deals for the betting sites on the side, then if your picks work you will run in the red on the side and if they don't well you'll make a bit on the side but lose all your customers

So what you may want is deals where you get a percentage of the action and I have some of those. I've had a sports betting service on the side for a long time and have never had time to put the work into it, and it's not the picks I need it's getting rated and all this other crap that takes the time, not to mention all of the other things you need to do here, but it's on my to do list.

SEO is SEO though and if you're good at it with poker than that's great preparation for anything else really. It's a competitive field to be sure although poker is as well and if you can do well at one I expect you should be fine with either.

As for getting the subscribers well there's a lot of different approaches to that although as a rule people won't pay for something unless they can see it's going to work, and with capping it's not just the money they spend for the picks that they are worried about, they also will be putting their own roll on the line here too so they tend to be on the careful side. This is why you need a good rep, and some creative marketing ideas to go along with it. I can't spill all the beans in terms of what I plan on doing but to get you started, look at what the successful places do and you'll be on the right track. If you have the imagination to go one up on them all the better.

In terms of just an information site well that could work fairly well but in the end you're giving them some free stuff that you could probably get paid for if you know what you're doing, and if you don't then the stuff isn't worth reading anyway Still though that's not a bad place to start and later on when you get a following you can look to expand the thing.

[Randy]

If you live in the USA, then sportsbetting is totally different from poker in one respect: it's clearly illegal because of the Wire Act. Even if you have a different opinion about the legality than I do, you should be aware that promoting sportsbetting has a risk factor far beyond promoting poker.

[kingcobra]

Originally Posted by Randy

If you live in the USA, then sportsbetting is totally different from poker in one respect: it's clearly illegal because of the Wire Act. Even if you have a different opinion about the legality than I do, you should be aware that promoting sportsbetting has a risk factor far beyond promoting poker.

That's interesting Randy although offering advertising on your site for sportsbetting or even selling sportsbetting advice isn't the same thing as taking wagers which would be required to run afoul of the Wire Act. There are tons of sportsbetting sites hosted in the U.S. and I don't believe any of them are concerned about the legality of it, as it's seen in the same vein as poker or casino sites which are essentially for information purposes only

As is always the case though you know when you're in trouble here and it's when they start knocking on other people's doors but there's no knocking going on and the government has more than enough to do going after the betting establishments themselves without bothering with informational sites even if there were a strong enough basis in law to do so.

[Randy]

I think the operative phrase is "aiding and abetting".

[kingcobra]

Originally Posted by Randy

I think the operative phrase is "aiding and abetting".

Well you have betting and then you've got abetting

Well if you're seeing this as aiding and abetting then I guess it's possible others may as well, although the term is usually applied to a more active role in "participating in a crime." If you're worried about this though you can just throw in some disclaimers like a lot of sites do, to the effect that they are advising visitors that gambling may be illegal in certain jurisdictions and they are to be advised of that and act accordingly, much the same as the 18 and over stuff. The larger gambling information sites already do this, including poker, and on the advice of their legal counsel.

With the internet being world wide you're going to get visitors from a lot of different countries and just having the stuff there doesn't mean you're encouraging anyone to participate in gambling where the law would prohibit it, and the onus is on the visitor to determine what laws apply where they live already and to take them into account. Smaller sites don't bother since there's no actions happening with it and thus the risk is miniscule and if they did decide to harrass affiliate sites then they could reevaluate then.

I'm from Canada which I guess is the gambling aiding and abetting capital of the world but I can at the same time appreciate how Americans must feel with all this crap going on down there, and folks are going to want to stay within their comfy level, but at the same time you don't want to sell yourself too short either from a business perspective. Keep in mind that the U.S. DOJ still considers the Wire Act to apply to all forms of gambling including poker and is the basis of their latest shakedown, and it wasn't sports betting money they froze here, it was poker money.

There are often differing opinions avout this stuff though and I always look forward to hearing yours Randy and I guess it's just two different points of view here and I'm sure that plenty of people will agree with you, I just like a good debate