On Wednesday, daily fantasy got its first look at the “deep integration” between ESPN and advertising partner DraftKings that was referenced when the companies announced their partnership last month.
In a cross-promotional move, DraftKings announced Wednesday that the ESPN League Manager player with the highest score in its Week 1 Millionaire Maker contest will claim $1 million to split with the members of their ESPN fantasy league.
The DraftKings tournament, which was announced last week, has a guaranteed prize pool of $10 million—the largest in daily fantasy history—with $2 million going to the overall winner.
The promotion marks the clearest evidence yet of the ad deal struck between the two companies. The agreement calls for DraftKings to spend $250 million in advertising with ESPN over the next two years and buys DraftKings exclusive daily fantasy advertising rights on ESPN’s various platforms.
Depending on the depth of the integration, the exclusivity aspect of the deal has the potential to make a profound impact on DraftKings as it jostles for top billing in DFS. Interestingly, it would seem the Millionaire Maker promotion would have more potential to drive DraftKings users to ESPN season-long fantasy games than vice versa.
Amaya entry into DFS delayed?
On Wednesday, Dan Cypra, Editor-in-Chief at PocketFives.com, dropped some interesting hearsay on Twitter regarding Amaya’s anticipated launch of a daily fantasy platform.
From what I’ve heard, PokerStars is likely building its own DFS product. Might not be ready for NFL season.
— Dan Cypra (@cypradn) August 5, 2015
Makes sense. Amaya, the parent company of PokerStars and Full Tilt Poker, said in March that it planned to enter the DFS space in time for the coming NFL season, but has since softened on that goal. If it does not intend to acquire an exisiting operator, time is running short to build its own product in time for a Week 1 launch.
American Gaming Association to talk DFS at expo
ESPN Chalk reporter David Purdum tweeted Wednesday that daily fantasy will be on the table when the American Gaming Association holds its Las Vegas Expo next month.
The specific panel topic: “Business Threat or Opportunity: Daily fantasy.”
So, that should be interesting. DFS has been in the crosshairs of gaming and casino operators in Las Vegas recently, prompting Nevada Gaming Control Board chairman AG Burnett to initiate a legal analysis into daily fantasy last week.
Related/unrelated: The daily fantasy industry is lawyering up.