SBC brings together hundreds of different products and businesses: operators, game providers, payment solutions, sportsbook platforms, affiliate platforms, and technology infrastructure.

But after dozens of conversations at the conference, one topic came up particularly often — where to find new, high-quality traffic.

At the same time, there were noticeably fewer teams specializing specifically in traffic acquisition than companies looking for that traffic.

For media buying, that’s a strong indicator.

Demand for acquisition hasn’t gone anywhere. But expectations around traffic quality are getting higher, while the market continues to look for new sources that can be tested and scaled.

After SBC, the Toba Traffic team identified three key takeaways.

1. Everyone is looking for traffic, but operators need more than just FTDs

The conference brings together operators, providers, payment solutions, and technology companies. They all operate in different parts of the iGaming ecosystem, but ultimately, operators still need players.

That’s why demand for traffic teams remains high. But generating a registration or first-time deposit is no longer enough.

What matters to an operator is what happens after acquisition: the player’s average deposit, whether they return, how many repeat deposits they make, their LTV, and how long it takes to recover the acquisition cost.

That’s the difference between simply delivering traffic and delivering traffic that creates real value for the business.

“The fact that you can generate an FTD hasn’t guaranteed anything for a long time. What matters to the operator is what happens with that player next: deposits, repeat deposits, LTV. If the economics work, there will always be demand for high-quality traffic.”

— Arsen, CEO of Toba Traffic

This is particularly noticeable in more expensive GEOs. Acquisition costs can be significantly higher, but a single high-value player can generate more value for an operator than dozens of cheaper FTDs.

That’s why a lower CPA doesn’t always mean a better result.

2. The market continues to look for new traffic sources

Another takeaway from SBC is that interest in new traffic sources remains high. The reason is simple: competition for users is increasing, while the ability to scale within a single source is never unlimited.

This doesn’t mean traditional performance channels are no longer working. But teams that want to keep scaling need to continuously test new approaches, funnels, and sources.

One channel that came up particularly often in conversations at SBC this time was Telegram Ads.

It is no longer being discussed purely as an experiment. There was even a dedicated stand at the conference focused almost entirely on working with Telegram Ads. For us, that’s a strong signal of how the market’s perception of the channel is changing.

The market already sees that Telegram Ads can bring in users and generate conversions. The question now moves to the next level: what is the quality of that traffic, and can it be scaled while maintaining sustainable unit economics?

3. A new traffic source shouldn’t be evaluated by a single conversion

When a new channel appears, it’s easy to focus on the first numbers: CPM, CPC, CPA, or FTD.

But in iGaming, that’s not enough. One source might generate cheaper FTDs but weak repeat deposits. Another might have a higher acquisition cost but bring in users with higher average deposits and LTV.

If you only look at the top of the funnel, the first option may appear more effective. If you look at the operator’s overall economics, the result may be the opposite.

That’s why, when testing traffic sources at Toba Traffic, we don’t focus on a single metric. We look at the entire user journey:

• CPA and FTD;

• average deposit;

• repeat deposits;

• retention;

• LTV;

• ROI;

• payback period.

This allows us to answer the key question: can this traffic source be scaled while remaining profitable for the operator?

Why demand for high-quality traffic remains strong

SBC makes the scale of the iGaming industry very clear.

Large stands, new products, providers, payment solutions, sportsbook platforms, and other services are developing into ecosystems of their own. But the more products there are, the more companies are competing for the same users.

For traffic teams, this works both ways. On the one hand, acquisition is becoming more difficult and more expensive. On the other, operators are even more interested in teams that can find new sources and deliver not just volume, but users with sustainable unit economics.

For us, this once again confirms the approach behind Toba Traffic: optimizing not for the cheapest FTD, but for player quality and the actual business result for the operator.

Traffic is part of a broader shift within iGaming

The search for new traffic sources is only one of the changes currently visible across the market. At the same time, providers are becoming more prominent, UBT and clipping are growing rapidly, and individual segments are developing their own infrastructure of teams, agencies, and resellers.

This is part of a broader story that goes beyond acquisition — it’s about how the structure of the iGaming industry itself is changing.

We covered our key post-SBC observations across the wider market in a separate Toba Group article