Is 5G Coverage Necessary For The Online Casino Market's Projected Growth?

The online casino industry is continuing to grow in 2023. Click here to find out if 5G will become a crucial factor in its success.

01:21 10 October 2023

Considering that the online casino market was worth around $15 billion in 2009, it has seen a lot of growth in the last 14 years. In 2023, the market size is now valued at nearly $65.53 billion, and it doesn’t show any signs of slowing down. With a CAGR of 11.7%, it is projected that the market will grow to $181 billion by 2030.

But hold on, because it’s not as easy as that. There have been a number of factors that have played a part in the online casino surge, with the most significant being the introduction of do-everything smartphones. In 2007, there were many critics who stated the success of online casinos was “touch and go”, and it wasn’t until the first iPhone was released that they truly began to fly.

In many ways, the online casino industry was the biggest beneficiary of the rise of smartphones. With players now able to enjoy online casinos on the go and with a tonne of ease and convenience, there was nothing stopping them from overtaking traditional casinos as the number one format. But just as smartphones aided the rise of the online casino market, so too might they hamper it.

The Situation With 5G

It should be no surprise that network coverage is becoming essential for players to receive the full benefits of an online casino. As an example, online casinos now offer a way for players to communicate with a dealer in real time – further bridging the gap between the traditional casino and the online equivalent. This, however, puts more demand on the network and the device, which is where 5G becomes so crucial.

But despite the first-ever all-5G smartphone – the Samsung Galaxy S10 5G – being released in 2019, the actual 5G rollout is still officially ongoing. In the UK, for instance, all four major mobile networks are offering 5G, but only in selected areas, and the coverage is not yet widespread. In fact, even in the areas where 5G is supposed to be available, there are a number of users who have complained of slow speeds, lag, and a declined performance over time.

In many ways, the vast capabilities of 5G have contributed to its own – less than speedy – rollout. Because of what 5G is offering, its complexity far outweighs the complexity of previous mobile networks. As well as this, due to the higher frequencies used for 5G, each mast site will serve a smaller area than with 4G and 3G. This means that more masts and equipment are needed to cover more places, which is one of the reasons why the rollout has been noticeably slow.

The Situation For Online Casinos

One of the key reasons why people enjoy online casinos is because they are convenient. All you have to do is pick up your phone, sign in, and start playing. Now, because of the unprecedented success of the industry, there are a number of casinos to choose from, which means distinguishing between them can only be done by determining which is the fastest, most secure, most varied, and most convenient.

But this could spell bad news when it comes to competition in the industry. Say that one casino has its larger customer base in the UK, as it begins to provide more and keep up with 5G tech, there is potential that it will suffer due to those 5G capabilities not yet being completely widespread – or even working – in the UK. This problem is worsened when considering some regions – and big cities – refusal of 5G masts altogether.

Similarly, because of constantly upgrading tech, user anticipation and expectation is growing. That means, if the speed and efficiency of online casinos are not on par with what a customer expects, there is a chance they will become disengaged or might even stop playing entirely.

That being said, it’s worth noting that 5G is better than 4G and 3G, which means, in contrast, it will have a longer rollout timeframe. Online casinos will just have to sit tight and work within this timeframe. The projection is still that they will rise to unprecedented new heights over the next few years, and nothing so far is signifying that this won’t happen.