The Best One Yet - 🧑‍🤝‍🧑🧑‍🤝‍🧑 “Lines are evil” — Clear’s line revolt. Zynga’s biggest game ever. New York’s sports bet.

Episode Date: January 11, 2022

You may be standing on a line right now… but there’s now a revolution to kill the line. Zynga was just acquired in one of the biggest video game deals in history, because Profit Puppies aren’t Loss Llamas. And New York State just legalized sports betting apps — so we’ll tell you the dirty secret about clean sports betting apps (hint: It’s the costs).$DKNG $PENN $YOU $ZNGA $TTWOGot a SnackFact? Tweet it @RobinhoodSnacks @JackKramer @NickOfNewYorkWant a shoutout on the pod? Fill out this form:https://forms.gle/KhUAo31xmkSdeynD9Got a SnackFact for the pod? We got a form for that too:https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1FAIpQLSe64VKtvMNDPGSncHDRF07W34cPMDO3N8Y4DpmNP_kweC58tw/viewformLearn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This is Nick. This is Jack. And this is Snacks Daily. It is Tuesday. Tea Boy Tuesday, January 11th. Stocks fell again. That's kidding. Okay, real store here.

Do you have heat yet? Because you were out of heat. What's going on over there? Something with the fan and the furnace is broken. I still don't have heat. It's like the Oregon Trail over there. I'm relying on the fireplace. Snackers, it is literally under zero degrees in Vermont.

Jack doesn't have heat. I slept in a car heart and two pairs of socks last night. This guy's like a bun in the oven, but without the oven. Fortunately, Alex and Wilder aren't here, but we better get some heat. Meantime, this pod's the best one. It's a TVO-I. Jack, what's the first story? What do we get? Grand Theft Auto and Words with Friends are now step-siblings. Zinga is getting acquired by Take 2 in the biggest video game deal in video game history.

For our second story, clear, secure, just made an acquisition to kill the line. Yeah, Jack and I noticed there's actually an unspoken war against the line that you're waiting in right now as you're listening to us. not. Yeah. Please, we hope you're not. Third and final story, the Empire State of What's the line on the Giants' Bucks games? We're just kidding about this.

Giants, their season is over. But New York State just legalized the sports betting out. But before we hit that wonderful mix of stories. A wonderful mix for a T-Boy store. You've heard of the term McMansion. They've been around a few decades. McMansions, the homestead are so absurdly big,

it's absurd. If the listing says a dozen and a half bathrooms, is that 13 or 18 bathrooms? I mean, Jack, why have a bathroom? room when you can have a bath hall. New thing. BBC noticed the mini mansion, the micro mansion, a little large house. It's a micro mansion. It's a paradox. It's kind of like jumbo shrimp or like big baby. Because there's usually a correlation between the size of the house and the niceness of the house. Yes, there is, Jack. The bigger the home, the better the amenities. Many mansions,

though, they have big home design, big home style, big home amenities. It's a micro mansion. Micro mansion is a trend. They have kitchens that have a golden faucet. But, Jack, the faucet is also the shower. The living room sofas from restoration hardware. But it's a food town. The house does have a master bedroom with a view. But it's the only bedroom.

And it's the only view. And it's beautiful. Minimalist high-end homes are booming right now. Yeah, it turns out there are two and a half million Instagram post hashtag tiny house out there. And none of them have 2.5 million square feet. Oh, Jack, can we talk about the newest show on Netflix right now? Tiny House Nation, which means it's officially a trend. That's the name of the show.

Oh, and by the way, Snackers, Elon Musk just sold his California mansion. Now he's micromancing. It's a verb on a Texas prairie. Arovoix. Big Chateau. Say peace to the Palazzo. The cool new thing is living in a fancy van down by the room. But it's with a chandelier and a bidet.

Hey, Nick, I'm having a mini mansion party. Do you want to come? It's just going to be you, me, and my hamster, because that's all I can fit. Jack, let's hit our three tiny stories. You're tuned in the Snack. Daily. We spoke to the lawyers and we got to get something legal out the way. It snacks about to hear anything. It's air candy. They don't reflect the views of the robberhood family.

It's all informational just so. We're not recommending any securities. It's not a research report or investment advice. Not an offer or sale of a security. Snacks is digestible. Business news for you. Robberhood Financial, LLC, member FINRA slash SIPC. For our first story, video game publisher, Take 2 is acquiring Zenga? They're acquiring Zenga?

Turns out words with friends is the profit puppy. Yeah, it is. Grand Theft Auto is the Lost Lama. Okay, first of all, Jack, didn't grow up in a video game family, so I had to, like, sneak over to my buddy J.B's house. I had a Sega Genesis. The Barbers had a Super Nintendo. You got to go to the Barbers for the Sega Genesis,

and you got to play Grand Theft Auto from Take 2. Take 2 is best known for Grand Theft Auto, Which, if you've ever played, you're run around a city breaking things until either the cops catch you or your character dies. Your mom knows you played this and she's not happy. Now, Take 2 is about to make the biggest video game acquisition ever. $13 billion. Wait for it. For Zinga?

We repeat. Zinga is getting bought in one of the biggest deals in video game industry history. Yes, it is. Zinga. It's basically like the jaggings of video games. was cool in 2010. Had a moment for a hot second in 2010. We remember covering the IPO in 2012.

The stock fell 85% at one point that year. Zika is like wearing socks under your sandals. But there are some classic Zinga games. For example, Jack, words with friends. Most academic thing you did senior spring 10 years ago. Also, a Zinga game, Jack, Farmville. My virtual harvest is bigger than your virtual harvest. But then Facebook changed their algorithm and so people stop playing words with friends and

Farmers. So we thought, Nick and I, just looked at the app store. Words with friends, like three different versions, they're all in the charts. Zinga, they've also got poker now and CSR racing. That's Zingka. Farmville is still huge, too. Small company, but they're putting out some big games.

So, you know, you're thinking, how is Zinga now selling for the biggest number in video game history? It was in the right place and the right time. Exactly. Mobile games. Yeah. Snackers, thanks to the pandemic, mobile games are the fastest-growing segment of the entire video game in this. Now, when I was playing at the Barbers, Nintendo, it was a two product activity playing video games. It was.

You needed both the physical console and the video game that you blow into. Jack, you needed the Game Boy to play the Game Boy game. And you needed the PlayStation to play the PlayStation game. Mobile gaming, though, it's basically a zero product activity. Yeah, because, Jack, you already have the iPhone to play on. Now you just download the game to play. Wild stat about the video game industry. Consumers now spend more time and money on mobile games than they do on console and PC games combined.

Combined. And your time on the couch mid-pandemic supercharged that scroly-tappy mobile game and green. You were ready, player one. So, Jack, what's the takeaway for our buddies over in the video game industry? If you see a profit puppy deal, there's probably a lost llama somewhere too. Snackers, take two's biggest game. Grand Theft Auto. We mentioned it before.

my mom's still judging us for us even saying this. It isn't mobile. It's the one that requires a PlayStation or an Xbox or a PC to play. So Grand Theft Auto is part of the gaming industry that is losing market share. Well, Take 2 splurged a whopping, get this, $265 million to make the latest Grand Theft Auto game. That's more than a Scorsese movie. So Grand Theft Auto is part of the gaming industry that costs a lot more to develop. So facto, Take Two's top game is the most expensive, least Luke.

of part of video gaming. Higher cost, lower revenue. Take two's crown jewel. It's a lost llama. So Zinga stock, it jumped over 40% yesterday on this acquisition news. Their games aren't lost llamas. They're shockingly the profit puppy kind. Because behind a profit puppy deal, it's probably a lost llama.

For our second story, clear, they just made an acquisition to kill the line. Crush the queue because the next frontier of convenience, It's crushing the queue. Snackers, you want a COVID test lately? Good luck. You're blocking off half your day to wait online. PCR tests. Oh, that's going to be from 12 to 4 approximately.

Jack, you're like camping out like it's a sneaker drop. You can only scroll so much. Jack, someone is waiting online right now. A snacker listening to this pod and they're like, yeah, there's only so much Nick and Jack I can listen to all day. $4 billion clear, though. They just made an acquisition to end all this brutal wait. Yeah, clear.

You know, Clear. They are the biometric company, best. Yes known because you see them at the airports at the TSA checkpoints, right, Jack? You have Clear and your buddy doesn't. It's officially a race to gate 14C. They're skinning your eyeballs and they're getting you through that airport. According to Axios, Clear Secure just acquired a Latin American startup called Wiline, which produces line killing soft.

And YLine's clients are airports, restaurants, clothing stores, basically places where there is waiting. Yline creates a digital line. And you can pick the time slot that's yours instead of like physically having to stand there to prove that the time slot is yours. Hey, I've been here for three hours and I'd like to speak to the manager. Instead of that, the app's going to let you pick a time, 218. And then they'll warn you, they'll say like there's a few people in front of you, make sure you're up there at 218. Go get us angry and then come back to shop at Sephora. So Nick and I are looking at this story.

We're like, what is a line? A line is basically, it is a bottleneck in the customer journey. It's a pain point before the purchase. So we're thinking killing the line is really the next frontier of convenience. It could actually help sales to destroy the line. Not just that. During the pandemic, the line isn't just inconvenient. The line is unhealthy.

Yeah, new twist in the saga of the line snacker. Standing online right now, it is now a health risk. Even if you're outdoors, you're basically breathing on Becca while you're waiting in line. One cough, and there's a line freak out. So before you make a purchase these days, there's another. reason you might just bail and leave instead. Yeah, Snackers, new barrier facing the consumer, you're thinking, is the value of this slam and salmon sweater worth the chance of getting sick while waiting on a 10-minute line at

Abercromb? I'll tell you, I wish the DMV would start using Y-Line. Yeah, instead of like take a number, sit for two hours until your call. Pick your appointment time. We'll keep you updated. You don't have to wait in this building looking at your card and then looking at the numbers up on the screen. In the meantime, no more waiting.

Jack, what's the takeaway for our buddies over? at Clear and the entire line industry. There is a quiet, unified rebellion in business against the line. Yeah, Snackers, the restaurant reservation? That's actually the OG line killer. If you want to book a table at eight, you get a reservation at eight, and then you show up at eight. You don't have to get there an hour early.

But here's what Jack and I find fascinating about the line situation these days. We're seeing a wider variety of software that does the waiting for you. It eliminates the weight. It finishes the friction. It kills the line. We are seeing a tipping point of the destruction of the line in business. It's a revolt against the line and it's happening over in doctor's offices. Jack, what's going on over there?

They're using software to space people out. So there's only one person in the office at a time. Instead of like trying to grab the magazine that the other person has while they're waiting. Kill in the waiting room is another way to kill the line. Jack, how about drive-thru? Drive-through gives the app users at Taco Bell skip the line privilege. If you order on your app, they'll ping you when it's your time. your food's ready.

And Jack, remember we were in New York the other month? Amazon just opened that Just Walkout store in New York City. If there is no cashier, there can't be a line behind the cashier. So no one industry has declared war against the line. And yet, it seems like they all have. For our third and final story, first of all, they fix your heat yet? Your microphone is turning blue. It's the coldest night of the year in Vermont.

Again, thank goodness Alex and Water, don't get here until tomorrow. But for our actual third story, just in time for the NFL. playoffs. New York State has legalized sports betting. Great timing. Too bad, there's a dirty secret about the costs of clean sports betting. Okay, Snackers, we got to go back to May 2018. The Supreme Court case heard around the blackjack table. The Supreme Court allowed states to legalize sports betting if they want. Not just Nevada. Not just Nevada. Over New York City, we got two football teams. They've both been horrible since that Supreme Court rule. They really have. So just in time to see both the Jets and the Giants not playing anymore because they ended their

abysmal seasons, New York State has kindly legalized mobile sports betting. So you can care about other teams. Funny thing, though, New Yorkers have already been using sports betting apps over in New Jersey. Yeah, just like the Giants and Jets, fans have been slogging their way through the Lincoln Tunnel passing that line made out of, you know, tiles that says New Jersey. You know what I'm talking about. You know what I'm talking about. And making it over to New Jersey.

They're heading over to Jersey. Because everything's legal in New Jersey. According to our buddy Polly, not our buddy Timmy. Turns out New Jersey is number one in the union in terms of money gambled on sports last year. Vegas, you can sit in the back. We're not interested right now. No, seriously, New Jersey was number one. Nevada was number two.

But Snackers, here's what Jack and I find fascinating about the sports betting situation. It's a Carmen San Diego situation because they are filling in a map aggressively. Growth in sports betting. it's not from like innovation or new products. It's from just new markets getting legalized. For example, California and Texas are about to legalize sports betting apps too. They're basically coloring in the sports betting math. If we're coloring in states, Nick, the rest of the world is totally blank in terms of legalization. Absolutely. That wild stat we found from the United Nations,

$1 trillion is wagered annually on sports betting worldwide. And how much of that is legal? Just 4% of that is legal sports betting. That's it. just that little amount. So if the betting apps can figure out how to legalize all that illegal gambling, that's a huge potential new market for them. So Jack, what's the takeaway for our buddies over in sports betting apps? Dirty secret about the industry, there's some really high costs.

Yeah, Snackers, Draft Kings, their stock fell 53% in the last 12 months. And Penn National Gaming, same situation. Running a sports betting app has some surprising costs. Jack, can we talk about the tax situation, on? Betting isn't as visey as it used to be, but it's still a vice. And vices get taxable. Get this, New York State, they drop a 51% tax on online sports gambling. 51%. And there's tons of competition. New York expects to have nine apps offering the same sports betting by the Super Bowl this February. And all that competition means sports betting apps. They got to drop these huge signing bonuses to get you on all these sports betting apps.

$500 of free cash after you make your first wager with draft kings. You got the Rangers, you got the Islanders. Here's $50 to just chew something. The market for sports betting is huge, but so are the costs to running one of those apps. Jack, can you and your frozen limbs whip up the takeaways for us over there? Zenga just got acquired by Take 2 Interactive. Words with Friends, that's a profit puppy. Grand Theft Auto, that's a lost llama.

For our second story, Clear Secure, just acquired an app that will wait in line for you. Snackers, there is a quiet revolt against the line. Don't cut the line, kill the line. For our third and final story, New York State just legalized sports betting apps. And the dirty little secret about clean sports betting really high costs. Now, time for our snack fact of the day. This one's actually a correction sent in by NOR from lovely Bethesda Maryland. Water, like H2L.

Great stuff. It's two hydrogens and one oxygen for each molecule. Now, it's not one hydrogen and two oxygens, which is what Jack and I said on yesterday's podcast. Now, we're not scientists, actually, but I think there's a correction of this correction, because liquid death, it's a thousand hydrogens and a million oxygens. Yeah, Jack, I'm looking at the ingredients here. It's a bazillion hydrogens. And they threw in some, like, extra nitrogen just for the heck of it.

Snackers, you look fantastic today. And if you are waiting on a line right now, which may be you, a real life person, send us a pick of like whatever line you're on because it's trying to be killed. Share your misery with us because it won't be for long. It's the end of the line for long. the line. And before we go, happy birthday to Lizzie Horvitz from lovely Cleveland, Ohio, the terrace on the lake. And happy birthday to Josh Conlin from Seattle. And Jonathan Segal over in Portland, Oregon. And Dia from Salem, India. Oh, and Jack, congrats to Cole Bennett, who just

started a new job over at Goldman Sachs down in Dallas. And equal congrats to Carla, who's quitting her toxic job in Austin, Texas. There we go, Carla. And Uma, you, and Ma Nau, happy two-year anniversary over in Toronto. And to anyone else celebrating something today, make it a T-boy. Kill the line. Celebrate the wins. This is Jack. I own stock of Netflix and Clear Secure.

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