NEW DELHI, India – On Tuesday, KhiladiPro, a rapidly expanding fantasy sports platform in India, revealed its plans for a significant market expansion, which coincided with the record-breaking user numbers during the international cricket season. The platform disclosed that it had surpassed the 5 million mark for registered users and that the number of active users daily had gone up by 40% in the last quarter.
The company’s plan for expansion is to include setting up businesses in three new states, presenting fantasy games for two more sports, and deploying the new user experience and game fairness AI-powered features. In an exclusive interview, CEO Anil Sharma reiterated that the platform is responding to the tremendous demand from India’s sports fans who are rapidly going digital.
“The way Indian sports fans are interacting with their favorite games is changing radically,” said Sharma. “Our user growth is 25% more than what we had anticipated this quarter, especially during the T20 international series. We have seen a 60% increase in contest participation as compared to the tournaments of last year.”
KhiladiPro Expansion Coincides with the Most Successful Fantasy Sports Season
The time of KhiladiPro’s market expansion moves jointly with what the industry experts are calling a highly successful fantasy sports season of late. The platform achieved a record of more than 1.2 million users at the same time during last weekend’s India-Pakistan T20 match, leading to what was termed the biggest fantasy sports contest ever in India.
“We have never seen such engagement metrics in the past,” said Priya Verma, KhiladiPro’s Product Development Head. “On the platform, users were active for an average of 47 minutes during the live matches last week, and there has been a 75% increase in the number of teams for premium contests. The data is very clear that fantasy sports have become an inseparable part of the new cricket viewing culture.”
Multi-Sport Strategy Wins Support
Though cricket is still the main reason that platform users are active – generating nearly 70% of all contests – KhiladiPro’s move to other sports is starting to bear fruit. In particular, the platform’s football department has expanded its base by 85% since last year, during the European league championship. The user demand for other sports such as kabaddi and basketball has encouraged the company to add these two sports to its portfolio next month.
“The multi-sport strategy is essential to keep the platform growing football seasons,” said Market Analyst Rohit Desai of SportsTech Insights. “The timing of KhiladiPro entering into regional sports with the pro-kabaddi league resuming is spot-on. They are not just a cricket fantasy app but becoming a complete sports platform.”
Technical Innovation and Security Features
KhiladiPro is making several technological improvements as part of its growth plan. In addition to upgraded AI algorithms that enable rapid detection and prevention of fraud, the platform is also improving data encryption for financial transactions and providing real-time analytics for a better user experience. The company plans to spend ₹50 crore on its technology infrastructure in the coming six months.
“We are putting a lot of money into making our platform the safest and most convenient one for users in the market,” said CTO Rajiv Menon. “Within seconds, the new AI systems we have installed are able to locate suspicious activities. Also, during periods of heavy traffic, we have managed to cut the server response time by 300 milliseconds. These changes are important for the continuation of user trust in situations of high-stakes tournaments.”
Technological Innovation and Security Enhancements
KhiladiPro has planned various technology-related upgrades as part of its expansion program. To mention a few, they are planning to implement cutting-edge AI algorithms for the identification of fraudulent activities in the account and their prevention, they will upgrade the encryption used for the financial transactions, and they will have real-time analytics for the benefit of the customers. Over the next six months, the company is going to spend 50 crore on the development of the technological infrastructure.
“Making our platform the most secure and user-friendly in the market is what we are investing in heavily,” said the CTO, Rajiv Menon. “Within seconds, our new AI systems can detect suspicious activities and we have shortened the server response time by 300 milliseconds even at the peak traffic period. These upgrades are really important for ensuring the users’ trust during the high-stakes tournaments,” he further added.
Also check:- Ola Electric Greenlights ₹1,500 Crore Fundraise
Industry Context and Future Outlook of KhiladiPro
India’s fantasy sports market has seen a meteoric rise over the last few years and is currently estimated to be worth more than 150 billion. The timing of KhiladiPro’s expansion is perfect considering that the states are in the process of setting up regulations for online gaming, which in turn, would nudge the industry towards maturity.
“The regulatory environment is getting more and more defined which will facilitate sustainable growth,” said Sharma. “In addition to ensuring compliance, we are encouraging and facilitating responsible gaming practices by interacting with regulatory bodies,” he added.
The firm is planning to have a workforce of 200 people with the primary goal of technology development and with other areas including customer support and market operations. Apart from that, KhiladiPro is putting efforts into the initiation of the learning process for their customers so that they can understand not only the gaming strategies but also the principals of responsible gaming.
The analysts are of the opinion that the fantasy sports market will be able to keep up with the rapid expansion it has experienced, mainly because there is still a lot of room for smartphone usage and digital literacy to grow in the inner parts of the country which are referred to as tier-2 and tier-3 towns. Therefore, KhiladiPro’s timing could not have been better for them to take advantage of the vast potential that lies in this market segment.
“As the digital infrastructure gets better in these smaller cities, we’re pretty sure that fantasy sports activities will no longer be the privilege of a few but the participation will be democratized,” said Mr. Desai. “Those platforms, which are ready to provide regional language support and do the localized marketing at this point, will be ahead of the game when it comes to the next phase of market growth,” he added.
KhiladiPro is getting ready to unleash fierce competition in the Indian fantasy sports sector coming summer of the cricket world cup and the presence of multiple international sporting events in the next few months. The firm has been keen on congratulating themselves on their launch in the fresh markets by adding their special tournaments and increased prize money. This gesture is reflecting how much they are willing to invest to win a bigger share of the digital sports entertainment market in India which is rapidly evolving.
Website: [www.khiladipro.com]
