Business Profile: RotoPlay
Company: www.RotoPlay.com
Launch date: September 2001
Became full-time operation: September 2002
No. of employees: 3
Short-term fantasy games are increasingly available these days. RotoPlay has been doing them since 2001. Founder Korey Gardner took some time out to talk with FSB.com about his company’s history and future in the fantasy market.
1) Right at the top of the homepage, RotoPlay says it is “Fantasy Sports with Attitude.” Why so angry? No, seriously, where does “attitude” come in?
Being one of the first short-term fantasy contests on the market in 2001, we always felt our games were more intense and exciting than season-long contests. Customers pick their players and within a short time frame, they know if they won or not. That approach and excitement level is what led us to “Fantasy Sports with Attitude”.
2) What makes RotoPlay unique?
We’re unique in that all of our games are short term based and have been since 2001. We also have some of the most unique and innovative games in the market. Our Bowl contest, 8-Team Dash for Cash (NCAA Basketball), Bracket Mania and Frenzy contests all offer a fresh approach to fantasy sports players.
3) What was the impetus for RotoPlay’s creation, and what did you offer at the outset?
I have played sports all my life and fantasy sports since 1992, so starting a fantasy sports business made a lot of sense. Initially, we offered just our two-week football and baseball frenzy contests and that’s what started it all. We eventually added additional games, such as the ones mentioned above, each year.
4) What kind of startup costs did you face, and where did the initial capital come from?
The biggest start-up expenses, without question, were web programming and marketing. I think most fantasy sports companies will tell you those are the two biggest capital costs when starting a new site. Our initial capital came from myself, friends and family.
5) How did you go about building the profile of RotoPlay in the early days?
We did plenty of advertising in fantasy sports magazines as well as buying member bases from companies that did not make it in the industry. We also partnered on some ideas with several sites like SportsBuff.com and Rotowire.com.
6) What were the key factors that made your site an attractive asset for the 2006 purchase by IGC Entertainment?
IGC was very interested in entering into the fantasy sports space and approached us about an acquisition. Their core business was gaming, so they felt RotoPlay’s short-term contest approach was a perfect fit for their existing customers.
7) What has changed under the new ownership?
New ownership updated the technology and web design of RotoPlay. We made few web design updates since launching in 2001, so it was needed. In addition, IGC changed some of the entry fees and prize pools to match their customer profile.
8 ) It doesn’t look like there’s any advertising. Can you please describe the site’s revenue structure?
Our revenue structure is based solely on entry fee monies for the contests. We decided early on that we did not want the site cluttered with advertising. That is a decision that may be revisited in 2009, as multiple industries have approached us regarding advertising on RotoPlay, and that is a revenue stream we may decide to explore.
9) How concerned should Rotoplay be about the recent expansion in the area of shorter-term fantasy games? What, if any, changes are on the way to differentiate your site from competitors in that space?
It’s always something you need to watch. We have seen many short-term companies come and go over the years, so we really only concern ourselves with what medium to larger companies in our industry are doing. If they launch concepts similar to RotoPlay, we look to see what competitive advantage we can provide customers that they can’t. For example, we double our prize pools when certain entry levels are met and/or cap the number of entries per contest so customers have a better chance of winning. Our 2009 strategy, described below, also addresses how we plan on growing in the future and providing customers with more incentives and money.
There are plenty of changes coming for RotoPlay in 2009. We will be launching an affiliate program where folks can earn great commissions just by referring people to RotoPlay. The concept is similar to what many gaming sites use for affiliate promotions. Players will get paid on their customer’s entry fees and/or winnings at the site. So if a customer has 10 people he referred to RotoPlay who spent a total of $2,000 in the month, he/she will earn up to 15% ($300) on their play.
Next, we’re launching a fully insured, million-dollar bonus program for all of our games. Customers can win a share of $1,000,000 when they correctly select a determined amount of group (player) winners for a contest. For example, our one-week football frenzy contests have 18 groups per contest. If a customer correctly selects 16 or more of the 18 group winners (player scoring the most fantasy points in his group), they would win $500,000. If a person referred the person that won the bonus, they would get $500,000 as well, so you can see why it will pay to refer more people to RotoPlay in 2009. We had someone correctly select 15 of the 18 group winners back in 2005, so we have been very close. We want someone to hit this bonus, so we’re looking to lower the number of groups needed to win as low as the insurance company will allow.
Lastly, we have several innovative and unique contests we will be launching that will be new to the industry. We think people will be very excited when they see the new games and format.
Tags: fantasy sports, fantasy sports business, fantasy sports industry, igc entertainment, korey gardner, rotoplay, short-term fantasy games
