Future outlook: What's in store for the online casino industry in the next decade?

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Not so long ago, online casinos were considered dodgy websites that were prone to hacks and had the sole objective of misleading their visitors. Today, online casinos have grown into a billion-dollar industry with stock listed gambling operators sponsoring the world’s biggest sports teams, moving around millions of dollars.

As such, the online casino industry is a fully grown industry that is audited and regulated with gambling regulators making sure that licensees follow the local gambling laws. While more and more countries legalize gambling, tech developments pave the wave for the ultimate online experience. The future of online casinos seems to be a very bright one with lots of potential for Artificial Intelligence, live dealer games, and mobile first platforms.

The Industry in Numbers

The value of the global online gambling market size is set at US$ 63.53 billion in 2022 and the industry is expected to continue to grow in the next few years at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 11.7% until the end of the decade. The so-called compound annual growth rate is a widely used term that stands for the constant rate of return for investors and businesses. The growing internet penetration and rise in the use of cell phones are seen as the key drivers for the growing demand for online gambling products and the impressive CAGR of nearly 12% over the next 7 years.

The gambling products are typically divided into a few subcategories with this article focussing on the casino products offered on the internet. The iGaming market is generally segmented into sports betting, casino, poker, and bingo. In virtually all countries where gambling is allowed, the sports betting segment dominated the market with a revenue share of approximately 49% in 2022. According to the "Online Gambling Market Size & Trends Analysis Report, 2030" by Grand View Research, online casinos accounted for 26% of the market. After — often state-owned — lotteries, sports betting is one of the most accepted gambling activities; this is much less the case for casino products.

The casino's type segment is expected to grow at a significant CAGR between 2023 and 2030. This growth is driven by the popularity of casino games such as slot machines and classic table games such as Roulette and Blackjack. Players wanting instant casino games is a driving factor for this segment. The availability of around the clock customer support and instant payment methods attracts users to play the games seamlessly. With all separate features and these online businesses being optimized, the online casino industry has managed to become a stable industry that isn’t expected to slow down soon.

The popularity of online casinos is also thanks to the massive real money prizes that are paid out by online casino operators, outperforming traditional, land based venues. The Guinness World Records first listed the largest online jackpot payout in the history of the internet in October 2015 after the British soldier Jon Heywood won the Mega Moolah progressive jackpot at a mind-blowing $20,062,600. Land based slot games, on the other hand, do not even come close to numbers which won’t come as a surprise as players from all over the world contribute to progressive jackpots that are enjoyed internationally.

Increasing Security & Regulations

Not legalizing online gambling will lead to an enormous potential loss of money wagered online slipping away to offshore-based gaming operators as people will gamble anyway, with or without permission. One of the biggest changes that will continue to affect the online casino industry positively is the increasing regulation of online gambling across all continents. As more and more money moves its way from non-regulated environments to regulated landscapes, it has also become crucial that there are measures put in place to protect both financial and personal data from being hacked or used by malicious third parties. As government backed gambling regulators strive to ensure that customers remain safe when gambling at online casino platforms it is expected that:

• There will be stringent regulations around banking transactions, customer data storage, and game fairness. Every registered account needs to be safe.
• Licensees are pressured to follow strict responsible gaming guidelines. These include account limits, performances of the customer support desk, and the evaluation of measures put into place to protect consumers.
• Stricter regulations on bonuses and marketing. Some European countries that were the first to legalize online gaming have been enforcing stricter rules for marketing & advertising limiting licensees in their options to target prospects or existing users.

Luckily, online gambling has lost most of its negative reputation and has grown to become a well respected industry that is represented by international, stock-listed gambling companies. It is still recommended to stick to secure casinos picked by Kiwigambler to ensure that players make their wagers at licensed and reputable casino websites.

The Role of Artificial Intelligence At Online Casinos

Not only the online casino industry welcomed the introduction of Artificial Intelligence (AI), but as it’s an online driven industry it is expected to benefit from the chances AI has to offer. The combination of AI and Machine Learning (ML) on online gaming platforms is believed to lead to an enhanced user experience and a tailor-made offer. AI is continually improving the gaming industry by analyzing behavioral patterns, flagging suspicious schemes, and reading other customer data. In the next few years, it will continue to help online casino operators to provide the ultimate gaming experience:

• AI can read player data and provide suggestions about games and promotions. This will be done with the objective to enhance customer interaction.
• AI can carry out detailed data analysis with the goal to predict customer behavior. With the outcome, operators are better prepared for their customers' needs and requirements. This is particularly useful for casinos that work with loyalty schemes.
• Chatbots: AI-powered chatbots already provide customer support and answers to basic queries. Virtual chatbots help to improve player experiences and reduce the workload for the customer support desk.
• Lobby optimization: AI can be used to optimize the organization of the game lobby. This is true for the presentation of table games in both online and live dealer lobbies with algorithms that set the table limits based on previous player behavior.

Live Dealer Games Dominating RNG Versions

The interactiveness of live human dealers has proved to be the ultimate combination as it makes up for the lack of the human factor of RNG games. An increasing number of game developers have moved their attention to live dealer games, and this will continue as a whole new category has emerged in the last few years with the introduction of game shows. These are games that are presented by a human dealer as well, but have an entertainment show element rather than being based on a card game or table game.

• The popularity of the live dealer segment over online, RNG-driven games, has led to game developers replacing traditional table games with live dealer versions.
• With live dealer game shows surging as a new category, live casino games have yet another segment that will continue to boost the popularity of games that are hosted by a live dealer.
• The same game can be offered in multiple markets with the main difference being the linguistic requirements. A growth in live human dealers that speak multiple languages is expected as more countries are expected to adopt online gambling.

Mobile Will Continue Strong

The focus on mobile gaming has been a hot topic for over a decade now, but mobile gaming is believed to continue. In some regions, players use mobile devices more than they use their desktop computers and this is true for casino gaming as well. Cell phone penetration has reached significant percentages in most countries of the world, including the lesser developed nations, but there is still room for high speed internet, the availability of Wifi & mobile data plans, and new generation smartphones. With the increasing availability of the internet and advancements of mobile tech in especially lesser developed nations, more players are now using their mobile devices for playing casino games.

Targeting mobile users involves making all the necessary adjustments to make sure that the titles in the game lobby and the overall functionality of the online casino website are streamlined with mobile devices, notably smartphones and tablets. This includes:

• Applying the mobile first approach to the overall functionality of the website. All landing pages and elements need to be functional, preferably with the mobile functionality of the website as the leading device, ahead of desktop.
• Although most operators target their customers and prospects with responsive websites, bigger online gambling operators tend to have dedicated mobile apps, providing players with instant solutions and faster loading times.  
• Mobile bonuses: casino operators are expected to offer their players incentives to install a mobile app, which can lead to a growth of mobile-only promotions and bonuses. This trend is already visible in other industries, but remains less dominant in the online casino industry.

Conclusion

In the fast paced landscape of online gambling, the online casino industry continues to attract players seeking for entertainment and potential financial benefits. In recent years, the gaming industry has increasingly moved its attention from traditional brick and mortar venues to online platforms with higher prizes, lower barriers, and more convenience. Favorable developments in terms of the regulation of online gambling and the growing influence of AI and machine learning in online casino software has made it easier for operators and other gambling operators to get the most of the results of prediction algorithms. This will help the industry to market their casino products and target players.

What will significantly help online gambling operators to market their products and services is the growing list of jurisdictions that are officially allowing online games of chance such as online casinos. Yet, governments have shown to favor online sports betting over casino products, but seeing the tax and revenue potential of gambling, more and more countries have put aside their ethical point of view to value the financial benefits of online casinos. This does require stricter regulation, prioritizing safe, and secure online casinos. Players are addressed via both mobile optimized platforms and the application of Artificial Intelligence helping casinos to better understand and serve their target audience.

Gambling Problem?

The National Council on Problem Gambling operates the National Problem Gambling Helpline Network. The network is a single national access point to local resources for those seeking help for a gambling problem. The network consists of 28 contact centers that provide resources and referrals for all 50 states and US territories. Help is available 24/7 and is 100% confidential.

National Problem Gambling Helpline: Call 1-800-GAMBLER or visit https://www.ncpgambling.org/.