Part 1: Results from the first quarter
The NDC growth at Better Collective was also
is because of the long tail of “loyal players which
impressive quarter-on-quarter, up 52% from continues to generate future revenues”, making it
76,000. It is a growth path which suggests that if more suitable for communities.
the momentum continues into the second quarter
“There is a clear element of skill in sports betting,
the company could well surpass Catena Media as making it suitable for interactions and tips sharing
the largest listed affiliate by quarterly NDCs. between players,” the analysts added. “The sports
betting vertical is also more accepted by gambling
Proportion of revenues from revenue
share
However, the issue with looking purely at NDCs
authorities, and there are several large operators
willing to lobby for online sports betting.”
Hence, in part the differential between Better
as a key metric is that it comes with no certainty Collective and Catena Media can be explained
of quality of customer. Hence, it is worth looking by way of the former’s greater focus on sports
at the percentage of revenue gained via revenue- betting compared to the more online casino-
share arrangements as a potential proxy for focused Catena Media (where 41% is sport and
long-term sustainable revenue prospects. In 53% is casino).
this sense there is again a clear divide between
Moreover, Catena also noted that CPA deals
Better Collective, with 72% of total revenues are far more common in the US, so it might be
coming from revenue share, compared with 44% wise to temper the enthusiasm for the higher
at Catena. The only other affiliate that comes percentage of revenue-share business at Better
close to this percentage is GIG’s media services Collective considering its recent acquisition in the
unit with 57%, though with in-house sign-ups US market.
amounting to 13% of the total business, it might
Sweden
not be the truest measure.
Analysts at Redeye in Stockholm said in a recent
The debate around regulated and unregulated
coverage note for Better Collective they believe markets – about revenue sustainability and what it
the quality inherent in revenue-share arrangements means to be grey in the affiliate space – has been
means that the company deserves a higher multiple brought into sharp focus by the opening of the
than any CPA-based business. This, the team wrote, Swedish market in January this year.
Sweden has been a foundation market
for many of the listed affiliates. For instance,
Chart 1: Better Collective’s focus
on sport
Catena Media has built up a substantial Swedish
and Scandinavian presence over a series of
acquisitions, including the deals for Wonko Media
Other 2%
in March 2016, Spelbloggare.se in July the same
year, Slotsia in February 2017 and Newcasinos.
Casino 20%
com in May that year.
So the less than auspicious opening in the
Swedish regulated market will have been
disappointing to Catena, even as it has tried to
spin the poor opening months as being a long-
term positive.
“For the long term we expect this will prove
Sports betting 78%
Source: Company reports, Redeye
iGaming Business • Affiliate Monitor • August 2019
beneficial for us,” the company said in its results
statement. “Since operators will need even more
players, there should be even higher demand
for our services. Additionally, with Swedish
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