Monopoly versus competition and player value

In the US they call it antitrust.   In Australia they call it Fair Trade.  Europe has the European Community competition law, as laid out in the EC Treaty.

Indeed most developed economies around the world have some form of law discouraging the existence of monopoly product or service providers.  There are very compelling reasons for this – chief among them is consumer protection.

Nothing drives value quite like healthy competition.  The old axiom, when sellers compete, buyers win applies to most markets. And in the absence of competition an even older Latin axiom applies…Vos have haud alius bene iam sinus super quod occupo vestri ankles (you have no other options, now bend over and grab your ankles).

Betting markets are no exception.

The gambling exception

Curiously, a number of governments like to make an exception to competition policy when it comes to gambling, seeking to protect local monopoly operations by enforcing  a closed market.  It’s a common policy across Asia and even in Europe, where the EC is pushing for a single open online gambling market, Germany, Greece, Sweden, the Netherlands and until very recently France, have taken this approach.

The loser of course is the player.  For any given event, are the odds offered to a Dutch punter by de Lotto as good as those offered by the best priced book maker in the broader market? Unlikely. This is the question Right2bet have been putting to European policy makers for a little while now in their quest for as they put it, ‘EU citizens right to choose’.

Testing value for players – the world cup odds exercise

To highlight the monopoly versus competitive market effects on player value Right2bet have been undertaking an interesting exercise during the world cup.  They’ve been compiling odds offered on world cup games by a range of bookmakers across Europe, with a view to comparing how the monopoly operators stack up against the free market operators.

Results will be released at the end of tournament but in a recent press release they have said that so far customers who use monopoly sports betting operations are around 20% worse off.

We look forward to the full report!

To join the petition for open EU betting market click here.