Online Gambling Wagers to Surpass $1 Trillion by 2022

New data from Juniper Research has found that a combination of increased uptake in digital products, coupled with new, positive regulation, will drive a surge in online gambling wagers. They will reach a total of $1 trillion globally in 2022, more than the annual deficit being added to US national debt; total online wagers are expected to reach $700 billion this year, up from just over $620 billion in 2017.

Online Casinos Drive Innovation

The new research, Mobile & Online Gambling: Casinos, Lotteries, Betting & VR 2018-2022, found that the online casino industry will drive a surge in wagers placed digitally, with this segment comprising over 40% of online wagers by 2022.

This growth in the casino market will be aided by new technologies, as research author Lauren Foye explained: “We believe new channels, such as chatbots, have the potential to drive customer engagement, through delivery of personalised offers, alongside 24/7 player support.”

The research anticipated significant disruption from social offerings, with provider LetsBet among the innovative start-ups which the research believes are set to disturb the status quo. The company hopes to deliver live streamed entertainment and social interaction to users, whilst also implementing gamification through a ‘secret agent’-themed product.

Juniper believes that providers in the online gambling industry, particularly in the casino space, will increasingly offer engaging products to drive user adoption and player spend; Juniper forecasts online gambling users to almost double, reaching 684 million by 2022.

Changing Tides in Legislation

Additionally, online gambling is seeing a raft of legislative changes. Whilst one of the most promising online markets, Australia, has seen poker ‘inadvertently’ banned (and thus providers depart), new opportunities are emerging across the globe.

Juniper highlighted positive changes in the US, where Pennsylvania became the latest state to legalise online gambling services in late 2017. With continuing efforts by a number of states to legalise online offerings, Juniper finds the North American market ripe for future growth.