Online Gambling – an industry at the heart of the technological revolution

By Contributing Author

Technology has changed our everyday lives, and this is perhaps the most obvious statement one can start an article with. Just to be clear, here we’re actually talking of computer technology, particularly technology tied to the internet and its widespread use.

Every single one of us is able to observe how the internet changed their lives and the lives of their families, but some industries have been affected severely. Here, we’ll go through the effects of technology and the internet revolution on online gambling.

Israeli company Playtech – one of the pioneers of the industry

Israeli companies such as Playtech played a major role in the transformation of the industry. This company was one of the pioneers in the industry and they have developed some of the most popular and most played online slots. Playtech’s most serious competitors are NetEnt and Microgaming and if you look at the game selection at any of the most popular online casino sites, you will notice that their most prominent games are by one of these providers.

For instance, NetEnt’s Starburst slot has been one of the most popular and most played online slots in 2018, whereas Playtech’s Age of the Gods was one of top games of 2019.

The early days of the industry

The first online casino was established in the 1990s, but at that point nobody believed that online gambling has the potential to become such a massive industry. It was seen as more of a fringe thing, not even an alternative to land-based gambling, but as soon as the use of the internet and the network strength began improving, more and more people realised the potential of online gambling, particularly those for whom it wasn’t convenient to visit a land-based casino, mostly due to the lack of thereof.

Online casino sites became more user-friendly and more reliable, and more payment options became available to players. Payment security was an issue that many players were concerned with initially, but that changed over time and nowadays it is a lot safer to play at an online casino, then to carry large sums of cash with you on your trip to or from the nearest land-based casino.

Retro slot in all their simplicity

But it’s not just the technical aspects that have improved. While it is important for a player to have access to secure payment options and for the site to be user-friendly, the main reason why a player interested in games would or wouldn’t join a site are the games that are on offer. And the games at online casinos cannot be compared to the ones offered at land-based facilities few decades ago. The graphics and sound effects, not to mention the diversity in terms of features such as bonuses and the overall gameplay are immense.

Older slots featured simple fruit symbols like cherries, watermelons, lemons, as well as bars and 7s, but that was about it, not a lot of diversity. Retro slots usually came with three reels and just a single payline, so there were only few winning combinations which made them a lot more repetitive and quite simple too.

Technology brings diversity

Modern online slots have a lot better graphics thanks to the advanced technology and game engines used by developers, but the games are a lot more diverse in terms of themes and symbols. Slot games, or at least many of them, have a storyline and a distinct theme. There are games based on characters, films, books, shows, myths and legends, you name it. There isn’t a theme that can’t be turned into an online slot.

While playing slots or roulette on your PC is convenient, playing games on your mobile is even more convenient. Mobile casinos revolutionised the industry even further and game providers are making further steps in the direction. Many predict that virtual reality casinos are the next step for the industry.