The online bingo market had experienced steady growth since its conception in 1996 when the first online bingo offering was a free game called Bingo Zone. Since this date, online bingo has increased in popularity alongside the availability and affordability of newer technologies, including 4G and 5G, more advanced smartphones, and better quality apps and mobile websites.
Today, the Online Bingo Games Market size is projected to reach $1804.54 million by 2030. This CAGR is a significantly unexpected growth rate when looking at trends on and before the beginning of this decade. This growth is affected by several factors, from changes in US casino laws allowing the North American market to thrive to new global players entering the scene.
As of 2024, there is a wide variety of quality bingo sites for online bingo fans, from free games to official online bingo providers that offer large cash prizes. The format of these online bingo games can vary significantly, with some resembling traditional bingo hall games and some offering exciting themes and creative graphics that make it seem more like a video game.
Below, we’ll take a closer look at the factors that are contributing to the growth of mobile bingo gaming.
Key market players
Today, several conglomerate organizations dominate the online bingo world.
Many organizations were already well established in the online casino and sports wagering spaces and have expanded into online bingo as it has grown in popularity. In addition, while many of these groups have roots in Europe, as the North American market has become more flexible in its gaming laws, these organizations have been able to further tailor and expand their offerings specifically for the US market.
In addition to the US, the main markets driving online bingo growth, according to statistics, include Europe (including Germany, the UK, France, Italy, Russia, and Turkey), Asia Pacific (including China, Japan, Korea, India, Australia, Indonesia, Thailand, Philippines, Malaysia and Vietnam), and the Middle East and Africa (including Saudi Arabia, UAE, Egypt, Nigeria, and South Africa.
Modernised digital experiences
When we think of traditional bingo, it was mainly associated with older females who would get together and play in traditional bingo halls. However, the addition of online bingo has opened the market to far more audience groups, including younger females and males of all ages. Today, people from all backgrounds, countries, and ethnicities participate in online bingo in a shared online community.
One of the factors holding back many people from participating in bingo was the stereotypical nature associated with the game – that you must be female and older for it to be acceptable to play. However, online play has helped to remove this issue by enabling players to play anonymously if they wish to in the privacy of their own space.
The ‘coolness’ of online bingo
While bingo was not seen as an excellent activity by younger people, online bingo has helped shift perceptions by tying in the game with popular culture, making it more acceptable to young people’s culture and more enticing to play. Many of today’s online bingo games are centered around exciting themes in front of the latest TV series and blockbuster movies.
Accessibility through advanced technology
Online bingo has allowed more people than ever to access the game, where they would have traditionally struggled to get to a bingo hall. In countries with harsher gaming laws, people can play online bingo games through legal loopholes provided by offshore providers. This has been the case for residents in Canada and some parts of the US.
What’s more, the latest 4G and 5G technologies have allowed more people to access the world of Wi-Fi, in which higher streaming power and faster download speeds mean that people everywhere can enjoy a more rapid and smoother gaming experience, whether that be from a remote town in South America, the desserts of Africa, or a tropical beach in the South Pacific.
Conclusion
Overall, online bingo growth has been steady for several decades, yet this decade marks a period of significant growth for the industry. Thanks to the industry’s willingness to adopt the latest technologies, alongside shifts in attitudes and gaming laws worldwide that are enabling large players in the market to get a stronger foothold, online bingo is seen to be thriving and growing at an incredible pace.
