Bullet business.com

30.09.08

Mfuse signs deals with William Hill and Sky Bet

Mfuse has signed a three-year deal to provide mobile betting services to William Hill. It has also signed an agreement with Sky Bet, the sports betting arm of BSkyB, to develop with Sky Bet a new mobile sports betting service.

For William Hill, the initial offering will be a sports betting service for mobile Internet set for launch later this year. It will utilise Mfuse’s mobile provisioning and transaction technology to provide the majority of the functionality found online, including complex bet types, in running betting and credit/debit card deposit and withdrawals. The Mfuse platform will be linked directly into the existing William Hill back-end system.

The new service will enable William Hill to attract new users, who can sign up directly through their mobile without needing to go online.

Mfuse will also provide a downloadable Java version of the service early in 2009, allowing consumers to take advantage of live in-play betting. This services will allow consumers to react immediately to moving odds/prices.

For Sky Bet, the service will be available from the fourth quarter of 2008, accessible via mobile and as a downloadable Java service.

Mfuse estimates that it will process well in excess of £150 million of sports bets through its mobile interface in 2009. The mobile gaming market is estimated to be worth £500 million in bets placed in 2008.

Mfuse was chosen by Sky Bet owing to its experiences in producing a mass market and robust solution. “They also work with most online bookmakers and understand Orbis Openbet, the software that Sky Bet runs on,” said Richard Flint, Managing Director of Sky Betting and Gaming.