The Gambling Industry Is Looking Towards A Mobile Future

It’s remarkable to see how far the gambling industry has adapted to mobile technology over the last decade or so. Without question the advent of the smartphone combined with widespread WIFI and 3/4G connectivity has been the driving force behind this trend. Before smartphones it was possible to place bets via mobile although often the experience was inconvenient and sometimes bordering upon tortuous!

In no way did the mobile experience have any similarities to the online casinos that people could enjoy via their PCs. Happily all this is a distant memory and now the tables have turned, with casinos and game developers now focusing the majority of their attention towards delivering a superb mobile experience. In this article we’ll take a look into why the gambling industry is becoming ever more driven by mobile, as well as what developments we can expect to enjoy in the near future.

Mobile Is Fantastic For Casino Games
Way back when the early smartphones were released not many people thought that casino games would transfer well to the small screen. How wrong they were. It’s taken a little while to get right, but the major game development studios have now pretty much perfected slots and table games on mobile devices. Mobiles have already overtaken PCs as the most popular way to enjoy these kind of games, and this is a trend that clearly appears to be unstoppable.

More people than ever are playing these games via mobile apps – in many cases enjoying the free play element that all the top online casinos offer. Money players also have the advantage that when out and about there’s no need to ever miss out on special offers and promotions. A great example is the Latest Promotions at Royal Vegas Online Casino, where the free spins and bonuses are always utterly unmissable.

It’s this convenience and accessibility that makes the mobile format truly stand out for casino operators, and why they are investing so heavily in this style of gaming. Bear in mind that there’s also the advantage that recent PC operating systems are also very much based upon app compatibility. This means that games developed to be perfect for mobile devices will naturally translate to more static formats too.

It’s Perfect For Sports-books Too
In match betting has been around for a while now, but it continues to become ever more popular among sports fans watching a game. Internet speed and connectivity is essential in developing this in the future, as it looks very likely that within a few years matches will be easily watchable on mobiles regardless of subscription services.

There’s good reason why so many gambling companies have been investing in major sports teams – especially soccer. Sponsoring competitions and teams will give the gambling industry considerable leverage, mainly in forming partnerships with broadcasting companies to better integrate their service. This will likely be a few years down the line, but in the meantime expect to see even further interaction and more personalized mobile services.

What The Future Will Likely Bring
Great as it’ll be to see the familiar casino and sports book mobile experience continue to get even better, the next big step that really excites the gambling industry is the potential for social play. Mobile is going to be crucial to delivering this.

It’s presently estimated that approximately 80% of mobile phones in current use are smartphones capable of internet and Bluetooth connectivity. Online casinos have tried for years to encourage social gaming but without much joy, yet if everyone has a smartphone there’s no reason why gaming networks akin to those seen in console video gaming couldn’t emerge.

For example friends and/or strangers could get together over a network and play casino games together. Best of all it’s looking like before the end of the decade we’ll see Virtual Reality being brought into play, technology that is expected to be powered by mobile devices. Playing VR roulette while enjoying the social aspect of a trip to the casino, with players interacting together is without question the next great leap forward.

At time of writing the global mobile gambling industry is forecast to pass the $100bn mark by 2018. When Virtual Reality and social play are effectively introduced a trip the sky will be the limit. All of this will be powered primarily by mobile technology, so here’s to the future!