US online gambling could be in for some growing pains in the near future. Hopes that mobile sports betting could usher in a new era of casino games on the internet could get some push back from anti-gambling establishments. And we can point some of the blame at the gambling companies themselves for helping their cause.
As mobile sports betting expands, operators are engaging in relentless advertising campaigns. The hopes are, of course, to capture as much market share as possible, but the costs could also be great. This week’s video looks at how the US online gambling industry is seemingly following the United Kingdom, and what that could mean.
The competition between FanDuel, DraftKings, and the like is a major battle. The companies are pouring millions of dollars into advertising campaigns, which may be overwhelming consumers with commercials, sponsorships, and endorsement deals. And if gamblers think it’s all a bit too much, imagine what anti-gambling folks are going to do?
The push back will eventually come. The real question is will it come from individuals, private groups, or government agencies? Sports betting operators in the United Kingdom have been pushing the limits of advertising gambling products for decades. Eventually, all that advertising gave industry opponents the very ammunition they needed to target the companies.
The dialogue was that gambling operators didn’t really care about their customers, and that their advertising blitzes were breeding addiction and targeting kids! So now, the laws are changing in the form of the Gambling Act Review. It involves sweeping legislation that will not just affect sports betting, but the entire gambling industry. And this in a country that’s been regulating sports betting for almost a hundred years!
Now, the US online gambling industry seems to be following pretty much the same course as their British counterparts. And while this may be the natural evolution of the business, that doesn’t mean that the push back won’t hurt when it comes. Still, we all know that operators will continue to pour millions into advertising. They almost have to. If they don’t, they know their competitors will. So it will be business as usual, until that push back comes.
