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Digital Gambling And Its Growth

Digital gaming entered homes through home computers and console games in the 1980s, but it was not until the 1990s that the online world brought about a major change in the development of gaming worlds.

Although the first online casinos were established in the 90s, the bigger changes began in the 2010s when gaming discovered mobile devices, and the mobile era we know today began. Add to all this the Generation Z, the digital natives who have lived their entire lives under the influence of the internet and digitalisation, and it's no wonder that digital and mobile gaming is the modern solution to almost all gaming.

The growth of mobile gaming, which started in Asia in particular some years ago, has gradually reached adult gamers in the US and Europe, and as a result, gaming volumes across all game genres are clearly on the rise.

The big shift in gaming that started in the 2010s is also reflected in the social mindset, where adult mobile gaming is now seen as a perfectly acceptable pastime.

Casino games and digitalisation

Casinos, gaming rooms, restaurants and hotels have enjoyed decades of gaming revenue, but the growth of online gambling since the 1990s has gradually reduced the movement of players.

While basic slot machines were joined by betting services as early as the 90s and live casino games in recent years at the latest, digital gambling offers more reasons to stay at home than to go to a casino or a gaming room to gamble.

Digital casinos offer you the possibility to get to the roulette table, even from the comfort of your couch. Digital platforms are able to offer a wider range of games than a traditional brick-and-mortar casino, both in terms of the number of slot machines and the number of traditional casino games.

Also, mobile gaming allows you to play anytime and anywhere. The digital platform allows slots to be played without money, with demo versions but with fully real functionality. In addition, new games are made directly available thanks to the gaming platform used by the casino. And finally, digital platforms enable various casino offers such as casino bonuses and free spins

The big casino operators are quite up to date, and have understood the ongoing changes. This has given rise to larger and larger entertainment centers where gambling is almost a secondary activity.

People are still looking for experiences, and they go to the big events, to the entertainment centers - but gaming alone, and the excitement and entertainment of gaming, can be found just as well on the digital platforms of the internet.

So the big casino operators have put on their shopping pants and gone shopping around the world. These big billionaire companies have bought digital expertise, and outright online casino operators, into their own names, and so are already operating both in traditional brick-and-mortar casinos and in digital channels - just as customers expect.

Why is the future of casino games digital?

We have already seen it in other game genres, that the way we play and buy games has changed. Gaming has also become more spectacular, and gaming communities have become more international. Even in Finland, where kaikki pikakasinot, all instant casinos, have been operated in Finnish, the shift is towards English sites.

This has all been driven by the rapid growth of streaming services, through which both players and game providers showcase their games - and players their winnings.

Even traditional games have moved almost entirely to cloud technology and mobile gaming. To gaming where there is virtually no payment for the games themselves, but payments within the games, which in fact over the life of the game, the player generates more revenue for the game publishers. A similar approach is also used in online casino slot machines.

You can go to a casino and pick your favorite slot machine and you don't have to spend real money to play the games - you can play the demo version for no money at all - this wouldn't work in a casino or arcade - but on a digital platform it's entirely possible.

Streaming revolutionized the whole entertainment industry

If old-fashioned TV operators are forced to open up their own streaming channels and services, it says something about the power that streaming has today. In fact, many young adults no longer watch linear broadcasts except perhaps sports and news and some reality series, but they watch films and series when they want to on streaming.

The casino industry also saw the potential of streaming right from the start. In the beginning, streaming videos were used to showcase casino games, but quickly technical developers found a way to combine live casino gaming tables, payment transactions and streaming - giving rise to real casino gaming remotely - so players can now play games like roulette, poker, dice, wheel of fortune and any number of card games via live streaming with a real gaming operator.

When these games are supplied by different game studios, one online casino can contract with multiple suppliers, you have a situation where an online casino can offer remote players a wider range of games online than any brick-and-mortar casino - so why go on a couple of hours' journey to a casino when you can play the same games while waiting for the metro, or traveling on a bus - on your smartphone.

It was this live streaming gaming that took the online casino industry to the next level, and this was the milestone that prompted the big traditional casino operators to start buying digital gaming suppliers and sites.