Mobile gambling to reach $62 billion in 2018

UK-based Juniper Research’s latest report predicts that annual wagers on mobile casinos and poker will reach $62 Billion globally by 2018, a six-fold increase on the $10 Billion wagered last year.

According to the report, the primary driver will be legalisation of selected online gambling services in the previously untapped US market, where it expects to see a host of service launches over the next five years.

“Mobile Gambling: Casinos, Lotteries & Betting 2013-2018” found that gambling operators on a global level have been spurred to develop sophisticated mobile casino solutions based on the success of free-to-play casino games.

Big Fish Casino, Poker by Zynga and Slotomania are amongst the highest grossing games on Apples App Store through consumer purchases of virtual currency and they have demonstrated how immersive games such as slots and poker can be on a mobile device.

On the other side of the coin, Juniper Research said it found little evidence that lotteries were eager to expand to mobile.

“Lack of competition in the lottery space has meant that there has been little incentive to innovate. Realistically, only if retail outlet ticket sales slump will providers be incentivised to push distribution through online and mobile channels,” said report author Siân Rowlands.