Industry News
Things to Know Before Gambling Online
Online casinos are revolutionizing the gambling world. They’ve become very popular over the last few years. Although they are reaching peak status during these times, casino sites are not new to the market. The first sites like them appeared back in 1994. Microgaming is the company that created the first software for online casinos that year and then they created the first mobile casino software in 2004.
At first, online casinos weren’t popular because people didn’t trust them. Safety and fair-play were some of the issues that the sites had to deal with, apart from the domination of the land-based casinos. As you can see now, all of that is changed. Statistics show that online casinos have an $80 billion annual revenue, and that number is expected to top $100 billion by 2024. In Europe, the best market for online casinos is the United Kingdom.
Since this type of gambling is so popular these days, we decided to explain some things that you need to know before making your first wager at these sites.
Is It Allowed in Your Country?
Logically, gambling restricted in many countries in the world. Some of them allow gambling at land-based casinos but hold a restriction for online gambling. Some European countries where gambling online is restricted are Greece, Turkey, the Netherlands, and Albania.
The problem with the restrictions is that governments have trouble regulating these activities. There are many ways to hide your IP address and make it seem like you are accessing online casinos from another country. Governments are yet to respond to this problem.
Is the Site Licenced?
This is a key factor to check if you want to know whether the site is eligible to play or not. Every country that legalized online gambling has commissions that issue licences and regulate online casinos. If the casino sites are licenced by some legitimate and real commission, then you are safe to play games and leave your account information.
Profits Have Processing Times up to Several Days
Usually, every winning has a processing time of 2-3 days. The money goes through numerous verification processes to make sure that everything is legal. But, the processing time can vary, depending on the chosen method of withdrawal.
This is completely normal, but the waiting time sometimes can be as long as 2 weeks, which is a bit long for someone impatient. Nevertheless, this is a standard procedure because online casinos want the money to be transferred to the right person.
It Has Advantages over Land-Based Casinos
Let’s explain how people started to favour online casinos over land-based ones. For starters, online casinos are the front in the battle against theft and corruption. They invested a lot of money in the latest SSL-encryptions and Random Number Generators to make their sites safe to play and give every player an equal chance of winning.
They are also easily accessible – all you need is a computer/phone with a stable Internet connection. You can enjoy the best casino games in the comfort of your home or any other place. To make things even better, their services are available 24/7.
Online casinos also have tons of promotions in store for every player. Free games, bonus on winnings, Welcome Offers for new players, Loyalty Programs for the more loyal players, etc. In short, they are keen to reward the people who play on their sites in every way possible.
Industry News
Dutch Mental Health Care Calls for Total Ban on Online Gambling Advertising
The Dutch mental health service is calling for a total ban on online gambling advertisements in the Netherlands.
Although a ban on untargeted gambling advertisements and a ban on the use of role models has been in effect since 2023, a recent research by KRO-NCRV’s Pointer shows that (illegal) gambling companies and sports tipster platforms are still enticing young people via social media such as TikTok and Snapchat.
By using influencers and terms like “free money”, they try to attract a young audience and thus lower the threshold to start gambling. This concerns both legal online casinos and online casinos that do not have a license in the Netherlands. The Gaming Authority has started an investigation based on Pointer’s findings.
Pointer’s research shows that part of the gambling industry deliberately targets young people who are often susceptible to promises such as “fast money” and the influence of role models. Ruth Peetoom, chair of the Dutch mental health service, compares this approach to that of the tobacco industry, where similar marketing strategies were used to get young people to smoke.
Despite the existing advertising ban, gambling companies continue to explore the boundaries of the law, according to Peetoom. The Dutch mental health and addiction care associations in the Netherlands therefore push for a total ban on online gambling advertising and stricter rules for the duty of care of gambling providers.
With the call for a total ban, the Dutch mental health care sector hopes to prevent further normalisation of gambling behaviour among young people and to protect them from the temptation and consequences of online gambling.
Compliance Updates
UKGC: Market impact data on gambling behaviour – operator data to Oct 2024
The Gambling Commission has published further data on the gambling industry in Great Britain.
This data, sourced from operators, reflects the period between March 2020 and September 2024, inclusive, and covers online and in-person gambling covering Licensed Betting Operators (LBOs) found on Britain’s high streets.
Comparison should not be made with the industry statistics dataset, as this dataset may include free bets and bonuses and does not include data from all operators.
This release compares Quarter 2 (Q2) of financial year 2024 to 2025, with Q2 of 2023 to 2024, looking at how the market has changed in comparative periods over a year.
The latest operator data shows:
- online total Gross Gambling Yield (GGY) in Q2 (July to September) was £1.32 billion, an increase of 11 percent from Q2 the previous year. The overall number of total bets and/or spins increased 12 percent Year-on-Year (YoY), reaching a new peak for the third consecutive quarter of 25.2 billion, whilst the average monthly active accounts2 in the quarter increased 8 percent
- real event betting GGY increased by 6 percent YoY to £453 million. The number of bets decreased 10 percent, while the average monthly active accounts in Q2 increased 9 percent
- slots GGY increased 16 percent to £680 million YoY. The number of spins increased 13 percent to 23.3 billion while the average monthly active accounts in Q2 increased 16 percent to 4.4 million per month. Although this is a new peak for GGY in this dataset for the slots vertical, it should be noted that one operator has re-classified some of its products into the slot vertical this quarter, which has had an impact on the vertical data
- the number of online slots sessions lasting longer than an hour increased by 9 percent YoY to 10 million. The average session length remained at 17 minutes. Approximately 6.1 percent of all sessions lasted more than one hour compared to 6.6 percent in Q2 the previous year. The number of spins per session has fallen from 147 to 142 YOY, whilst the GGY per session has fallen from £4.20 to £4.13 in the equivalent timeframe
- LBO GGY decreased by 1 percent to £533 million in Q2 2024 to 2025, compared to the same quarter last year, while the number of total bets and spins decreased by 0.1 percent to 3.1 billion.
Industry News
Petra Maria Poola Joins Xace as Group Commercial Director
Xace has announced that Petra Maria Poola has joined the company as Group Commercial Director.
Petra brings a wealth of experience from the iGaming industry having formerly held roles at several iGaming companies such as Yolo, Relax Gaming and SiGMA. She will lead the commercial growth of Xace and its group companies, including crypto and iGaming focused xda.io, helping to drive strategic initiatives across banking, fintech and iGaming solutions.
In her new role, she will mainly oversee the growth of the group’s sales, marketing and account management functions, ensuring a cohesive strategy that supports Xace’s ambitious expansion plans.
“I am incredibly excited to start this new chapter with Xace, and work alongside such a talented team and management. Transitioning into the fintech space, while still connected to iGaming, presents an exciting opportunity for growth and learning. I’m looking forward to applying my expertise to help Xace and its group companies achieve new heights commercially, while gaining deeper insights into the fast-evolving world of fintech,” said Petra Maria Poola.
Reuben Abel, CEO of Xace, said: “Petra’s extensive background in the iGaming sector, combined with her commercial acumen, makes her a valuable addition to the Xace team. She will play a crucial role in expanding Xace’s market presence and enhancing its suite of services tailored to the specific needs of the iGaming and fintech industries.”
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