How did Online Sports Betting Embrace New Technology?

It is hard to try and find one area that wasn’t completely changed by technology and the massive wave of advancement we’ve been witnessing.

13:10 02 December 2019

... over the past few decades. From medicine to real estate businesses, all walks of life have benefitted and developed by virtue of the internet and the technological advancements that came with it. Yet, some businesses and fields benefitted more than others, and some were even revolutionized. One of those is sports betting, which turned into something else completely when the internet was involved.

The early days

In the late 90s, the internet was beginning to surface, and it didn’t take long for casinos and gambling committees to see the myriad of opportunities that came with it. Bingo and poker were the first gambling games to be added in the cyberspace, and they were a hit. People could only gamble back in the day by actually going to physical casinos or finding a bookie to place a bet on their favorite team. It was taxing as it was time consuming, and all that changed when sports betting embraced technology.

Comfort and convenience

It was then possible for people to bet on their favorite teams playing halfway across the world without ever leaving their homes. All you needed back then was a computer and an internet connection, and you could place your bets with online bookies and wait for the results. This level of convenience offered by online sports betting entities was a game changer, and people loved it. When those bookies became available online and started using technology to make punters’ lives easier, a lot more people became drawn into the world of sports betting. The profits started exponentially growing, and things were only getting started.

Mobile technology

Mobile technology changed things even further. You no longer had to use a laptop or a computer to bet on your favorite teams. Sports bookies started creating apps and making their websites available on mobile, which further increased the number of interested parties and made it more accessible for a lot more people to wager on different sports. You didn’t even need to get out of bed; you could just grab your phone and place a bet on any sport at any hour of the day. Needless to say, this took things to the next level, and the industry grew beyond control.

Access to knowledge

One more way technology affected sports betting was the availability of knowledge. To wager on those games, you needed expert advice and insight into what teams were the favorites to win, which wasn’t easily available before the internet. All you had to do with its advent was look online to find a resource for help before games with predictions and recommended bets. Even something far less popular like college basketball had plenty of dedicated websites offering insight for people willing to venture into that world but lacked the motive or proper guidance. Expert insight wasn’t the only thing you could have access to, but also in depth analysis of the betting process itself, with detailed guides on how sports betting works to help you understand odds and what they signified, as well as how to try and get an edge over the bookies.

Security and protection

Sports betting companies were also clever enough to understand the importance of security when it comes to online gambling. Once the world was invested enough in sports wagers, and online casinos, those companies invested heavily in security to protect their customers’ data and financial information. This was important so punters would feel confident enough to use their credit cards and bank information while placing online bets, and sports betting companies got the latest technologies out there to inspire that confidence and lure gamblers. They now use the highest level of security protocols and encryption systems –– those even used in banks –– to ensure that your personal information and money is safe from any hackers.

Customer satisfaction

Needless to say, ensuring customer satisfaction wasn’t exactly a priority for most bookies back in the day. But with the internet, it became a number one priority. With chat bots, emails, live chats, and a lot of other customer service channels, sports betting companies embraced technology to the fullest to ensure customer satisfaction.

There is no telling how much further sports betting companies can leverage technology to improve punters’ experience, but as long as there are advancements, you can be rest assured they’ll be there to see if they can be wielded to the benefit of online gambling. Sports aren’t likely to be less interesting or loved in the future, and as long as there are nail-biting matches and contests, people will always love to bet.