Bookmaker shareholders explore potential £200m sale of SIS
Shareholders in Sports Information Services include Fred Done, the UK Tote and Entain’s Ladbrokes.
UK.- It’s been reported that the live betting content provider Sports Information Services (SIS) is exploring a potential sale. Sky News has reported that Oakvale Capital, a specialist in advising sports and gaming businesses, has been brought in to sound out interest in a sale that could reach around £200m.
SIS shareholders include Entain’s Ladbrokes, Caledonia Investments, William Hill (now owned by 888 in Europe), Betfred founder Fred Done and the UK Tote. It’s been reported that there is strong interest in the auction from financial and strategic bidders.
SIS describes itself as “the leading supplier of 24/7 betting services to retail and online operators globally… [providing] betting operators with… content with an end-to-end solution of live pictures, data, on-screen graphics with betting triggers and a wide range of markets and pricing to drive betting revenues”.
Founded in 1986 as the Satellite Information Service, SIS was the first provider to broadcast live racing to betting shops in the UK and Ireland (before that only live audio commentary was broadcast, while a “whiteboard man” transcribed the shows and results. The company went on to launch The Racing Channel in the UK in 1995.
In 2015, its satellite news-gathering business was spun off as SIS Live Limited. This was then bought by Nep Group in 2018 and rebranded as NEP Connect.
As well as broadcasting horse racing and greyhound racing around the world, SIS has been building a presence in esports and broadcast channels for sports including greyhound racing. The current CEO is Richard Ames, former CEO of the toy company Hornby.
UK Tote Group seals deal to expand North American horse racing offering
The UK Tote Group has entered into an agreement with content distributor 1/ST Content to expand its pool betting coverage for North American horse racing. It’s already made win, place, exacta and trifecta offerings available to Tote customers, resulting in $43m in bets on the Pegasus World Cup.
