Betfair Reports Strong TVG Performance

In its fiscal year financial report filed June 17, parent company Betfair reported a strong year for its U.S. advance deposit wagering operation and racing channel, TVG.

The company said that in the year ended April 30 TVG enjoyed a 20% increase in revenue compared with last year (based on constant currency comparison).

"TVG continues to outperform the wider U.S. online horseracing market and during the year it became the largest U.S. online advance deposit wagering operator by market share," Betfair reported. "TVG's continued investment in its broadcast, digital, and marketing capabilities is driving growth in its active customer base."

Betfair reported that TVG completed its acquisition of racing channel HRTV in February and agreed to long-term broadcasting and wagering rights with track owner The Stronach Group. That deal saw Betfair US initially pay $25.6 million for HRTV and an estimated $47.8 million over seven years for content rights, though that figure is dependent on TVG's future pari-mutuel handle.

Betfair said the present value of the total consideration is estimated to be $56.5 million.

"We believe the integration of the two networks offers significant benefits for U.S. racing customers, chiefly that the combined network will now be able to show over 40,000 live races, compared to 27,000 previously," Betfair noted in its year-end report.

Betfair reported that TVG's growth helped fuel a 140% improvement in earnings to $7,536,000. Betfair attributed the improvement to reduced losses as part of its multi-year investment in its online New Jersey Casino and strong revenue growth at TVG.