Online Gambling Growth Dynamics
From year to year, the online casino market is growing by leaps and bounds. According to analysts, in the next five years, the total income of online casinos will increase by 80%.
The share of the legal gambling market is slightly less: an increase of 60%. Currently, several countries are actively working to mitigate the established prohibitions regarding online gambling. Analysts believe that in the next 4 years the percentage of legal online casinos will increase, but by 2024 the “gray” market can win back at least 10%.
As for GEO, the lion's share of gambling earnings is accounted by Europe - 52%, followed by Asia, North America, Oceania and Latin America.
The most active players tend to live in Australia, Singapore, Ireland, Canada, Finland, Italy, Hong Kong, Norway, Greece, Spain, the UK and Germany. The following is a list of major player countries and their laws regarding the regulation of online gambling.
China
- Gambling in China is allowed only in Macau;
- Online gambling is prohibited in China everywhere except Macau, while in Macau online gambling must have an offline version of the casino. If you don’t own a casino in real world – you can’t operate online casino in China as well;
- China has a 35% share of online casino player, others are tend to visit casinos of Macau;
- The scheme for using online casinos in China is simple - mobile applications;
- Online casino profit from one Chinese per day - $13 (statistically);
- As for 2015, there is one hundred million players playing in online casinos;
- Advertising on sites, even indirect - is prohibited;
- Advertising in applications (non-casino applications) - not regulated and available for China;
- YouTube is not regulated and available for advertising gambling in China;
- Gambling expos (Macau) are held in China, games advertising (and casino advertising similarly) is possible.
USA
- Laws prohibit depositing and withdrawing funds in most states (do not prohibit visiting casinos);
- In Google, advertising for gambling for money is banned for the United States;
- Advertising of "gambling simulators" is allowed - again, you can follow the path of franchising, that is, advertising the games themselves, not cash games, and the games that will initially only be in your casino.
The EU
- Most EU countries allow casino advertising and activities if licensed in the EU (Malta, Maine);
- There are no advertising bans (according to Google documents) in most European countries;
- In European countries in which there are bans for gambling, you still can advertise games, not the casino itself.
Korea
- Harsh laws for illegal casinos;
- There is only one casino in the country that is legal.
Japan
Although Japan has a strict ban on all types of gambling, enterprising Japanese have found a way around it using a tricky system of indirect payment of winnings. The difference between Japanese slots is that winners receive souvenirs, which can later be exchanged for real money. Thus, without violating any state laws, gambling establishments attract fans of excitement throughout the country and generate considerable profit (mostly with pachinko machines).
The problem of gaming addiction in Japan is now more relevant than ever, given that the issue of legalizing gambling is being considered at the state level. According to the Ministry of Health, Labor and Welfare, today the number of pathological gamblers among Japanese citizens is 5.36 million, which is 4.24% of the country's population. These figures were obtained as a result of a survey of 4 thousand randomly selected adult Japanese in July 2014.
- There are over 200 online casinos in Japan;
- Casino advertising is not prohibited;
- Google officially authorized casino ads in Japan.
Russia
- There are gambling zones in which casino activities are permitted;
- Online casinos outside these areas are prohibited;
- Gambling advertising is prohibited.
India
- In fact, in India the online casinos is not regulated in any way;
- In 2016, the Government of India allowed investment in the country's gambling business to foreign operators;
- The Supreme Court of India in 2016 proposed to legalize sports bets in the country;
- The country has a lot of poor people and without the Internet. The market is interesting only in the long run;
- No ad ban.
The Main Reasons For The Growth Of Online Gambling
The growth of online casinos and gambling on the Internet as a whole is explained by four popular points that real gaming establishments cannot offer:
- A huge selection of games. For a visitor to an online casino there are no restrictions on games and their variants. Here everyone will find entertainment to their taste: slots, roulette, poker, blackjack, etc.
- Access from anywhere in the world and any device. Fans of online gambling can play anywhere and anytime. You don’t have to wear a tuxedo and go to distant lands to play poker or blackjack.
- Bonus programs. Online casinos offer very large bonuses for almost every player’s movement - registration, first deposit, loyalty, etc. An online casino player receives a lot of bonuses in the form of free spins, extra money, cashbacks and more.
- Confidentiality. Due to the fact that in many countries casinos are banned, there are less and less lovers of playing with the law - everyone goes online. Plus, you can add a social factor - no one wants to talk about the fact that after a payday, he likes to have fun in the casino.
The Main Trends In Online Gambling
Gambling annually brings tens of millions of dollars - every month new games appear, newly-made formats are actively developing, and the upward trend is evident in arithmetic progression.
Brand Video Slots
The first digital gaming slot related to world pop culture was released in 2004. It was a Tomb Raider from the Microgaming software developer. This step had an impact on a younger audience which is mostly interested in competitive games and not gambling.
Analysts predict that branded video slots will enjoy increased popularity in online casinos. Both developers and operators are betting on this.
VR/AR - Casino
Now VR and AR technologies are used in everyday life, for example, thanks to an AR-enabled phone, you can see how a particular table / sofa from IKEA will look in your living room. Gambling is not far behind in terms of using various technologies. Since 2015, VR has been actively used in online gambling.
Many casino platform software companies are already working on games using AR technologies. And all this means only one thing - even more games and ways to really have fun in online gambling entertainment!
Mobile Applications
Mobile traffic continues to actively displace the desktop. In the first half of last year, mobile casinos accounted for 35.7% of the total volume of online gambling! It is expected that the portion of mobile gaming will remain ascendant until 2022.
Conclusion
In near future we will be able to seamlessly blend real and virtual worlds and improve our entertainment and gaming experiences within the comfort of our homes.
