As legacy sportsbooks struggle with ‘search and click’ fatigue, Josh Swerdlow, Founder and CEO of ChatBet, says the next industry titan will win by owning the conversational intent layer where billions of users already live.

Why is the current sportsbook UX struggling to keep up with modern tech?

It comes down to legacy debt. Current sportsbook apps are just digital spreadsheets – grids from the 1990s that have been optimised for desktop and not mobile-first intuition. With the majority of sportsbooks, users are forced through deep menus and endless scrolling, creating a “hurdle race” for every transaction. This leads to cognitive overload – while hardcore bettors might tolerate the clutter, casual punters encounter analysis paralysis and this usually leads to betslip abandonment. As user behaviour shifts from “search and click” to “intent and fulfilment”, and against a backdrop of spiraling acquisition costs and high levels of churn, this is really putting the squeeze on operator profitability and ultimately long-term sustainability.

What do you mean when you say we are moving from “search and click” to “intent and fulfilment” and what does this mean for online sportsbooks?

In a “search and click” world, the user does the heavy lifting – navigating deep menus and grids just to find a single market. “Intent and fulfillment” flips that script. It’s the shift from a user searching for a bet to simply commanding it. If a consumer can book a five-star hotel in Rome by sending a single text, they naturally expect to back their favorite team with the same level of ease. For the operator, this means the sportsbook evolves into a high-powered back-end utility – the engine – while the messaging interface becomes the front-of-mind “steering wheel”. By moving away from the friction of standalone apps and capturing intent directly within WhatsApp or Telegram, operators stop being a destination the user has to find and start being a conversation the user is already having.

How does conversational betting actually chance user behaviour and crush the conversion funnel?

Traditional betting can take between 10 to 12 steps and up to 60 seconds – a solution like ChatBet reduces that to a single text or voice note and ten seconds or less. It also shifts the player from architect to director – instead of manually building complex parlays by scrolling through 50+ toggles, the user simply asks the AI to “Build a safe 3-leg parlay for the United game” and then confirms the wager. The result? Data from a ChatBet pilot shows an 82% drop in time-to-bet and a 28% increase in conversion rates.

From an operator’s perspective, is this a rip and replace of the current technology or is it much easier to implement than that?

Conversational betting solutions such as ChatBet are an orchestration layer, not a replacement. Our solution literally plugs into existing APIs. This also helps from a regulatory and compliance perspective, with core functions such as KYC, wallet management and responsible gambling triggers remaining securely within the operator’s existing stack. This allows for overnight modernisation – operators can update their UX for the “TikTok generation” without the multi-year cost of rebuilding their entire core tech.

Why is intent data now considered the ultimate competitive moat?

It’s about context over clicks. Traditional trackers show where the user clicked but conversational data reveals exactly what they want in their own words. Then there’s the network effect – every interaction trains the AI on local slang, fan sentiment and individual patterns and preferences. This provides operators with an insurmountable defence. A competitor can copy your odds, but they cannot easily clone a refined, high-context relationship with millions of users.

Why is this a billion-dollar venture-scale opportunity right now?

Viral distribution. Conversation betting piggybacks on billions of WhatsApp and Telegram users to allow operators to solve the skyrocketing customer acquisition cost crisis they face. There’s also the retention advantage, with messaging-native users showing a 35% higher day-30 retention rate because the interface is “always on”. What’s more, chat-based betting allows for “nudge” technology and lower-friction, smaller-stake engagement, which aligns with 2026 global regulatory shifts toward safer play.

Predictions markets are throwing the sports betting industry into chaos. How does conversational betting help traditional operators get in on the action?

Prediction markets are exploding because they tap into the “stock market of everything” but for traditional operators, these markets are often too complex to display in a standard grid and too intimidating for the average punter to navigate. Conversational betting bridges this gap by acting as a natural language translator for complex binary contracts. Instead of forcing a user to decipher order books or probability curves, a chat interface allows them to simply trade on their opinions, like the weather or political shifts, as easily as sending a text. Because chat has “unlimited shelf space”, operators can offer an infinite array of niche markets without clogging their app’s UI. Ultimately, it turns prediction markets from a niche financial product into a social, real-time experience, capturing “hot takes” in WhatsApp or Telegram and instantly converting them into priced, compliant transactions.

If this shift is as inevitable as you say, what is the one thing legacy operators need to do right now to avoid becoming the ‘Blockbuster’ of the betting industry?

They need to stop thinking about their “app” and start thinking about their “API”. The battle for the customer has moved off the home screen and into the chat thread. Right now, the opportunity is to be the first mover in the conversational space – to own the “intent layer” before it becomes the industry standard. The winners of 2026 won’t be the ones with the loudest marketing, but the ones who make placing a bet as easy as telling a friend who you think will win.

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Franco Digital, the Spanish iGaming provider, has been named as a finalist in the Slot Supplier (Over Five Years) category at the upcoming EGR B2B Awards 2026, recognising long-term excellence and sustained innovation within one of the industry’s most competitive segments.

The shortlisting reflects the company’s successful transformation from a legacy land-based manufacturer into a digital-first supplier with a strong footprint across regulated markets in Europe and Latin America. It also highlights its ability to consistently deliver commercially relevant, locally resonant content at scale.

Over the past year, R. Franco Digital has accelerated its content strategy with titles such as Strange Spins, Genie Triple Bonanza, Diamond King Gorilla, Luxury Blast and 40 Super 7 Hold and Respin. These releases have reinforced the company’s position in key regulated jurisdictions, supporting growth across both established European markets and high-potential LatAm regions.

Beyond game design, the nomination recognises a broader strategic evolution: a focus on building a scalable, technology-led ecosystem. Through its IRIS platform, R. Franco Digital delivers high-performance, mobile-first experiences with integrated promotional capabilities designed to enhance engagement and operator efficiency in regulated environments.

Javier Sacristán Franco, International Business Director at R. Franco Digital, said: “Being shortlisted in this category is a strong validation of our long-term vision. It recognises not just individual game performance, but the consistency of our strategy over time, evolving from a traditional supplier into a technology-driven partner for regulated markets.

“Our focus has always been on building sustainable value through quality content, strong localisation and robust technical foundations. This nomination belongs to the entire team behind that transformation.”

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Impressive win potential boosted by dual bonus offering with Super Bonus Game access and a studio-first six Bonus Buy options

Playson, the accomplished digital entertainment supplier, strikes with Rhino Coins: Hit the Bonus. The thrilling addition to its popular series offers four dynamic Bonus Game levels, Sticky symbols in the Main Game and the chance to unlock five jackpot tiers.

At the heart of the action lie two Bonus Games, with the Coin Bonus Game triggered if six or more Bonus Coins, or any combination of Bonus Coins with Jackpot, Collect, Mystery or Mystery Jackpot Coins land on the reels. In an intriguing twist, if a Super Bonus Coin lands as part of the combination, the Coin Super Bonus Game is unlocked with the action unfolding across an expanded 5×5 game field.

During both the Coin and Coin Super Bonus Game, each Bonus Coin that lands displays a multiplier value of up to 9x. Three respins are granted at the beginning of each round, with each symbol that hits resetting the respin count to three. Bonus play comes to a close once the respins run out or all the cells are filled, where all of the symbols’ values are added before the Total Win is applied.

In a similar vein, the Rhino Bonus Game is triggered if six or more Rhino Symbols, or their combination with any Jackpot or Mystery Rhino symbols, land. If a Super Bonus Rhino appears, a Rhino Super Bonus Game is also triggered, which benefits from an expanded 5×5 grid and 20 paylines.

During both Rhino Bonus modes, Multipliers can randomly appear as well as Mystery Rhino symbols which are revealed at the end of the feature, transforming into either Rhino or Jackpot Rhinos in a boost to winning returns.

Any of the Rhino and Coin Jackpot symbols can land on the reels during the Bonus or Super Bonus Games, with fortunate players who fill the bonus grids in their entirety benefiting from the Grand Jackpot win, or the Royal Jackpot from either Super Bonus Game, standing at an impressive 15,000x.

Turning attention to base play, the Rhino Power Feature further intensifies the action. A random Mystery, Super Coin or Super Rhino Symbol can be selected which triggers the feature, adding enough symbols to activate the corresponding Bonus Game.

In a studio-first, six graded Buy Bonus options have also been introduced, with the Coin Super Bonus Game and Rhino Super Bonus Game guaranteeing Jackpots and more Multipliers.

Stampeding onto the scene, Playson’s dynamic new release underlines the supplier’s expertise in advancing its portfolio with exciting twists, developing fresh concepts for operators’ players to enjoy worldwide.

Anton Ivannikov, CPO at Playson, said: “Rhino Coins: Hit the Bonus represents another step forward in how we approach feature-rich gameplay, combining layered bonus pathways with strong win potential.

“By introducing dual Bonus Games, Super Bonus access and our first-ever six-tier Bonus Buy system, we’ve created a release that offers both variety and depth, giving players multiple ways to engage with the experience.”

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