Los Alamitos Wagers On Remote Betting
By JENNIFER BELLANTONIO
Los Alamitos Race Course is gambling on a dialing-for-dollars strategy.
The 51-year-old quarter-horse racetrack now gets about 5% of its bets from phone- and Internet-based betting systems, which Gov. Gray Davis OK’d for California in January.
The racetrack, looking to replace lost revenue because of dwindling attendance, has spent more than $125,000 to construct a new outdoor TV studio,complete with lights and a broadcast desk.
The move gives Santa Monica-based Television Games Network, which broadcasts horse racing over cable and satellite TV to about 8 million households, a place to broadcast live each night at Los Alamitos. New programming started on April 19.
“We believe the broad exposure of our product will repay us many times over,” said Jeff True, director of marketing and simulcasting at Los Alamitos.
Bettors can now bet the ponies using the Television Games Network Web site, or phone an 800 number to place their wager. The network also has licensed its betting system to Woodland Hills-based Youbet.com Inc. for online bets.
True said Television Games Network has become one of Los Alamitos’ biggest off-track sources since phone and online betting was approved in California.
“Television Games Network has become 5% of our total handle,” which is about $1.3 million in bets daily, True said. “We expect that number to double by the end of the year.”
Los Alamitos already had been simulcasting, which lets fans in other states bet on Los Alamitos’ races. But California hadn’t given the green light for Internet or phone betting, which already was legal in 10 other states.
The network also signed a two-year pact with Fox Sports Net West and Fox Sports Net West 2 to provide two hours of live racing daily from Southern California.
The added exposure is a welcome turn for Los Alamitos, which has seen crowds at the track fall off in the past few years.
True said he hopes to leverage the attention to lure people back to watch live events.
“Much like the NFL and NBA or other sports, horse racing will use television to expand awareness, involvement and familiarity with the sport, which has been out of touch with the mainstream sports enthusiast for some time,” he said.
Still, online betting is no quick fix for the sport.
“Because off-track revenues are slightly less than on-track revenues, racetracks may have a short-term downturn,” True said. “Ultimately, we think that broad distribution, especially in a large market like L.A., will enable us to achieve higher handles with more people.”
True said that the approval was “a major step for horse racing” as California represents 25%,about $4 billion annually,of all U.S. wagering on horse racing.
The Television Games Network has also signed deals with the Hollywood Park, Del Mar and Churchill Downs racetracks.
