The nature of gambling has changed significantly since the rise of online casinos, enabled by the explosion of internet connectivity. The online casino industry is constantly evolving, especially since different countries across the world are continuously changing their rules and regulations. Here are some of the trends on the horizon for the online casino industry that you need to know.
The value of the online gambling market has been growing year over year, with current estimates that it is worth more than $70 billion per year. And by 2025, the online gambling market is projected to be worth an incredible $112 billion.
One of the long-standing issues hindering the growth of online casinos has been the different rules and regulations for gambling in every country of the world. This means that online casino companies cannot simply offer their services over the internet to anyone who wants to play. Instead, they have to ensure they follow each country’s rules in order to legally offer online gambling to people in certain countries.
As countries change their polices, rules, and regulations, it creates whole new trends in the online casino world. Together with some of the latest technological innovations, the future of online gambling is looking very interesting indeed. Here are the upcoming trends to look out for.
Countries Loosening Their Rules
One major trend to look out for in the coming years is more countries changing their rules. Some countries and regions will legalize online gambling, which will bring new online casino opportunities to people living in certain parts of the world. Some countries will also loosen their restrictions on the types of online casinos on offer to its people.
Sweden is an interesting recent example of a country broadening its gambling rules. Gambling was previously run entirely by the state. Even when online gambling emerged and Swedish people could theoretically access online casinos, it was not legal for them to actually gamble online unless it was through the Swedish state-run gambling organizations. However, the Gambling Act was launched in 2019, meaning that more online casinos can now operate in Sweden with a license. The idea of licensing is to keep gamblers safe by gambling with trusted providers, so players can now identify casinos with a license, and therefore without a Swedish license (casinon utan svensk licens) too.
Digital Currencies
Innovations in technology and finance mean that transactions can now be made in more types of currencies than ever before. Cryptocurrency is expanding quickly and is set to make even greater waves in the online casino world. People like using cryptocurrency such as Bitcoin because it provides extra security and anonymity. A number of online casinos already offer the option to pay using a cryptocurrency, and this is predicted to expand even more.
It is predicted that 4% of all online gambling transactions are done using cryptocurrencies, and this is generally accepted to be drastically on the rise. As crypto offers online gambling players a great way to do quick and secure transactions, many people who try a cryptocurrency for the first time tend not to go back to traditional currencies. The rise of cryptocurrencies will only mean that more people can access online casinos in the way they prefer.
The Rise of 5G
One issue that some online gambling players have is that their internet connection is not fast enough to play in the way they would like to. This is a big deal when it comes to online casinos, and particularly players who want to play live dealer games. Seeing what is going on quickly when you are playing on an online casino is important. And as 5G technology continues to spread around the world, this is predicted to make a major difference to the uptake of online casino games.
At the moment, 5G availability is fairly limited across the world. The United States, South Korea, and China are the countries where 5G is most widely available. However, by 2027, there will be an estimated 4.4 billion 5G connections across the world. As 5G becomes more readily available, the online gambling industry is preparing for more players to find their services.
Decline of Physical Casinos
As online gambling increases in popularity, it is widely expected that physical, land-based casinos will decline. While there will still be a place for visiting actual casinos–people love the buzz of being there, after all–there will certainly be closures of some physical casinos. Casino operators will find it increasingly difficult to justify the running costs of having a physical building, and the infrastructure and energy this requires. It is estimated that some casinos in Las Vegas have to spend about $150,000 per hour on running costs.
As land-based casinos close, this will drive more people to online casinos instead. The lower running costs of online casinos theoretically mean the odds of winning are higher too.