GMB – What exactly does DataFactory do?
Ernesto Cambursano – To summarize, we can say that we have people in their countries, in their homes, watching football matches and uploading information about what happens, how a certain player kicked the goal, each pass, where the ball entered, etc. With this data, our company, which is 20 years old, provides the media market with information and widgets that allow them to publish tables, heat maps and everything that happens in a match or with a player. We have around 150 media outlets in Latin America as clients, who work with this data. That information, a few years ago, is also with bookmakers we work with, and they can use our content for marketing strategies.
Is it a rich product, since with such information bookmakers can define odds and also reach the bettor, right?
Yes. There is an important opportunity. The betting market is maturing and it seems very interesting to see how this reaches the bettor from the information of a match. There are large investments in t-shirts and advertising on the streets that are enriched along the way with real data from a match, a player or a team.
So you are already working with bookmakers?
Yes, we are already in Colombia, Mexico, Argentina and Peru. We have a strong presence in Spanish-speaking countries and now also in Brazil. We are interacting with bookmakers so that they can provide their marketing strategies with our content. We are learning a lot from this experience, as previously our business was geared more towards the media. Now, we are looking to reformulate our business to be something that generates engagement with the bettor.
What is the main differential of your product for the sports betting market?
We don't compete with the big global providers of sports data, but in Latin America we are the company that has the best content in the region, including Brazil, with more depth of data and also covering second, third and fourth division tournaments. The big difference is that we are from the same region and we speak with the region. This allows us to work very closely with bookmakers and meet local needs with a local eye.
How has this work been developed in Brazil?
Brazil is the market where we have the least presence. There are already DataFactory's own resources working in 10 of the 27 Brazilian states. These are people who are at home following the matches and producing their own local content for state, second division, junior and women's tournaments. We are doing initial work with big media and bookmakers. We are already with TNT Sports (Esporte Interativo) and with some sportsbooks. Our objective for the next 24 months is to finish consolidating the best product for Brazil and, along the way, to expand our relationship with Brazilian players in the sector.
Source: Exclusive GMB
