DraftKings.com Makes Power Move – Buys DraftStreet.com

News broke on Tuesday that DraftKings had acquired Draftstreet. Users of both sites were informed by simultaneous e-mails.

DraftStreet users were informed, “As of today, we are very pleased to announce that DraftStreet has been acquired by DraftKings, a fellow leader in daily fantasy sports. DraftStreet has been an overwhelming success, surpassing all of our expectations when we started the business, and we owe that to you, our loyal players. Many of you may be familiar with DraftKings, so you already know both sites have plenty to offer, and we believe that combining all the best features of each will result in a great experience for all our players.”

DraftKings users were informed, “We are very pleased to announce that we have acquired DraftStreet as part of our long-term vision of continuing to bring our loyal customers the very best in daily fantasy sports.”

This takeover will see the user base of DraftKings rise by nearly 50% and added to this the site will now offer increased prize funds in their Legends Series with a $3.3 million fund and a $1 million first prize.

DraftKings did have a workforce of around 50 people before the merger, but this will grow to around 85 employees after the takeover. DraftKings also plans to hire several more software engineers and project managers by the end of the year.

Though the takeover will mean there is a new super power in Fantasy Sport, it will mean that there will be a little less choice for the Daily Fantasy Sports players. DraftKings and DraftStreet did take slightly different approaches to Fantasy Sport, with contrasting dynamics when it came to point structure on every sport, so for regular players on DraftStreet it may take some adjusting to. However, Jason Robins, the CEO of DraftKings has assured users that the site will incorporate the best of both the sites. “In the end what players should see is a combination of both sites,” Robins said. “It’s not going to happen overnight, but the goal is not to just bring the users over, it’s to bring all the elements of DraftStreet.”

What does this mean for the Daily Fantasy Sports Scene?

How this move will affect the overall Daily Fantasy Sports Scene is open to question. With the NFL season fast approaching, this is a critical time for the industry and traditionally a time when firms will experience their highest amount of new sign ups. The merging of the second and third sized sites in the industry will present a fascinating rival to number one FanDuel and industry insiders are wondering if this acquisition might open the market for another firm to test the dominance of the new big two.

[scg_html_weeklyfantasyfootball-draftkings]