Steady rise of the industry
The online gambling industry has become one of the fastest moving and most profitable industries in the UK and is still rising rapidly.
Advertisement has been vital for the industry’s growth with many ads on radio and tv, websites and social media. Recently in the UK, betting and gaming brands spent a reported £1.1 Billion on online gambling advertising. It is common for betting companies to sponsor sports teams, particularly football teams.
The relationship between football and gambling advertising has contributed to the normalisation of gambling for Joe Public and the two now go hand in hand. Gambling has become so linked to football that television watchers cannot avoid industry branding, even if they don’t watch commercial TV.
Although officials fear the rise of gambling addiction, online gambling no longer comes with a stigma attached which can also be put down to clever marketing as well as the government’s engagement in consumer protection. It is a very attractive form of gambling that has become available to the everyday person due to its user-friendliness and easy accessibility.
The industry has grown parallel alongside the development of technology and has adapted its platforms appropriately. With the amount of upsides it holds, it is an industry that is destined to prosper.
A gambling machine in our pocket
Online casinos are incredibly popular for people of all ages and gender. With the convenience of being able to do it from home, its audience is growing worldwide in tremendous speed. With the advancement of technology, online gambling has made not only to our homes, but virtually everywhere we go as well.
Smartphones have revolutionised online gambling and it has made it possible for users to place bets no matter where they are, whenever they like. Therefore, ’betting on the go’ has become very favoured by users. Since the majority of people don’t go anywhere without their smartphones, online gambling is no longer limited to having access to a laptop.
But just like the clever innovations in technology have taken the world by storm in recent years, it will only continue to do so in the near future. Soon we will not only be able to carry a gambling machine in our pocket, but we will be able to bring the live experience of walking into a casino right into our own homes.
Virtual Reality Technology
Competitors in the industry need to stay ahead of the game in order to remain on top. Implementing attractive technology such as virtual reality would have a clear advantage and we can predict that the use of virtual reality technique will become a game changer in the online gambling and betting industry.
Virtual reality casinos have the ability to take you out of your own environment and transport you to a completely different space. With the use of virtual reality, users could become one with the online gambling world. They could experience the real feeling of getting to throw the dice in online craps games, be able to sit and look across a poker table and read their opponent’s faces. Users could even place bets on sporting events and then virtually see the match or race from a seat in the crowd without ever leaving their own sofa with just the help of a VR headset.
Although it’s a new technology still in early development, it is something that could change the gambling world completely. But if we had the option of immersing ourselves in the same live experience we would get from a land based casino, without ever leaving our house, we could possibly run the risk of online gambling replacing land based casinos on a substantial scale.
