What to Expect from the iGaming Market in 2020

Posted by Harry Kane on Monday, November 4, 2019

In the year ending September 2018, it was revealed that the GGY for online gambling in the UK peaked at £5.6 billion. As a result of this sustained growth, online gambling grew to account for 39.1% of the overall gambling industry in Britain, with this trend likely to continue into the near-term.

This growth is also being achieved against an increasingly evolving and technology-led backdrop, with continued innovation and regulatory changes having a seismic impact on the industry and individual operators alike.

In this post, we’ll look at what 2020 is likely to have in store for the iGaming marketplace, whilst exploring the key trends that will define the sector.

1. The Emergence of New and Innovative Welcome Bonuses

Whilst it may sound like a harsh observation, online gambling firms only really generate revenue when their customers lose money.

With this in mind, operators should ideally look to optimise the number of players who register with them, as this enables them to boost their revenues whilst also minimising the average losses for each individual customer.

Achieving this objective can be challenging in a competitive marketplace, however, so operators must look to set themselves apart from their rivals in order to claim a viable market share.

Increasingly, operators have leveraged lucrative welcome bonuses to incentivise new customers, with 100% and 200% deposit match offers often supplemented by a predetermined number of free spins and no-deposit wagers.

Whilst this trend will continue for the large part in 2020, we’ve already seen the average value of welcome bonuses decline over the course of the last 18 months or so. Instead, operators are focusing on developing inventive and unique bonus structures that offer genuine value to players, creating an unusual hook that really captures the imagination of punters.

These offers can take numerous forms, from promotions that reward players with comp and VIP points to others that are completely free from wagering requirements. The latter tactic is becoming increasingly popular, as this creates more simplistic and rewarding offers that essentially translate into free cash.

Importantly, this type of bonus also provides customers with instant access to their winnings, rather than requiring them to play through 30 or 40-times their deposit before they’re eligible to complete withdrawals.

This is a key consideration here; as punters are increasingly discerning and keen on promotional offers that don’t require them to wager a fixed amount as a pre-condition. One of the main reasons for this is the rise of casual players, who typically play with smaller bankrolls and avoid betting large amounts of cash.

With this in mind, this type of promotion should become increasingly commonplace in 2020, whilst operators will also seek out new and innovative ways of incentivising customers as the iGaming landscape continues to shift.

2. Introducing New and Relevant Marketing Techniques

The shift in the iGaming market has certainly been pronounced in recent times, particularly when you consider the prevailing player demographics.

More specifically, the rise of casual players has lowered the average age of gamblers in the UK, whilst women have also claimed a larger share of the marketplace over the course of the last decade.

These changes have forced marketers to switch their focus, as younger and female players showcase different behaviours and have alternative motivations for gambling in the first place. In total, 41% of all women in the UK have participated in some form of gambling during the next 12 months, with females far more likely to wager online than at brick-and-mortar outlets.

Interestingly, women (49%) are also more likely than men (44%) to participate in gambling to win. In contrast, the majority of men wager for the purposes of fun and enjoyment, whilst the same principle also applies to younger players across both genders.

These figures highlight the need for integrated and structured marketing campaigns, which leverage alternative channels to target key demographics. Marketers will also tailor their content and promotions depending on whether they’re communicating with men or women, in order to engage them more effectively and help them to achieve their objectives as players.

For example, women are more likely to respond to no-deposit bets and promotions that are free from wagering requirements, with their primary motivation being to win. Similarly, this demographic will often prefer low-variance slot games, which deliver relatively modest but frequent base game wins that boost their bankroll.

This type of insight is invaluable for operators, who must adopt an increasingly strategic approach to marketing if they’re to compete in a packed and increasingly diverse market.

3. The Popularisation of 5G Technology

Earlier this year, 5G technology was rolled out across the length and breadth of the UK. This represented a significant upgrade on existing 4G networks, whilst it also offered numerous opportunities for iGaming developers and operators across the globe.

In simple terms, 5G technology is thought to be nearly three-times faster than its predecessor, whilst it also boasts lower latency levels that are capable of processing huge swathes of data in real-time.

This evolution has the potential to significantly improve live casino gameplay and in-play betting experiences, by delivering higher quality graphics and ensuring that real-time odds are calculated as efficiently and as quickly as possible.

5G also has huge connotations for mobile gambling, particularly as this technology now provides a more than viable alternative to established Wi-Fi connections. It’s estimated that 51% of all gamblers in the UK now wager frequently whilst on the move, with this number expected to increase incrementally in the near-term.

A growing number of operators are now launching native apps for Android and iOS platforms to meet this demand, of course, with players prioritising secure and accessible sites that offer a seamless gambling experience.

5G certainly makes it easier than ever to connect gamblers with mobile casino platforms, whilst minimising buffering and negating the risk of interruption during ongoing gambling sessions.

In many ways, this may be the single biggest trend to impact on the iGaming market in 2020, with 5G set to revolutionise the online gambling experience whilst also helping to popularise innovations such as virtual reality.