India’s online gambling market has been growing at a rate of 20% per year, and according to estimates, the total market could be worth more than a billion dollars by 2021.
The legal landscape in India allows for international casinos to offer their services to India. Many European casinos have been slowly entering the lucrative emerging market already.
In this post, we take a look at the critical growth drivers when it comes to the online gambling market in India.
Key Growth Drivers
- India has a young population, with around half of the population being younger than 25 years old. Along with having a higher risk tolerance, most of the population is in their prime working years with disposable income.
- Internet penetration has improved massively as both internet data and smartphones became cheaper, partly due to tIndia’sdigital revolution spearheaded by Reliance JIO. India has the largest number of active internet users, only after China.
- Localized content created by online gaming studios has further helped with adoption. The top-rated online casinos in India today support at least some variants of classic Indian games like Andar Bahar and Teen Patti.
- Lastly, India also has a robust IT Sector that has only grown over the last decade. Technology trends and adoption are not just limited to the urban population. Smartphones and the internet have successfully penetrated the rural segment too. There is a sizable target market for any kind of digital-based industry like online gambling.
Current Top Players in the Market
According to Casino Sites India, the current top players in the market include international online casinos like Royal Panda, Leo Vegas, Casumo, and JeetWin.
All the major online casinos are based offshore and operate with global licenses issued by bodies like the Malta Gaming Authority (MGA). Since there are no specific laws that prohibit international online casinos from functioning in India, they can operate in the Indian market.
On the other hand, due to the way Indian laws are structured, companies based in India are prohibited from creating or promoting an online casino site. It is quite common for Indian companies to register in a region like Malta or Curacao to offer their services in India legally.
What’s in store for the future?
The industry’s main challenge is vague outdated laws that do not touch on modern concepts like online gambling.
There is an argument that domestic companies are actually at a disadvantage when creating an online casino site due to the high initial capital costs of registering in another country.
As adoption grows, so does the tax revenue for the government. Some states like Goa and Sikkim have shown the impact legalized gambling can bring to state revenue.
In the most optimistic outlook, the country will make it easier for Indian companies to compete and bring regulations that ultimately benefit the consumers.
As for the current situation, it seems like we’re on the verge of a booming industry with online gambling in India.