igaming industry

When you think about high-tech industries that thrive on big data and business analytics, gambling is not the first field that comes to mind. As it turns out, there is a lot of number-crunching work happening underneath all the happy bonus offers and colorful symbols aligning when you play casino slots. The iGaming business model is driven by projections of player behavior and that is only possible based on vast amounts of data and meticulous work to make sense of it.

There are many ways in which iGaming companies use data to determine their business policies and decide about implementing new features for the users. Let’s look at some of the most important ones.

Gambling Is All about Managing the Probabilities

Every game of chance is driven by probabilities and those who organise or participate in them must be aware of the odds. That is to say, traditional gambling was always largely based on statistical analysis and that didn’t change too much in the digital era. Every game you can see in the online casino has well-defined win conditions and statistically calculated payouts. While individual players may get variable returns in every session, on the macro level the impact of luck is minimal. By choosing which games to host and how much to pay to the winners, iGaming companies can control their risk/reward ratio and ensure they always have an edge. This is why online casinos limit the maximum win on a particular game, as they want to safeguard against low-probability outcomes that could trigger huge liabilities.

Online Platforms Enable Activity Tracking

Online environment allows gaming companies to monitor the actions of players very effectively in real time, without spending any manpower. Instead of a floor boss in a casino who is watching over the patrons’ shoulders, advanced software is automatically tracking every click the player makes while on a casino website. The amount of data generated in this way is enormous, and iGaming companies own it and store it on their servers so it remains available for years. The real challenge is classifying and analysing all that information, turning high volume of trivial statistics into a handful of actionable insights. When done right, this can set up a company for sustained success with a competitive portfolio of popular games and a functional website that users enjoy spending time at. However, raw numbers can be misleading and must always be evaluated within a broader context.

Leveraging Mobile Data for Delivering Tailored Service

Much of the gaming activity is moving to mobile platforms in recent years, which effectively creates additional wealth of information about players and their preferences. Most importantly, mobile data is geo-located so game providers can fully understand where the traffic is coming from, and where the users are going while they are interacting with game content. This allows for much more precisely targeted promotions and in-depth localisation of service. Additional data also helps game designers to create games that can be played comfortably while on the move, leading to further evolution of play styles and features. It’s fair to say that multi-platform environment poses unique challenges, but it also allows iGaming companies to work with more diverse and more complete data sets than ever before.

Returning Just Enough Money to the Players

It goes without saying that every iGaming company wants to turn a profit, but excessive greed can be dangerous in a field as competitive as this one. Modern players are savvy about the house edge and average RTP%, and they avoid providers that take too large cut of the cake. Effectively, providers are left to balance between financial sustainability and customer satisfaction, with competitors waiting to take their place if they get the formula wrong. It’s fairly easy to sweeten the deal for the players through one-time bonuses or special promo events, without changing the game offering. Thus, providers who are losing ground in the market race can decide to endure the loss for a while in order to attract more players. Of course, this can’t be done forever and such efforts can become way too costly if they don’t increase the number of paying customers quickly.

Searching for Patterns that Reveal Fraud or Threats

Security is a huge issue on gambling websites, as players rightfully demand to be protected from risks. Measures designed to maintain a safe environment are draining a lot of resources that would otherwise go to game development or marketing. Fortunately, data analysis can help iGaming providers to defend against intruders without spending too much money or diverting their attention from core activities. Malicious actors tend to behave in predictable way and to leave digital traces that can be discovered by software tools. Casino websites are using such tools to identify fake accounts and other fraudulent users and block them immediately. Similar techniques can be used to recognise users struggling to control their spending and to offer them assistance. As a result, modern gaming platforms are much less risky than they were in the past, which makes them more attractive to casual players who tend to gamble responsibly and avoid controversy.