With the internet making the world smaller, the global sports betting industry has mushroomed into a million dollar business. But there remain challenges, and we catch up with Technavio’s specialized analysts to understand what investors should expect.
The sports betting industry has oscillated between being a shadow industry and an elitist playing field over the centuries, but today, the common man and the elite both have access to the modern internet fueled betting space. The Americas continues to remain a stronghold in the industry, and is expected to contribute to over 40% of the global market share (source). As efforts to regularize the industry keep posing challenges, it must be noted that due to jurisdiction issues, it has not been a straightforward matter to impose legal boundaries. Nonetheless, it is the one concern that research analysts expect the industry to remain wary about.
Offline sports betting has long faced challenges of the legal sorts, with efforts to legalize and regularize, both never completely succeeding. Also, the sports that are bet on in the real world are of a more limited nature; as e-sports in itself has become a booming industry, simulating real life sports to a large degree, the offline betting world has struggled to provide a rejuvenated approach, although sports are also changing their rules to become more entertainment (and betting) friendly. Region specific betting is still very much alive, as can be seen in the UK markets.
The virtual world has provided the cover of anonymity to its users, and a feeling of safety, helping create a loyal customer base. In countries where betting is partially legalized, such as in several Asia Pacific countries, vendors provide high-quality, seamless betting platforms to aid real-time betting, driving the sports betting industry to innovate to capture and retain consumer attention. Also, in-app purchases and advertising are stepping up their roles in overarching industry. The market itself is competitive as bookmakers and vendors, especially online, try and provide their customers with more than just monetary gratification in order to keep easily lost digital attention spans. The sports betting industry is swiftly covering all its bases with associated markets such as gambling data and potential credits scores creating their own niches.
The APAC scenario
While the USA has historically been big on betting, especially with several states legalizing partial or limited betting, several APAC countries have a long legacy of betting, and this is coming onto well-developed online platforms. Moreover, the younger audiences in countries where betting is popular are easily accustomed to virtual sports betting. As such, the sports betting industry continues to look up in the region. Technavio’s reports about the sports betting industry outline the pitfalls and the market drivers in detail, as well as the competitive landscape. Analysts predict that since the sports betting industry is absolutely booming, and going to continue to dos so, APAC countries, and especially millennials in these countries, will have a role to play in these markets.
Legalization and regulation are issues that pose challenges, but also opportunities, and this is something that online sports betting platforms try to either overcome, or work around, while offering sufficient cover and ease of use to end customers. With the advent of sophisticated but user-friendly technology in the palms of consumers, sports betting is a juggernaut, as vendors work on making the platforms easier and quicker. Find out more about the sports betting markets around the globe with Technavio’s reports on the subject here.