How technology is revolutionising the online gambling scenario?

In the mid-1990s, online gambling came into existence after the ‘Free Trade and Processing Act was passed by the island nation of Antigua and Barbuda. This new law allowed casino operators to conduct their operations over the internet.

During the initial days, the online casinos were underdeveloped and were limited in functionalities. But as casino developers observed the insane popularity of new web gaming services, they moved their attention towards developing their online casinos with the latest technological improvements. With growing competition, online casinos started to incorporate the new technological trends to expand their services and incentivise their players to become site regulars. Let us look at some of these technologies that have redefined the online casino landscape.

Mobile gaming

In 2012, mobile gaming rose by a whopping 75%. With mobile gambling doubling in 2014, it was predicted that mobile gaming will additionally increase by 84% between 2013 to 2015.

With the increase of mobile adoption among users (around 164 million players use mobiles to access online casinos), the bets placed on mobile devices are expected to hit around $100 billion dollars. Mobile casino gaming has already taken up over 40% of the total online casino industry and the trend is not going to stop anytime soon. With better technological advancements, betting shops are nowadays adding touchscreens in their betting kiosks so that players can take advantage of socializing as well as the added convenience of technology.

IoT and Mobile devices

The online gambling industry collected revenue of over 40 billion dollars in 2017. When it comes to consumer-driven technology, the Internet of Things tops the chart list. IoT is a vast network where several electronic gadgets such as mobiles, tablets, smart devices and computers communicate and share information with each other for performing complicated tasks.

Now, you can ask that how is IoT changing the online gambling landscape? Firstly, with the help of IoT, online casino providers will be able to directly connect with their consumers. Although IoT technology has been around for a while, it has managed to get popularity in recent years due to increased use of mobile usage among consumers.

According to statistics from SuperData Research, over 85% of people use smartphones to access online casino games followed by 50% on tablets. This increased usage of mobile usage opens up an information superhighway which can be accessed by online casino providers to monitor the experiences of players with different games. This information collection technique can move beyond simply monitoring how the player reacts to certain games or how much time they spend on it.

Your mobile device regularly collects and stores your physical responses and personal information as you access different casino games. Mobile phones nowadays have inbuilt heart sensors and facial recognition technology which opens up new opportunities for the online casino industry. With the advancement in technologies, mobile phones are able to track our emotional and physical responses through touch/pressure sensors and cameras. These pieces of information are stored, analysed and turned into usable data which are used by the casinos through data analytics. Seems too futuristic? Not really. We are already in the future!

Virtual Reality

Over the course of four years, Virtual Reality is expected to become a huge phenomenon die to industry innovation, high consumer expectations, and technological advances. It is predicted that Virtual Reality gambling market would face growth of 55% by the end of 2022, as per reports from Technavio’s Global VR Gambling Market 2018-2022. The technology is expected to bring in over $360 million from 2017 to 2022.

If you frequently visit online casinos, then you might be already familiar with live casino games. These games are awesome and allow you to play casino games as if you are present in a real land-based casino, right from the comfort of your sofa. Virtual Reality will provide players with a much better immersive experience where they will be able to check what's on the table and behind them. With realistic representation and stunning graphics, VR technology is going to revolutionize multiplayer gaming in online casinos.

Imagine yourself sitting in a real casino where the players, machines and other features of the game are represented in three dimensions? Seems amazing, isn't it? It is not a figment of fiction anymore. The level of immersive gameplay that VR will bring to online casinos is nothing short of mindblowing! With a 330 degrees scenario, game developers will be able to unleash their full capabilities which won't be possible in a 2D simple screen. Casinos are able to host VR tournaments with the help of the technology which takes players on a virtual adventure allowing them to win cash prizes.

VR technology can be also used online casinos to redefine responsible gambling. The providers argue that several gambling addicts have been treated by providing a VR environment by their therapists. Undoubtedly, VR is truly the next evolutionary step of the online casino industry.

This article does not necessarily reflect the opinions of the editors or management of EconoTimes.