There’s a reason Las Vegas, Atlantic City, Monte Carlo and similar cities are popular with bettors. In some cases it’s the nearby sights, but generally those cities’ casinos are what bring home the bacon. It’s always surprising, though, to see how many casino apps are available for iOS and Android devices, or to review the number of websites focused on online gambling.
Considering all the lights, noises, glitz and glamour of gambling in person — why else would Vegas have so many shows? — it’s odd to think the casino experience could effectively be translated to a handheld device or computer. But sure enough, plenty of companies tried to do it in 2013, and the forecast for 2014 casino apps looks just as bright.
Looking at only the casino apps we covered this year, it’s easy to see there’s demand for these seeming nonsequiters. After a kick-start by Cognitive Bits in late 2012, this year saw an average of one new app or website per quarter that re-created some aspect of the casino life. First there was Ace Slots Machine Casino, which came only to the Mac, followed this fall by a game that appeared to focus on the Vegas-style eating experience (with a tad more health focus for kids).
Following the launch of the bwin casino website, we saw this October two new app releases, All Slots Mobile Casino and an updated version of the Aw Craps app.
We haven’t seen many casino apps release since then, but 2013’s average of one per quarter seems to indicate we’re due. And once New Years Eve passes tonight and we enter the New Year in 2014, there’s likely to be a flood of them. Why so? For starters, there’s a reason so many companies release websites and apps like this: they make money. Second, the economy’s improving, and when people have more disposable income they tend to spend it on entertaining activities like betting and casinos. And third, smartphones and tablets are spreading to lower-income demographics and developing countries, which offers new areas for casino app makers and website operators to seek their fortune.
But fifth and most importantly, that expanding number of potential app players and website visitors is also looking to “seek their fortune” like millions of hopeful consumers before them. Casinos and the casino lifestyle have been here for decades. You didn’t really think new app and web technology would fail to find the trend, did you?