I Game, You Game, We Bet We All Game

A Brief History of iGaming 

It all began back in 1994, when reliable and secure software finally made it possible to start online casinos. The nation of Antigua and Barbuda and certain Native American territories in the United States of America were among the first to issue online casino licences and regulate online gambling activities. 

While many countries either outright ban or impose heavy restrictions on the practice of online gambling, it is legal in most countries of the European Union, as well as in some parts of the US, some Canadian provinces, and several countries in the Caribbean.

Online gambling is about playing games, but the experience itself can also become a game.

Today & Tomorrow – The Game is Afoot

The size of the online gambling market cannot be overstated: there are literally thousands of venues and millions of participants on a daily basis. 

The development of legislation and regulation is alleviating moral, legal, and security concerns.

The UK has a strict regulatory system in place, with a commission that is the sole body able to grant and withdraw licences to and from gambling companies and websites.

The Asia Pacific online gambling market is a bit of a paradox, being both the most heavily restricted market while having the most customers in total.

For example, China is making a concerted effort to ban all forms of gambling apart from government-run lotteries, but multiple international online gambling venues have been very welcoming of Chinese players.

Currently, the global igambling industry’s main areas could be divided into poker, casino, bingo, lottery, and sports betting – with the sports betting industry marked as soon to become the dominant aspect of online gambling, leading to an expected increase in sports betting sponsorships as well.

Mobile devices are a very popular and convenient way of online gambling, but desktop computers are still the number one device of choice for participants, due to larger screens.

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It Started with Games and in Games it Booms!

Games are as old as humanity – it is how we learn, how we practice and how we have fun. Gaming has always been here, but today it is undergoing one more major boom as the recent lockdowns attracted new people to it. There are millions of players and thousands of game companies out there, claiming an increasingly larger stake of the global e-commerce market.

Top 3 Lessons of E-commerce from iGambling

Variety of Payment Options

The more ways a customer can perform online transactions, the better. While some payment options are certainly perennial favourites, such as credit and debit cards, there are concerns about the safety of such transactions and possibility of data theft and fraud. 

E-wallets – be they the ever popular PayPal or its many competitors such as Apple Pay, Cash App, Venmo or Zelle – have become the staple of the online gambling industry both for their flexibility, easy and fast transactions as well as global acceptance as payment options.

Cryptocurrencies may have many markets still very reserved towards them due to their volatility, slow processing time, and lack of regulations, they have – BitCoin and Ethereum to name just two of many – have become more popular in online gambling in the past years, mostly because they offer low fees and increased security and anonymity.

Gamification for Your Game

Online gambling is about playing games, but the experience itself can also become a game. The venues that do this experience a significant benefit.

One of the simplest ways online casinos have gamified their customers’ experience is by employing leaderboards. This had the effect of not motivating people to compete in a game for the sake of winning money, but also to go up the leaderboard, aiming to become the best not only in a particular game but also in the venue as a whole.

And if the venue provides its customers with the means of sharing their score on social media, this can attract more people to the online casino, some of whom might be interested in beating their friend’s leaderboard score.

While physical casinos had games where you just push a button or pull a lever or throw some dice, their online counterparts have the opportunity to engage their players with a story. 

Customer Service Par Excellence

People flock to casinos, so a smooth, quick and comprehensive customer service is key since there are literally thousands upon thousands of customers per day who might need assistance or have questions.

Online casinos have customer service teams available 24/7, across multiple channels, from e-mail and telephone to live chat or messenger, and in multiple languages, too.