Watch Skill Games Get Sexy

Whoever would have thought that all those childhood favorites you brought out the toy cupboard on rainy days would become this year's Next Big Thing.

Like the remarkable resurgence of bingo, skill games are currently storming the net and have become a growing phenomenon that is catching the on across the globe.

Industry pundits are predicting the online skill gaming market, which was worth just over $382 million globally at the end of 2009 will rise further to more than $472 million by the end of 2010. The trend is set to continue with a massive hike to over $957 million on the cards by 2014, according to ‘The Global Business of Skill Gaming', a report published by iGaming Business.

The report on the online skill gaming industry also identifies key business trends that are predicted over the next few years:

• increasing consolidation
• more non-traditional gaming brands entering the market
• more targeting of growth markets
• increasing use of television and sponsorship
• more cross-selling of products
• reaching out to non-traditional online gamers
• holding onto to existing players
• more innovation/production of new games and formats/localization
• increased use of social networking
• continued roll out of mobile gaming

Online skill games are like a nice claret; they mature with age. The transition of skill games onto the net has lead to their natural evolution, prompted by the necessity for them to meet the needs and expectations of today's techno gamers.

Software developers are increasingly looking at developing multiplayer options, chat features and team versions of games.

Alongside this development, the industry is looking at how to integrate casino-style features such as cash prizes, jackpots, tournaments and wagers.  However, free options of play-for-fun games will still be available alongside modern, monetized thrillers.

The online skill games market is the new growth area in the gaming sector. It is attracting an increasing global audience of all ages. The industry is responding quickly with software enhancements, game refinement and the added spice of bets and bonuses.

Sites such as William Hill are already promoting an exciting array of online skill games. As the online skill game and online casino markets gradually merge, all eyes are on the biggest sites to launch new, souped up versions of classic games boosted by added sophistication to make them fit for the modern age.