Online gambling is the fastest growing sector of the gambling industry. The online gambling market has risen from 20 billion in 2009 to 40 billion in 2016. Now considering the statistics, it is safe to say that mobile gambling is the future of this online gambling market.
According to the report of Global Online Gambling and Betting Market 2014, mobile gambling is expected to grow at a significant rate with the estimation that it will cross over 40 percent of the online betting market by 2018.
The increasing availability of wi-fi and the explosive rise in smartphone and tablet uses are the primary reasons of this growth. In 2014, according to the comScore data, mobile devices accounted for about 55 percent of the total internet usage in the United States, with apps garnering about 47 percent of the traffic.
The ease and convenience that comes with mobile devices are making it very popular among the users. The portability is the significant competitive advantage that mobile devices have over the desktops. Obviously, betting on the mobile devices from wherever one happens to be is far easier than waiting to get home for placing one’s bets on the desktops.
Users enjoy the mobile gambling experience through either web browsers or through particular apps. The web based experience is pretty much like the desktop experience of gambling because both do not require downloads or installs for their operation. On the other hand, the apps are designed for specific mobile devices that are then accessed through a menu link.
The operators have sensed this trend of using mobile devices, that’s why they are coming up with newer strategies and innovations now. Operators are now bringing mobile casinos and mobile sportsbooks for their users, coupled with very appealing features. They are striving to make their mobile casinos very convenient and easy besides offering free games and no deposit bonus for their new users.
The additional interest for operators to gain the attention of these mobile users is the faster conversion rates. According to Opt move, mobile players have a faster conversion rate into paying customers, and also they initiate more betting sessions than web players.
However, there are challenges for operators as well, particularly regarding mobile apps. The mobile apps, though very convenient and engaging for the users, are very expensive for the operators. It is because to capture the market, the operators not only need to make an iPhone App but an Android App also. And even then it would mean leaving other potential platforms. All this puts extra cost and hassle to bear on the part of the operators. Besides, the regulations of the major app stores for gambling apps are stricter than for the ordinary apps.
Although the future is cloaked in mystery with certainty about anything almost impossible, yet the probability is that browser based gambling will be replaced in the near future by mobile gambling. All the statistics are pointing towards that change.
