There is no shortage of online casinos and betting
establishments in the UK, and they represent a side of technology that’s often
overlooked. Digital betting options have not just made the hobby more
accessible, but it is now much safer too. As we are all spending a lot of time
at home this summer, let’s take a look at how and why technical breakthroughs
in the online gaming industry have turned it into the most popular medium for
placing bets.
The Massive Change in UK’s Gambling
and Betting Habits
Research has shown that a massive number of people in the
UK now prefer to gamble or bet on sporting events online, rather than doing so
at an offline establishment. We all know the reasons more or less because they
are pretty obvious! It’s just more convenient these days to pursue any betting
hobbies online than it is to physically go to a betting shop.
However, this brings us to a very interesting
question, why have people made the shift? Online casinos and other betting
platforms have been around for decades at this point, so why has the UK only
just made the shift to betting and gambling online now, instead of doing so
before?
Understanding the Impact of
Smartphones and Tablets
The entire gaming industry has experienced
a massive surge and change in people’s gaming habits, especially
so in the last three years. The same trend was felt but better capitalised on
by the online betting industry than the traditional video game industry. The
reasons responsible for this massive change can be summarised along the
following lines.
Smartphones Became Commonplace – It’s
true that smartphones and tablets are not new inventions, but they only became commonplace
in the last few years. Instead of being considered a luxury, they have now
become a necessity. Almost everyone already has a smartphone in the UK
nowadays, so the number of people using betting platforms online has grown at
an exponential rate.
Smartphones and Tablets Became Extremely Powerful – Unlike
their much weaker predecessors, the new generations of smartphones and tablets
were suddenly powerful enough to run even the most demanding casino games and
complex betting platforms without a hitch.
Cutting the weight – People realised that they
did not have to sit in front of a wired desktop or carry a heavy laptop around
to bet and play games online. Everything they needed was right in their pockets.
The Safety Concern Also Became
Paramount
The internet has always had a darker side, which
became prominent soon after online betting rose in popularity. Therefore, it
was extremely important for the industry to once again use cybersecurity
experts and find the technology to secure their own sites against hackers,
malware, and other unrealised threats that are constantly active on the web.
Also, various organisations were formed to prevent existing online casinos and
betting websites from cheating their players into spending money without any
hope of winning it back.
The Threat of Gambling Addiction
In realisation of the fact that there is a very real
chance of gambling addicts could easily gamble away their entire savings
online, sites like GamStop came into
existence. If the player was willing, GamStop could actually stop them from
playing in any online casino, thus preventing their addiction from taking over
their lives.
If, however, you happened to have made a rash decision
and banned yourself from betting sites over the internet for longer than you
should have, rest assured that there are safe betting sites not on the GamStop
database. You can find a list of those not on GamStop
here at The Best Casinos. The safe betting sites not on
GamStop are simply the ones that did not register with them, so GamStop has no
way of knowing whether you are playing on them or not.
Live Casinos are very popular these days, thanks to
blazing fast internet speeds and crystal clear picture quality that is fast
becoming the norm. The next step in the online gaming industry’s technological
evolution will come with the progress in VR tech. It will eliminate another of
the few remaining lines that separate virtual betting platforms from the
traditional ones.
