Casinos have been a popular part of the cultural landscape in Britain for many years. Initially, these glitzy, glamorous venues were often regarded as places for high rollers and James Bond.
Over time however, casinos have changed to become more accessible and open to everyone. Their popularity boomed as a result, as more people discovered the joys of classic casino games.
The electric atmosphere inside a casino is like nothing else. From the sound of laughter and buzz of conversation, to the rattle of the roulette ball and whirl of the slot machine reels.
This love of gaming in the UK stems from a long-held interest in horse racing and relaxed gaming laws. Recent figures released by the Gambling Commission, indicate the UK’s love of gambling shows no signs of stopping.
Figures for April 2020 to March 2021:
- £12.7 billion – Total Gross Gambling Yield (GGY) of the Great Britain gambling industry
- £6.9 billion – Total GGY for Remote Betting, Bingo and Casino Sector
- £1.7 billion – Total GGY for Land-based Sectors (Arcades, Betting, Bingo and Casino)
Online Casinos
While land-based casinos offer an experience like no other, they do have their limitations. Not everybody lives near a casino, opening hours are limited and the choice of games on offer is restricted by the size of the venue. But technology and the internet changed all that.
Online casinos began to spring up in the early 2000’s, transforming the landscape and creating rapid growth in the gaming sector. The evolution of the smart phone and improved tech, has now seen online dominate the gaming sector, generating £4.0 billion in GGY, with £2.9 billion of that coming from slots games alone.
Benefits of playing at online casinos
There are multiple attractions to playing casino games online at a top online casino provider over visiting a land-based casino. The most commonly cited reasons are:
Multiple Game Choice
Land-based casinos are limited in the number of games they can offer due to the physical limitations of the building. No such constraints exist on the internet, allowing operators to offer a huge variety of games to customer, meaning there’s always a game out there for everybody to enjoy.
No Queues
The space limitations of land-based casinos means that many popular games will have queues of people wanting to play. Again, these problems don’t apply online, so customers know they can instantly start playing their favourite game.
Latest Games
Updating games and providing the latest releases for customers to enjoy is far easier process online, compared to physically removing machines and transporting them across huge distances to land-based casinos.
Convenience
The advent of the internet has seen customers demand instant access to the products they want. Streaming services and Amazon are fine examples of this.
The same can be said of gamers too. Previously, if you wanted to play a casino game you would have to potentially travel a long distance, check the opening hours and hope the game you like was available and had no queue.
Thanks to the advent of smart phones and the internet, customers can pull out their phones and start playing their favourite games within minutes. More importantly, they can do it anytime and anywhere they choose.
So, if you’re sat at home on the sofa, waiting for a bus or have five minutes to spare, casino games are always available.
Practice
Visiting a land-based casino for the first time can be overwhelming or confusing to an inexperienced player. However, many online operators offer customers the chance to play games for free, or for low stakes, allowing them to learn the rules at little or no financial risk to themselves.
Bonuses
The growth in the online sector has seen competition amongst rivals, which means there are lots of great bonuses on offer for new and loyal customers. Whether it’s free spins, matched deposit, or more, gamers can take advantage of some great opportunities to game for free.
Money
Online casinos have multiple ways players can deposit and withdraw their money. So, if you’re lucky enough to win some cash, you can instantly withdraw it and start spending your winnings!
Immersive Gameplay
Thanks to advances in technology, online games provide players with an immersive, ultra-realistic gaming experience. Sound effects, graphics, and gameplay, have all been improved to recreate the buzz and feel of a land-based casino.
Competition
The online sector has seen revenues increase rapidly, creating fierce competition in the sector as operators look to get a piece of the lucrative action. Better customer bonuses, new and improved games, improved user interface, and market innovation are the result, enhancing the online gaming experience for everyone.
The Future of Online Casinos
Technology will continue to drive the online market as operators look to attract customers and grow their market share. New innovations expected to transform the sector include:
Live Dealer Games:
Streamed online to players around the world, a live dealer game involves a dealer holding a game in real-time. Mimicking the experience of sitting at a table in a physical casino, this experience is as close as it gets to the real thing.
Virtual Reality (VR) Games:
VR technology is the next step in the gaming evolution. Already prevalent on gaming systems such as PS 5, VR is expected to revolutionise online casinos.
Customers will be able to have their very own personalised casino experience complete with all of their favourite games. They can sit at a table, meet friends and enjoy the excitement of a real casino from the comfort of their own homes.
The reality, virtual or not, is that online casinos are here to stay and their popularity looks set to continue for many years to come, as more and more people discover the joys of classic casino games.