Reading Time: 5 minutes
SOFTSWISS is a pioneering tech company for iGaming, with over 10 years of experience. To share a data-driven analysis of the market trends and results in 2022, the company created a report on the Hottest iGaming Trends 2023.
This report discusses the latest trends in payments and licensing, player behavior, operations, security, and gamification. These insights are based upon the 600+ SOFTSWISS clients’ data, industry experts survey results, and the expertise of key company specialists.
PAYMENTS AND LICENSING
SOFTSWISS surveyed 60% of third-party experts and named Payments and Licensing the most important category influencing the iGaming sector.
More markets around the world will be regulated locally by 2023. This trend is growing as some countries such as Germany, Sweden, and the Netherlands are withdrawing their registrations from international gaming authorities.
Operators must ensure that payment security is met.
-
A wide range of established payment options
-
Location of financial modules
The integrations of Apple Pay and Google Play could be a great way to grow an online gambling business.
Even non-pro adopters of crypto coins will continue to offer digital coins as a payment option in order to reach new audiences and draw crypto-oriented gamblers. As cryptocurrencies gain more recognition, many countries are now integrating them into their financial systems. Ukraine launched e-hryvnia, which was issued by the NBU.
AndreyStarovoitov, CO-CEO of SOFTSWISS comments on the future crypto:
According to the SOFTSWISS Crypto Casino Solutions statistics, Bitcoin, Ethereum and Litecoin are still the most sought-after crypto currencies. In the coming years, USDT will be a popular trend. Operators recognize the importance of crypto payments, despite the volatility in the crypto market. They also understand their impact on project appeal and final casino choice. Operators will continue to look for alternative currencies and expand their portfolio with new digital currency span>
PLAYER BEHAVIOUR
Operators are expected to shift from product-centric business models to become more user-centric when it comes to player behaviour. A commitment to solving players’ problems will result in increased player retention and loyalty.
To win new customers who want quick and easy access to online gambling functionality, another smart move is to launch mobile and smartwatch versions for casino and sports betting projects.
Based on SOFTSWISS Casino Platform client data, another player trend is the rising popularity of live dealer gaming with crypto users. This type of game will be preferred by the market as it is a more attractive proposition.
The SOFTSWISS Sportsbook statistics show that 66% of sports betting bets are placed at live events, compared to 34% for those placed in advance. This increases the technical sustainability and demands high-quality live broadcasts.
OPERATIONS
This data driven decision-making method will require operators to look for ready-made software products that provide real-time access and transparency to data about their projects.
Operators will shift their focus from financial KPIs like the first deposit, GGR and NGR to the game session length metrics and bet count metrics in 2023. Operators who are prudent will make investments to diversify their game portfolio, incorporate new bonuses, and use free-to play games to increase loyalty, increase conversions and build long-term relationships.
Max Trafimovich is Chief Commercial Officer of SOFTSWISS. He said: “To run a profitable iGaming company, operators must know their target audience: whether it’s the integration of top-performing games and new mechanics to diversify their content collection, availability and seamless performance with different payment methods, including crypto, or technical sustainability for web and mobile version versions. SOFTSWISS develops technologies that allow our clients to keep their projects on track and stay one step ahead. In order to achieve these goals, we launched three Business Intelligence tools in 2022. They are BM3, Event Streaming, and iGAP span>
GAMIFICATION
Gamification will be a major player engagement direction in 2023. There will be many related trends
NFT and cryptocurrency are expected to be the backbone of financial systems in metacasinos, making it easier to withdraw and deposit money from different countries. The market will remain restricted to crypto users.
Operators will be more dependent on jackpot campaigns this year to attract, activate, and motivate players to play the type of game they want. The SOFTSWISS Jackpot Aggregator found that 49.6% of jackpot players increased the average amount they bet in response to global jackpot campaigns, which boosted the operator’s revenue.
In 2023, bonuses will be used to regulate at-risk gambling and protect overspending players. Operators will choose flexible bonuses that meet different player requirements to achieve these goals. To achieve outstanding results, both casino and sports betting projects must use different engagement tools.
Max Trafimovich is Chief Commercial Officer of SOFTSWISS. He adds, “But, it’s not only innovative technologies that can engage the audience. Retention and reactivation practices are also important in determining the growth of key metrics. Treating each player like a VIP bettor not only increases the player LTV but also increases audience loyalty. In 2022, the SOFTSWISS Reactivation Team discovered that outgoing interactions had a 50% reduction in player churn. ”
SECURITY
Players want to know what data operators collect about them and how it will be used.
The main Data Privacy priority trend in the context GDPR and data security will be developed in sub-trends, further described in the report.
Responsible Gambling will be the focus in 2023. A healthy gaming experience will be possible by avoiding affective behavior, managing players who are already troubled, and managing marketing activities.
In 2023, fraud prevention will be improved with advanced ML-powered tools. The SOFTSWISS Anti Fraud department saved the company clients 15+ billion EUR in 2022. It shares how the most common types of fraud look like
-
Bonus abuse: 69.9%
-
Money laundering – 9.9%
-
Payment system fraud – 5.9%
Operators will protect their reputation and income in 2023 by improving the quality of verification with additional analytical tools for checking documents and identifying harmful patterns.
Andrey Starovoitov is the Co-CEO of SOFTSWISS. He summarizes the report trends as follows: “The rapidly growing iGaming industry generates many trends stemming form various business areas. It can be difficult to keep track of all the trends and make sure you are following them. We recommend leveraging all business opportunities to become a top casino operator or sports betting operator. This includes the integration of innovative solutions to deep project analytics and player engagement tools. It is also important to select a trusted software provider that offers deep data-driven industry expertise, flexible products and top-level services, and can ensure security span>
SOFTSWISS will exhibit at ICE London 2023 from February 9th through February 9th. Visitor are invited to meet the Business Development Managers and experts at SOFTSWISS on stand N8-231. They will be updating and presenting SOFTSWISS technology solutions.
About SOFTSWISS
SOFTSWISS, an international iGaming company, provides certified software solutions to manage gambling operations. This expert team has 1,500+ members and is located in Malta, Poland Georgia, Georgia, Belarus, and Belarus. SOFTSWISS has a variety of gaming licenses and offers one-stop-shop iGaming solutions. It offers a wide range of products, including the Online Casino Platform and Game Aggregator, which offer thousands of casino games. The Affilka affiliate platform, Sportsbook Platform, and Jackpot Aggregator. SOFTSWISS was the world’s first to offer a bitcoin-optimised online gambling solution in 2013.
