How the Internet Changed the Betting Industry & Our Gambling Habits

Gambling has often been linked to the history for humanity for the thousands of years it has been in existence. Before gambling went online in the 90s’ Sittman and Pitt were the developers who invented the first slot machine in 1970s. Since then things have been evolving with such radical changes that it’s difficult to predict what the next decade has in store for us.

In the list of the UK casino sites, some of the common types of gambling you’ll encounter today include; electronic games, dice games, blackjack casino, pitching quarters, betting on sporting events (wrestling, baseball, football, etc.). With the internet being one of the most significant drivers for change in the casino industry, today’s discussion will focus on how it changed the gambling industry and our betting habits.

Gambling in Its Early Years – Without the Internet

In the past, a gambler had to travel from his locality to the casino premises or the betting kiosk just to place their bets. And by the way, since casinos or any other forms of betting facilities are in specific locations such as the Vegas Strip or Macau, you had to plan and plan well. 

For that reason, gambling was a super expensive past time because it involved travel and accommodation expenses other than the money you would spend on betting alone. Monetary expenses aside, it also consumed a lot of time, meaning you could only do it on vacations. But the internet changed all that!

The Internet and How It Transformed the Betting Industry

Some of the gambling aspects that have greatly transformed due to the internet include: 

  • Players Can Have Fun Anywhere, at Any Time

After widespread internet accessibility, the need for travel was eliminated. Hundreds of enticing gaming options are now just a click away, and you can do it from the comfort of your home or office during your work breaks on your smartphone, tablet, desktop or laptop. 

Gambling enthusiasts don’t have to wait for the weekend or an entire year for their vacation days just to place a couple of bets. You can even do it as you wait in line for your coffee, at the grocery store or even on your daily commutes to and from work!

  • Offers Room for More Player Concentration

For players who like to focus their full attention on the game, online gambling via the internet maximizes a person’s concentration because you can do it in your own comfortable space. There are no distractions such as cigarette smoke, noisy drunken people, and a whole lot of cacophony of sounds involved at the land casinos, from music to dinging machines every other second. 

However, skeptics argue that the lack of interaction in online betting make people who enjoy the social aspect of visiting the casino lack morale and make them feel like traditional betting is the best. Well, high internet speeds brought back the social aspect to life when software providers like Evolution Gaming and Net Entertainment among other software providers introduced live dealer games! So, you can still interact with fellow gamers without leaving the comfort of your home!

  • Increase in Mobile Gaming

As we speak, more than 52% of internet traffic comes from mobile device users, and so, it was vital for online casinos or any other business for that matter to put more focus on catering to mobile users. Casinos are now focusing on making mobile gaming more-user friendly by making more of their betting services on the go, and in effect, more and more players are finding mobile apps extra likable. That’s because, at any given time, we always have our smartphones in our pockets. 

  • Casino Banking

Gone are the days when you had to manually visit the bank just to withdraw your gambling cash, and later visit a physical casino or betting kiosk to deposit your cash. Nowadays, casino transactions can easily be handled online, and you can even keep an inventory of your betting activities and even set limits for your money usage when gambling. 

What’s even more promising and captivating, is the cryptocurrency technology that can now be used for online gaming. With cryptocurrencies, your financial transactions are completely private and anonymous. So, if you don’t want your gambling to be tracked, there’s no better way than using cryptocurrency. 

  • Friendlier Gambling Image

Since many more regular people can access casinos via the internet, it’s becoming a more acceptable past time. Thanks to the internet and the taxable profits received from online gambling, gone are the days when betting had a tarnished image of thuggery, swindling and dishonesty. 

Moreover, betting companies with a strong presence on the internet have used this opportunity to use some of their profits to contribute to charity activities. And from their taxes, betting companies and winners alike greatly contribute to the economy of a country with some countries taxing up to over 50% of gambling profits.

The Downsides that The Internet Brought to the Betting Industry

Like with any other new kind of technology, some significant cons arose from the adoption of online gambling across the globe. They are:

  • Insecurity 

A major disadvantage of online gambling is increasing insecurity. There are so many scam casino sites that prey on unsuspecting players and steal their personal information and money through rigged games. With the continuous increase in the number of online casino sites year on year, it’s sometimes difficult to differentiate between an authentic casino and a fraudulent one, especially if you are new to online betting. 

Fortunately, things are getting safer thanks to online gaming regulatorily bodies like eCOGRA that are responsible for vetting the safety, security, and fairness of online casinos. Moreover, it’s also mandatory a casino to have a license for it to be deemed legit. 

There has also been a great advancement in encryption technologies since communication over the internet has always been prone to attacks from hackers. Now, the likes of SSL encryptions ensure that credit card numbers and passwords can be transmitted over the internet via unbreakable code.

  • Gambling Addiction

Betting has never been as readily accessible as it is today thanks to the internet. Unfortunately, this has led to an increase in gambling addiction for those who find it tough to control their betting impulses: they can bet whenever they like, wherever they are and on any device that can access the internet. 

Parting Shot

Other than the betting industry, the internet has revolutionized lots of global business. As a result, the world’s economy is going forward with services becoming more efficient, convenient and streamlined. While there are a couple of downsides, it looks like a lot more profits are going to come from the internet, especially with the soon to be introduced 5G!

kanika
kanika
Kanika is a Serial Blogger, She is a technologist, bibliophile, speaker, educator and writer. Tornado Cash Follow her on twitter @LtsGetMotivated Spotify Promotion.

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