As it tries to become a known player in the emerging sports-betting TV space, NBC is turning to a longtime wagering staple for its\u2026<\/b>
\nAs it tries to become a known player in the emerging sports-betting TV space, NBC is turning to a longtime wagering staple for its next venture: the Kentucky Derby.
For this weekend, NBC is adding an online betting program that will appear on its website, NBCSports.com, and its app.
It is another preview of where the future of sports on TV is going. With seven states having legalized gambling, NBC Sports has added the 30-minute show, \u201cNBC Sports Bet: Derby Special\u201d at 5 p.m. on Saturday as a digital companion to its regular TV coverage.
\u201cWe want to become a known destination and a known player in the space in 2019, for sure,\u201d Dan Pozner, NBC\u2019s director of sports betting content, told The Post this week.
What Pozner and other networks are trying to do is figure out the future of TV. Fox Sports has its own daily afternoon talk show with \u201cLock It In,\u201d as does ESPNews with \u201cDaily Wager.\u201d
NBC has launched \u201cPick \u2018Em\u201d games for its Premier League and golf coverage. On the regional level, it has experimented with betting-focused alternative broadcasts for the Washington Wizards and the Philadelphia 76ers.
On Saturday, Ahmed Fareed will host the NBCSports.com show. The program will have many guests and will feature Eddie Olczyk, the former Ranger who is NBC\u2019s chief handicapper. Olzyck, as compared to the regular broadcast, will have expanded time as he tries to match his success from last year, when he picked the top three finishers.
The idea is to give the latest information prior to bettors deciding where to put their money.
\u201cThat is one thing I\u2019m going to ask all of our announcers \u2014 I give you 10 bucks, how can you make $100?\u201d said Billy Matthews, the program\u2019s producer.
At this point, all the new sports gambling shows are noteworthy, but one day it seems inevitable that it will just be a regular part of viewing.
\u201cNow there is such a movement of the acceptance of sports betting and it becoming much more mainstream, there is more of an appetite for it,\u201d Pozner said. \u201cWhy not lean into more in a sport has always been part of it and is inherent?\u201d
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