PointsBet hires Foxwoods veteran Young as innovation chief
Melbourne-based PointsBet has bolstered its US expansion plans by hiring Seth Young as its new chief innovation officer ahead of the company's full launch in the country later this month.
Young (pictured) is the former executive director of online gaming at Foxwoods Resort Casino in Connecticut.
From 2013 to 2016, he served as vice-president and chief operating officer of Flower City Gaming, where he oversaw the development of the Star Fantasy Leagues brand. He also held the role of strategy director for TexasHoldem.com between 2005 and 2009.
PointsBet said that Young will “spearhead new market entry and brand identity” across the US as the company attempts to gain a foothold in the country, with New Jersey serving as the starting point.
“I’m joining a team of very smart, highly experienced, extremely creative people, and a company that controls its own technology,” Young said.
The company has established offices in New Jersey ahead of launching online and mobile sports betting by the end of November through a partnership with Meadowlands Racetrack.
Earlier this month, NFL American football legend Darrelle Revis was recruited as a brand ambassador for PointsBet’s sportsbook, while earlier this week, PointsBet entered into a multi-year agreement with EML Payments to provide branded, reloadable card programmes in New Jersey.
Meanwhile, pending legislative authorisation, PointsBet will also work with Tioga Downs casino in the state of New York.
PointsBet USA CEO Johnny Aitken told iGamingBusiness.com in July that the US had been the company’s primary focus “from day one”. He said that Australia had served as “a proof of concept for us to get our Points Betting and sportsbook capabilities tuned up to execute at an optimal level when the market here [in the US] finally opened.”
He added that the company’s Points Betting product, which will offer a “distinct point of difference” in the US market, “is like spread betting in the UK, but the scoring mechanics are far more suited to US and Australian sports than it is in the UK with soccer”.
He also said that the North American NBA and NFL major leagues already represent just under 30% of the company’s handle.