The continued popularity and growth of online entertainment, social media and online gambling has created an attractive market for innovative, new games that provide true social interaction and the opportunity for lifestyle changing wins.

This growth is happening at the same time as the barriers to the online gambling market place are being lowered in more countries. Proof of this can be seen in the favourable changes to laws governing online gambling in a number of European countries and the United States.

Established operators are trying to add new products (and effectively saying “me too”).

An increasing number of new entrants are combining technologies and social formats to create exciting new experiences for the online community.

Whilst there are regulatory and political hurdles remaining in some jurisdictions, online gambling has taken a foothold and investment continues to grow. There is enormous potential emerging throughout the EU countries, the United States, Asia and Pacific.

Even the most pessimistic pundits admit that the wagering and gaming industries are only at the beginning of this growth cycle.

The only limitation to growth is the ability to deliver truly unique product ideas.

It’s an exciting time for those who can innovate to realise the opportunities available from the convergence of online gambling, social media and online entertainment.

We saw this opportunity back in 2012 when Six Faces was incorporated

Take a look at these media snapshots from our 2012 scrapbook:

Social gambling is a surprisingly large and high-growth industry

Convergence between online (real money) and social (virtual currency) gambling is the hottest topic in the gambling industry. We see social gambling growing from $1.7bn today to $2.5bn by 2015, and see it as a rich source of customers that could boost growth rates for real money gambling. This reports looks at the drivers of growth, the key uncertainties, and what this could mean for the leading operators.

Source: Morgan and Stanley Blue Paper ‘Social Gambling: Click Here to Play’, November 14, 2012

Lotteries to adopt social games

A Fourth Wave of legal gambling, based on new technology is rapidly spreading… State lotteries will be the first to adapt social games to play for money.

Source: Igaming business issue 75, july/august 2012 p.6

Social meets Real Money

We have a strong conviction that mobile apps that combine social and real-money gambling are a powerful way to engage more users and increase overall monetization

Source: Paul Thelen, founder and CEO of Big Fish, August 20, 2012 (igamingbusiness.com)

The next big thing for 2012

Mark Zuckerberg is on record as describing social gaming as the next big thing for 2012.

It’s hardly surprising since, presently, over half of Facebook’s global user base use their accounts for social gaming of one form or another. Social games benefit from free play, enabling the majority of users to play without barriers to entry, while providing an effective monetisation path for the minority. Monetisation of social games comes in three key formats: 1) Virtual currency, 2) In game advertisement, 3) In game branding

Source: Igaming business issue 75, july/august 2012 p.2

Consumer confidence

Online gambling has become an increasingly acceptable way to make wagers, and in the last two years, mobile gambling has been the fastest growing method of placing bets in the industry. This trend is likely to continue, as most online gambling sites add and improve mobile options to attract new users.

In addition, the increased regulation of online gambling in Australia and other jurisdictions is expected to increase consumer confidence in the years to come.

Source: www.australiangambling.com.au ‘Australian Online Gambling on the Rise’