Transversality in the Entertainment and Technology Industry

Hugo Llanos, regional director at Altenar, began his presentation during the conference entitled "Operator + Supplier. Strategy for a winning formula", referring to the transversality that exists in this sector, as it connects various actors within the industry. He referred to the case of “Sebastián Salazar of Prontopaga, who are in the payment methods area. In my case, for example, with Altenar, I am on the supplier side. We have the case of speakers who will present later, who are operators, and/or regulators. Each brings a unique perspective to the industry.” 

Llanos has vast experience in the industry. He started in 2007 creating quotas and working as a bookie and trader, on the trader's side. This initial experience gave him a deep understanding of the dynamics of the industry and the needs of the players. Over time, his career evolved and now "I am with Altenar, which is a sports betting platform, only sports; and I am on the provider side".

At the opening of his presentation, Llanos shared his experience from both the operator and supplier perspective, highlighting the importance of creating synergies between the two roles.

During his presentation, he explained in detail the basics and the fundamental structure for running an online business in the sports betting industry: "You need a PAM, a Player Account Management, a user account management platform," he said. "This PAM is where the other payment providers, or product providers, as in the case of Altenar, affiliate providers, marketing providers, etc. will be integrated. So, you're going to have the operator, you're going to need a PAM and all the other content is going to go into that PAM."

He also highlighted the existence of two main approaches to setting up this structure. "You can have a complete solution, a company that has a PAM and in turn has all the products you need to be able to operate. And you can be a company that is a PAM and that PAM integrates third parties. Both options are fine," he said. 

Llanos raises the possibility that for a company that is just starting out in the field, that is a startup, it is much easier: "it has a single contract with whom to work and with whom to talk and everything is already done and it takes a white label package, a white brand and that's it, and it operates," he explains. In contrast, if a company already has a certain robustness and size, it may have more bargaining power with third parties or own its own PAM: "then it may be convenient to simply integrate other suppliers around that," he added.

In the case of Altenar, Llanos mentioned that the company integrates with a third party PAM to provide the service to the operator. He explained that the operator is the one who faces the end user, is in charge of marketing, and assumes the risk of the bets. "The operator is the one who accepts the risk. He takes the bets, the bets that win he pays," he stressed.

The operator must define his risk appetite, i.e. how much he can bear in case a player wins a bet. Llanos stressed the importance of trust in this process as follows: “when a user is new, he deposits, places the bet, and if he wins, he withdraws it on the spot. Because he doesn't know us as an operator yet, he doesn't know if we are going to keep the money, if we are going to pay him or not. We are working on that trust.” Then, once the user trusts the operator, he is more likely to leave the money in his account for future bets.

Customer service is also a crucial responsibility of the operator, according to Llanos: "It is usually the operator who takes care of that customer service. It can be done through a call centre, chat, or mail, depending on each operator's strategy".

From the provider's perspective, choosing the right one involves a thorough analysis. Llanos mentioned several factors to consider, such as compatibility with the target market, speed of payments, error resolution, infrastructure, and flexibility. "The flexibility part is also very important," he said. In addition, he stressed the importance of licensing, especially in regulated markets.
He also re-emphasised the importance of communication and collaboration between the operator and the provider: "It's not like I'm going to come in and say, well, this is going to be your limit, this is going to be what you have as a product," he said, and continued: "It has to be a conversation. We have to be allies. We have to be partners," he said.

Product differentiation is another key aspect mentioned by Llanos: "Operators need to be able to customise their offer and tailor promotions and products to their local market. It is transversal for everyone. But the important thing is that the operator can have that voice," he said.

Finally, Llanos stressed the need for constant and effective communication between all departments and parties involved. "Communication between departments that goes in line with what I was telling you about having one person in charge," he said, recommending a centralised point of contact to handle all operator needs and requests.

He concluded his presentation by stressing the importance of trust and mutual collaboration for success in the sports betting industry: “trust is very important, not only within the team, for everyone to do their job, but also between the operator and the supplier”.