Impact of web-based and mobile technology on characteristics of Online Gambling
Web-based and mobile technology enables easy anytime gambling. They allow playing on the move, at home, at work or in a social environment. This means habitual play can become more easily ingrained. In contrast to destination gambling such as casinos, bingo halls, racecourses, bookmakers and arcades that are more of an event, separate from everyday life and easier to avoid.
Web and mobile gambling remove environment barriers such as visibility and inconvenience. Online gambling can be done hidden from friends and family, without judgement, 24 hours a day, with reduced opportunity for intervention, at the same time as providing the opportunity to play at a dramatically increased rate.
The easy 24-hour accessibility of certain types of web and mobile play means that binge behaviour can happen at any time. Also, some types of online gambling are particularly prone to repetitive play, such as instant win games and online casinos. Sports/events-based betting in comparison has more of a delay built-in, although frequent players can overcome this restriction by betting in other countries or using in-play mechanics. Mobile and web-based gambling enable the transformation of traditional destination gambling to instant win in terms of ease and convenience of play.
Mobile and web-based gambling also overlap with other digital entertainment, live gaming and social media. It occupies similar consumer moments and uses similar mechanics, e.g. 63% of UK adults use other devices while watching TV. Some digital games have many similar characteristics to online gambling, which in our view may allow younger audiences to develop an appetite for gambling products.
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Last updated: 4 May 2023
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