Ever since the Gambling Act of 1996 swept away the old laws surrounding gambling and lotteries and replaced them with a more liberal but tightly regulated gambling and gaming market, South Africa has learned to love online casinos.
In 2019, the revenue generated by South Africa’s gambling is projected to his R30 billion, fuelled largely by online gambling and gaming. What’s interesting, however, is that in our country, gambling is something we like to do on our smartphones. It’s a trend that’s been rising consistently year on year, but what’s behind the growth? Join us as we explain.
Smartphone Adoption Rates are Very High
According to the latest surveys, smartphone adoption rates in South Africa have now risen above 50%, sitting at 51% as of July 2018. That number will have only risen since then. South Africa has the highest levels of smartphone adoption of any African nation and isn’t far away from the global average, making smartphones arguably the most important piece of computational equipment in the country.
That notion is borne out by statistics which suggest that 60.26% of South Africans are primarily accessing the internet through their mobile phone. That compares to just 16.45% accessing from a laptop, 9.66% with a tablet, 9.49% with a PC and 1.90% through over devices.
In this context, it’s not difficult to see why the vast majority of South Africans would be using smartphones to access their favourite betting apps. It’s not the only reason though…
Betting Apps are Simply Better
Although betting websites have improved with the years, betting apps maintain a huge advantage in countries which don’t have ultra-fast internet connections.
Specifically, they’re highly optimised and therefore able to operate on even slower networks like EDGE. When a device is in your pocket and you’ve got the choice between a slower website and a faster app, just a tap away, the choice is a simple one.
Betting operators like Lottoland have begun to receive licenses to operate lotteries in South Africa that not offer local jackpots, but access to the biggest jackpots in the world, like the US Mega Millions and Powerball games, which offer jackpots which have topped out at $1.586 billion (R225.55 billion).
With tickets like that available right from the app, it’s clear why South Africans are choosing to pull out their phone rather than walk to the store to play an inferior version of the game.
Betting Communities are Growing
Perhaps the very best thing about the modern internet is the proliferation of communities for virtually every single passion. It’s no different in the lottery and gambling scene, where South Africans are increasingly gathering to discuss tips, tricks and ideas in the hopes of striking it lucky and hitting the big jackpot.
It’s something that’s simply missing from the traditional, in-person gambling, gaming and lottery experience and a way in which gambling apps and websites have made huge strides in recent years.
Do you gamble or play the lottery online or in person? Let us know in the comments below!
