Online gambling is one of the fastest-growing industries today. While the first quarter of the year decimated many other entertainment fields due to COVID 19, online casinos flourished and showed they are incredibly sensible to customers’ needs. Gambling trends in 2024 have a lot to teach other industries when it comes to flexibility and innovation.
The market size value of online gambling businesses is estimated to almost $60 billion in 2024, while that number is expected to rise to $127 billion in the next seven years. The market always has something new to offer, and a lot has been improved on the go.
So what are the exciting innovations we can see in the online gambling world this year? Let’s look at the most important changes.
Live dealer games
There is a real croupier dealing, a physical deck of cards and the green cloth – everything is real, but you are in the commodity of your own home. Live dealer games have become increasingly popular during this year. All through live streaming services so you and other players can have a genuine, yet safe gambling experience.
Traditional online table games used to involve random number generators which didn’t really sit well with the players. There is charm and authenticity in being served by an elegant croupier that can never be replaced by a machine, no matter how statistically perfect the results may be.
Another reason why this type of gambling became enormously sought after is the authenticity of the environment. Lighting, sound and ambient looks professional and there are multiple cameras recording every dealer’s move from multiple angles. Players can even talk with them and other players during the game.
Whether you’re into poker, roulette, blackjack or any other table game, you can relax at home while having a genuine brick-and-mortar casino experience.
Cryptocurrencies as payment methods
Many major and new online casinos like 777 Slots Bay are already accepting crypto as a legitimate payment method, but it seems that this digital currency has gained significant traction in the previous year. This trend is rising continuously for several reasons.
Blockchain technology offers transparency and security at the same time. Every transaction made using cryptocurrencies is anonymous and all existing data about the transfer is incorruptible. This is achieved by storing data about the transaction across multiple nodes (meaning that it is stored on many different computers).
Related to the aforementioned fact, it is important to note that there is no single physical or virtual location that stores cryptocurrency. Different users own different amounts, yes, but the data about the transactions, users and value is owned and distributed by all participants.
Furthermore, when doing a transaction using crypto, there are no third parties like banks and gateways. This enables transfers to be almost instantaneous. There are minimal transaction fees and no hidden costs and conversions.
Ladies are taking more interest in gambling
One of the most unusual recent trends is the rapid increase of women who participate in online gambling games. Whether the online experience suits them better than the real-life casinos or is it just the result of the current lifestyle, no one can tell for sure.
But new online gambling sites have embraced this new clientele readily. Some sites even specialize in games made for ladies. Since the average age of this group is 25-35 years, the games are made to follow the mentality and interests of a younger population.
The rate at which women enter the gambling world has been higher than that of the male population in the past two years. No one can tell for sure if this trend is going to continue, but if it does, it will definitely make a huge impact on the industry. Probably for the better.
Virtual and Augmented reality
Although virtual reality gaming is nothing new, it has entered the gambling realm only recently. Even so, the incredible popularity of games incorporating virtual and augmented reality has made this niche spread like wildfire.
Virtual reality games enable players to share the same virtual space, like sitting at the same table and talking to others while playing. Although this technology is still in the making, it is evolving rapidly and in a few years, we might be able to sit in the same virtual room playing poker, while looking at each other.
Augmented reality is similar, but doesn’t use a virtual environment. Rather, it uses a real environment and then adds overlays to make it more interesting. It also enables visual effects, distorsions and animations that can be preset or chosen by the players. The whole experience is very immersive and adds a certain layer of fun that is completely new to gambling.
Optimization for mobile devices
Mobile devices have taken over literally every online market, and online gambling is no exception. There is an increasing demand for mobile gambling platforms and developers are busy trying to deliver mobile optimization and new, custom-made games for these devices. Statistics show that a significant share of players prefers mobile gambling, and those numbers are only rising.
While the majority of online gambling sites have already optimized their content for mobile devices, it is evident that gambling apps are much more popular among the players. Hopefully, this new demand will be addressed in the next couple of years.
Adapting classic games like roulette or poker to a small, vertical screen might be a bigger challenge than it seems, though. A lot of developers share an opinion that mobile gaming will bring novelties to the gaming style, but this is yet to be seen.
Final word
The year 2024 is definitely the year of online gambling. So many innovations emerged recently, and so many new technologies have become a norm. The industry grows at an insane pace, and we’re sure that gamblers all over the world are in for a truly fantastic ride!