Dream11 making a 'hard pivot' to sports entertainment space: CEO Jain

Dream11 is shifting from fantasy gaming to a second-screen sports entertainment platform, betting on ads and paid shoutouts to creators, CEO Harsh Jain said, after the Centre's ban on real money games

Sports technology platform Dream11 is pivoting from the fantasy gaming space to becoming a second-screen sports entertainment platform, allowing fans to connect with creators, co-founder and chief executive officer (CEO) Harsh Jain said.

 

What is Dream11’s new second-screen model?

 

The company, which has over 250 million registered users and about 30 million monthly active users, is betting on monetisation through ads and paid shoutouts to creators through the second-screen experience.

 

A second screen enables viewers to engage with their choice of sports content creators, either through a chat option or a collaboration on live-streamed video.

 

Why is Dream11 pivoting away from fantasy gaming?

 

The pivot comes after the Centre banned all forms of real money games (RMG) this year, including fantasy sports, ludo, poker and opinion trading, among others.

 

“We are moving away from the whole gaming piece altogether. We are pivoting hard. We want to enter the sports entertainment world and continue being a second-screen sports entertainment platform,” Jain told reporters during a press briefing.

 

How will creators earn on Dream11’s new platform?

 

The company has taken around 25 creators on board as of Thursday and plans to scale this up.

 

Jain said creators on the Dream11 platform would enjoy a “lion’s share of the revenue”, with the firm earning through a small platform fee. It also plans to introduce an ad-free premium version in the future.

 

What does Dream11 expect for ARPU in India?

 

Dream11 said its research shows a monetisable opportunity for a second screen abroad of about $10 per user when it comes to spending on virtual items. In India, it can be as low as $0.1.

 

“Where we lack for ARPU (average revenue per user), we make up in scale. That is the one advantage that we have as Dream11 is that we already have 20-30 million people coming to play free-to-play fantasy sports,” Jain said.

 

What safeguards and staffing changes has Dream11 made?

 

He added the platform is open only to those aged above 18.

 

“Just to keep our users safe and to be on the right side, we’re starting with 18+. We are age-gating the app. We have just started this content side and built moderation tools,” he said.

 

After the RMG ban, the company reorganised its workforce to operate across different group firms with no layoffs. Jain said Dream11 has a headcount of around 200 people to operate and develop the second-screen platform.

 

About 1,000 others are working across portfolio companies such as fintech platform Dream Money, Fancode, Dream Sports AI, open source initiative Horizon, Dream Set Go, Dream Sports Foundation, and Dream Cricket.