Key Points
- Better Collective has launched Prediction Pro as a paid subscription but if you read the fine print, it basically says you can’t pay for it yet.
- Prediction markets have been driving a crazy rise in North American revenue for the group, doubling it to €5m in Q2 this year.
- Prediction Pro compares prices on Kalshi and Polymarket, and the company makes some cash from the operators behind prediction markets.
A Paid Product That You Can’t Pay For Yet
Better Collective has a bit of a mystery on its hands. They’ve just launched a paid prediction market service, just two weeks ahead of the US midterms vote. Sounds like a great idea but the fine print has a rather odd note: It’s not yet available to pay for.
The official announcement of Prediction Pro came out on 19th October but get this it says that nobody can actually pay for the thing just yet. It seems like a rush job. The service compares prices on Kalshi and Polymarket. It covers all sorts of topics sports, politics, economics and entertainment and comes with a load of extras forecasting tools, daily expert analysis, tracking of analyst trades, a newsletter, and a Discord community.
The Danish sports media group says you can get it on its own or as an add-on to Action Pro, Action Network’s existing paid tier. There’s a special Midterms 2026 hub that’s been set up which pits model-based odds for House, Senate and governor elections against live market prices.
The co-founder and co-CEO Jesper Søgaard reckons it’s a natural fit for the business. He said “We already connect audiences with prediction markets across our media brands and Paid Media business.” This time round, he says “it’s an opportunity for us to reach new audiences, serve a broader range of interests and build deeper, more meaningful relationships with our users.”
But Wait The Fine Print Has A Twist
Those new relationships may be a while coming. The Prediction Pro terms of use say that you don’t have to pay to get in, that the site doesn’t charge, doesn’t offer user accounts and doesn’t process payments. Yet. Paid subscriptions are “something that may come later” apparently. And when I looked at the terms on 22nd October, there was a load of template text left undone including a bracketed space that said where the company name should go. Both the Tools and Articles sections were just labelled “soon” and not a single price was listed anywhere.
Now, none of this is necessarily shady, I suppose. But it does look like a paid subscription was announced before the website could actually sell one. And with the midterms just round the corner, it’s pretty clear what the rush is all about.
Why Does Better Collective Need This to Work?
Better Collective had an incredibly tough two years as per the SBC Americas report from March. Its full-year 2025 revenues dropped by 9%. This came after a North American downsize near the end of 2024 that resulted in losses of over 300 jobs.
The prediction markets have since been shining a light in the darkness. As per the Q2 2026 interim report of the group, revenue share, talent-led media, and prediction markets were drivers of growth in North America. The region’s EBITDA margin was lifted from 5% to 26%.
In the earnings call, the management of the group mentioned that North American CPA revenue grew 50% compared to the previous year, reaching €5m. The prediction markets have been the major driver, although the figure of €5m includes all North American CPA revenue and not only the category. Partner agreements in prediction markets are cost-per-acquisition based; thus, each depositing customer becomes revenue right away.
The group began the year 2026 collaborating with one US exchange but now collaborates with two. As per Søgaard, even more players are expected to enter the market raising acquisition costs further. “We expect the competition that we’ll face in the second half of the year will directly impact the financial performance of our business,” he stated.
Money is Being Spent on Event Contracts
It becomes quite clear why there are so many businesses interested in the event after volumes are taken into consideration. Per Macquarie’s figures cited by Casino.org, US prediction market taker volume can hit $187bn in 2026 compared to roughly $22bn last year.
Mostly taker volume represents retail traders taking prices from professional market makers. In the same report, the entire industry volume in September reached $20.1bn, showing an increase of 1,079% year-on-year. When talking about the business generating profits from sending people to a platform, numbers like those cannot be ignored.
Europe Draws Harder Lines
Regulators on the other side of the Atlantic are taking a very different view of the same explosive growth. On July 16th 2026, France’s gambling authority stepped in and ordered the Polymarket website to be blocked. They claimed that the homepage, which keeps showing real-time odds, is basically a major channel for pushing an unauthorised gambling operation.
That line of thinking is something that anyone running a business built around displaying prices should take note of. Prediction Pro hasn’t run into any similar action and, as you might expect, French law doesn’t apply to a product that’s focused on the US. Still, the French case is a reminder that some regulators out there see showing off odds as essentially a form of promotion in itself.
We’re seeing other countries go their own separate ways. The SiGMA report on enforcement in Spain and the Netherlands notes how Spain launched a probe into Polymarket and Kalshi in May and even put in place provisional website blocks. Meanwhile Dutch regulators went after Polymarket to recover a €420,000 fine.
But the Brits are taking a more nuanced view. Back in February the Gambling Commission put out a prediction market guidance saying that depending on the business model, the current products would be considered betting intermediaries. “That’s exactly what the betting intermediary gambling licence is there for”, the regulator wrote. And they also gave a warning that any firms operating without a licence shouldn’t be targeting British consumers.
And if that wasn’t enough, there’s even financial regulation to grapple with. Back in July 2026 ESMA put out a statement that said that event contracts that qualify as financial instruments fall under national binary options regulations. And those regulations prohibit selling them to retail clients.
Harm Warnings Grow Louder at Home
Here in the United States the conversation has shifted more towards the harm that these prediction markets might be causing. A recent Harris Poll for the National Council on Problem Gambling found that 85% of Americans think that people can easily get hooked on unhealthy or addictive behaviours linked to prediction market platforms. And 84% of respondents also said these platforms should have some sort of gambling-style consumer protections in place.
The NCPG Board President Derek Longmeier weighed in saying that they “think it’s functionally gambling, no matter what the legal label is right now”. That’s the NCPG’s take, not some kind of court ruling. The council is calling for age verification, self-exclusion options and clear risk disclosures as absolute minimums.
Prediction Pro has a set of terms that restrict use to adults over 18 and describe the site as a research tool, not some kind of trading advice. But the launch announcement itself says nothing about age checks or self-exclusion tools. And that kind of silence stands out for a product whose main feature is inviting people to trade on a national election.
What’s Coming Next?
The midterm elections are coming up on November 3rd, which will give Prediction Pro a chance to put its money where its mouth is. Whether that will actually translate into paying subscribers, however, is anyone’s guess at this point.
One election isn’t going to settle whether the forecasting models are actually any good. But it will show whether Better Collective can turn election season curiosity into more than just a flash in the pan and a lot of temporary traffic.
Analysis: Can the Referral Business Make Independent Analysis?
We believe that the Prediction Pro is a good business idea based on an awkward situation. As Better Collective itself demonstrates, it receives the acquisition fee from operators of prediction markets. However, it intends to receive money from customers for the independent analysis of these very markets.
We do not know which operators finance the group, and this is our problem. Affiliate Disclosure on the website states that it “may collect a share of sales or other compensation” through the link, but does not name any companies. For a product based on tracking analysts’ trades, we believe that the reader has a right to know what operators pay Better Collective and on what terms.
However, the list of questions does not end here. Action Network’s Predicting Politics podcast is sponsored by DraftKings, which launched its own prediction market product. We do not accuse anybody of misconduct. Our question is at what point editorial discretion stops, and partner marketing starts.
However, we should admit that there is some potential value to the product. Comparing the prices of Kalshi and Polymarket could be useful for traders. However, many differences between the markets are based on fees, liquidity and rules of resolution, so a lower price does not always mean a better trade.
In conclusion, we are sceptical but not close-minded. Better Collective has all that it takes to create something valuable. However, before it asks people to pay, we believe that it should work out its own terms, pricing and partners.
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