New mobile gambling study forecasts good growth

A new study released this week by gambling consultancy H2 Gambling Capital predicts more growth for the popular mobile gambling channel, and predicts that usage patterns will change over the next five years.

The study results, which are underscored by the positive impact of mobile gambling on the recent financial results of many top European gambling groups, show:

* Last year the mobile gambling market was valued at around Euro 2.22 billion.

* By 2015 the forecast is that it will have doubled that to reach Euro 5.4 billion, achieving a compound annual growth rate of 19.3 percent.

* At the end of last year the mobile gambling market accounted for 9.8 percent of interactive and 0.6 percent of gross gambling yield globally. Analysts are predicting conservatively that this will grow to 12.9 percent and 0.9 percent respectively by 2013.

* A major driving force in mobile gambling has been betting on racing, which accounts for almost 77 percent of global GGY, with the Japanese Racing Association accounting for almost 57 percent of the global mobile gambling market in 2010. But over the next five years, the emphasis will move to gaming and lottery activity due to player-friendly technology improvements like improved connectivity and innovations like tablets.

* H2 reckons that at the end of that five year period betting will still account for 50.48 percent of the global mobile gambling market, but that casino gaming will have grabbed 39.82 percent of the action, and lottery activities 9.7 percent.