Online Casino Industry: Recession Proof?

In the face of an ongoing European economic recession, the fledgling industry of online casinos experienced a significant if not remarkable increase.

Robust Growth

A 2012 placed the online gaming industry's worth at an approximate £14 billion in global value.

The relatively low cost of entertainment and easy access to the activity are certainly key factors which the internet provides.

Appeal

The benefits of technology combine with traditional proclivities of the public to seek relief from stress and uncertainty inherent to economic crises, and popular online casinos such as bet365 Casino, Winner Casino and Jackpot City serve as that outlet.

Online casinos also provide benefits such as cash prizes which are more welcomed during economic crises of course. They also provide additional revenues to struggling federal economies in Europe who have worked on regulation models for online gambling.

Obviously, online gambling can feed addiction as well, but successful sites that are allowed to operate have demonstrated social responsibility to the governments that issue them licenses, so that issue is being squarely addressed as well. The public can see these efforts through additional hotlines and warning pamphlets on their sites where online gambling is being offered.

Protections

The diversity of games of the biggest sites ensures that there will be some wagering available to all preferences; the work now falls to operators to develop flexible and efficient approaches to Internal Audits.

Since online gambling sites have often been used in the past as fronts for money laundering, the guidelines for internal audits need to be particularly clear, specific, uniform, and transparent. This comes on the heels of a call by the Chartered Institute of Internal Auditors to improve the 25% figure of online operators conforming to the International Standards.

Protecting against addition is even more essential in desperate economic times, so that the strong marketing push and high engagement levels of the convenient online websites that are performing so well on the European market will not feed the potential for further addiction in those at risk. That is why internal audits and responsible marketing are two essentials of the continued survival of the online gambling industry, no matter what the financial figures say.