Streamers make online casino games more popular
The change in the way of content creation and consuming, especially among the young people, has generated the boost of streamers, who have become celebrities just like TV stars. The gambling industry has been taking advantage of this trend in social networks and on streaming platforms such as Twitch or YouTube, to present the gaming products, promote them and get closer to the players.
Streamers develop online casino games
Alba Monroy, Senior Business Development Manager at Relax Gaming, highlighted the increase in the number of streamers and indicated that they help to lead new players to casinos, including the transition from land-based casinos to online casinos.
"Streamers have a lot to do with the growth of online gabmling and the arrival of new players, as they have been promoting another style of gaming experience," he said in his interview to SBC News.
The streamers popularity was used by Relax Gaming in collaboration with the streaming company CasinoGrounds there they released the first slot game called Iron Bank created by the players themselves. Thus, Monroy is sure that the industry should adapt to the new trends and offer more and more innovations to the users.
"Offering games with well-known themes or with a land-based casino style is important, but you also have to complement it with another type of original and disruptive product, something that streamers show very well," she told. "We take into account the growth of the young audience, and we know that they are already looking for something different, so the variety of games should cover both types of players," said Senior Business Development Manager.
Twitch and cryptocasinos
An example of this trend is found on Twitch, a platform where these streamers stand out with live broadcasts of cryptocasinos that have become popular, given the rise of cryptocurrencies and online gaming. The WIRED website states that 64 of the top 1000 Twitch streamers have either hosted cryptocurrency slot streams or have promoted gambling websites.
The report indicates that the trend has been growing since the second half of 2021 and some broadcasts have had more than 100,000 live viewers. It is worth noting that games with cryptocurrencies, both casino games, as well as games of strategies, farms etc, have been growing in recent times.
Currently cryptocasinos have made several collaborations with famous streamers and paid them a lot of money, to encourage more people every day to play on casino websites. This is also observed in land-based casinos that have also been relying on streamers to get closer to the public.
On the other hand, many people have criticized Twitch low vigilance in transmissions and the possibility of fraud, which is why the streaming company has taken different measures to avoid these issues.
One of the main problems is that some streamers promote illegal websites, especially in the United States. "Much of the gambling that is promoted on Twitch is illegal or unregulated and is a big risk for consumers, vulnerable adults and teenagers or underage children," said Keith Whyte, executive director of the National Council on Problematic Gambling in the WIRED report.
Faced with these types of circumstances, platforms such as YouTube or Twitch must work to improve transmissions every day, while legal and established casinos have to take the lead so that they appear in these spaces and do not leave it free for companies without repute that harm users.
Online Gambling Growth
All this boom in online gambling, cryptocurrencies and streamers, comes in the midst of a society that is becoming more digital every day, something that has been gaining strength after the pandemic.
“It is clear that the pandemic has favored the casino and online gambling, in general. The context has positively helped the process of educating these face-to-face players about the physical casino environment, ”Alba Monroy, Relax Gaming's senior director of development, told SBC News.
In addition, Relax Gaming expect greater growth in the short and medium term. “You just have to analyze the numbers to know that the online casino market still has a lot of growth left. During 2020, the sector has grown 5 percent with almost 1.5 million active players. Mostly due to the slot market, which is our key product,” Monroy said.
"There will always be players who prefer the land-based casino experience, but many players have realized the advantages of playing online, such as privacy, the possibilities to play from wherever they want, the fact of comparing different casinos / operators," she said .
Without a doubt, this digitization presents challenges for companies that have to innovate every day. “There is a change in behavior on the part of casino players towards greater digitization, so we expect that products such as table games (especially live games), video bingo, three-reel slots or even fantasy games will continue to be in high demand”.
“That is why we now present 6-reel online slots or even cascade slot machines, with new tools within the same game, passing levels, with a free spins round, among other features that give rise to an experience much more linked to video games. , the entire industry is aiming in this direction ”, Monroy closed.
