👉 Background: TAB was originally founded back in Victoria and NSW in the 60s as the OG bookie in Australia. It became the Tabcorp in the early 90s when it listed on the ASX. But Tabcorp's market share has been absolutely SMOKED over the past decade after Sportsbet, Ladbrokes, Betr, Bet365, Neds and other online betting agencies have stolen a huge chunk of market share.

👉 What happened: Now, Tabcorp’s new CEO, Gillon McLachlan, the former AFL boss, has just announced the launch of new in-play betting product in the TAB app. And, clearly Investors loved it because Tabcorp's shares jumped nearly 10% on the news that had built a competitive edge over its competitors.

👉 What else: The new feature allows TAB punters to bet live via the TAB app - which is actually illegal in Australia - but TAB has a little loophole which has got the tick from regulators. The plan is to roll out this new feature at 2 TAB venues begin but then across the whole of NSW venues shortly.

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What's the key learning?‍

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💡While regulation can often slow down companies, it can also protect your turf if you use it wisely. In fact, roughly 54% of gambling turnover in the US is from in-play betting. But in Australia, Tabcorp earns just 4% of its revenue through in-play betting.

💡In Australia, regulators have limited the ways that a punter can bet on live sports. No mobile apps or websites can be used for live betting. That means punters can only bet live through a call centre, in person or on physical terminals to limit impulsive gambling. And given Australians are the world’s biggest gambling losers per capita... it kinda makes sense.

💡Tabcorp has physical venues and physical terminals, where it’s legal to do live, in-play betting. This new feature allows customers to bet on their phone and tap their phone against the terminal — which is technically…supposedly… legal. So, Tabcorp just turned its run-down venues and chunky old terminals into a competitive edge and investors are loving it.