Action Network and the $240 million second screen

A basketball team can win and still disappoint the person watching it. The scoreboard says victory; the point spread says otherwise. For a bettor, the game has a second plot, running alongside the one on television. Action Network built its business for that plot. Its subject is the difference between knowing a sport and understanding the market attached to it. That distinction helped make a sports publishing company worth $240 million to a buyer.

Three ingredients, one second screen

The origin is unusually practical. In October 2017, The Chernin Group combined Sports Insights, FantasyLabs and SportsAction. Each brought a different instrument: betting-market data, fantasy modeling, and an app for scores, odds and tracking. Chad Millman came from ESPN to lead media. The company could build on tools people already used, then give the numbers a voice.

There is a useful product lesson here. An article answers a question once. A tool can accompany the reader through the next decision. Combine them and the relationship changes: the publication becomes somewhere to work as well as somewhere to read. Action Network’s subsequent website and app put that proposition in a bettor’s pocket.

The customer needs a price, not another cheer

A casual user can check scores, read picks and follow experts. A more committed bettor can compare prices, watch line movements and track wagers across sportsbooks. Daily fantasy players have a related need: assembling lineups from projections rather than sentiment. The common problem is scattered information. The injury update, expert opinion, available odds and personal record rarely arrive in one neat parcel.

Action’s combination sits between conventional sports coverage and the operator’s betting interface. Covers offers picks, statistics and betting tools; Oddschecker emphasizes price comparison alongside coverage. Action’s particular proposition joins those activities to a personal ledger and social feeds. Its advantage is the arrangement of capabilities. None of these ingredients, considered separately, is a monopoly.

The ledger matters because memory is a dreadful accountant. A dramatic win makes a fine dinner story; ten ordinary losses are less sociable. Tracking creates a record against which that story can be checked. The company’s large cumulative tracking figure suggests repeated use, but it cannot tell us how many subscribers pay or whether those users earn a profit.

Who pays for the second screen?

There are two commercial relationships. Readers pay for additional research. Operators can pay for customers referred through commercial links. The free product therefore serves both a potential subscriber and a potential sportsbook customer. A single useful visit can belong to either relationship.

PRO adds projections, betting signals, money percentages and premium analysis. Labs goes further into customizable research. Its published subscription page lists $69.99 weekly, $249.99 monthly and $1,499 annually. Those prices, checked in October 2026, make the audience distinction plain: Labs is a research purchase for someone who intends to use its tools repeatedly.

The affiliate model also creates a tension worth keeping visible. A publisher may help someone make a more informed decision while benefiting when that person proceeds to an operator. Action says its editorial analysis is independent of commercial partnerships. Its published policy treats betting as entertainment, rather than income. Readers should assess the analysis and the commercial invitation separately.

“Our consumers are passionate golf fans”Patrick Keane, then CEO, on the GolfBet partnership

A funding round is not a sale price

In February 2019, Action raised $17.5 million in Series B financing led by Fertitta Capital, with The Chernin Group reinvesting. Better Collective completed its $240 million acquisition in May 2021. Capital to develop a business and money to buy its shares are different things. At announcement, the buyer expected Action’s 2021 revenue to approach $40 million - a forecast, rather than a reported result.

Distribution partnerships carried the offering into other audiences. An MLB agreement announced in June 2021 included articles, live programming and appearances by Action talent. The PGA TOUR collaboration created Golfbet in 2020; the TOUR brought that brand in-house in 2023. A partnership announcement is the opening chapter of a relationship, not a promise about its permanent shape.

The pick now comes with a shortcut

Playbook, launched in September 2025, addresses a smaller annoyance. Someone posts a pick on X or Discord. Rebuilding it inside a sportsbook requires finding the right market and, for a parlay, repeating the exercise. The bot can turn text or a screenshot into a pre-filled slip link. The user then reviews it at the operator.

The screenshot feature is free to use, but convenience has conditions. A cropped image can omit a leg; a blurry one can obscure it. A price can move before the link opens. Unsupported markets need manual entry. The useful achievement is reducing clerical work. It does not establish that the original pick was sensible.

The borrowed audience problem

A documented pressure point appeared in distribution. Better Collective’s 2024 report said Google’s policy on third-party commercial content hurt rankings and audiences for some media partnerships. That was a group-level problem, not evidence that Action’s app had failed. Its 2025 report emphasizes AI products and more direct monetization: a shift toward doing more with the audience and technology it controls.

The copyable idea is to join information to a recurring task. It works when the data is dependable, integrations are available and readers have a reason to return. It becomes less useful when a market is unsupported or a subscription exceeds the value of someone’s actual use. Action’s newest shortcut leaves the important pause intact: before confirming the slip, look again at the price.