The online gambling market is growing at unprecedented rates globally. And one of the nations that are significantly driving that force forward is the United States of America. Despite the slow start that it had during the 90s, the online gambling market gradually picked itself up to be one of the most formidable industries in the world. One major reason why the industry didn’t necessarily pick up right away was that so many people were still hesitant to spend their money on goods and services online. This was especially true for an industry that still had a lot of doubt and controversy surrounding relevant legislation and regulation.
Looking at how popular online casinos are in the United States now, one would never have guessed the struggles the industry has had to endure in order to get to this point. When the internet first started commercially rolling out to everyday households, online gambling was one of the first businesses to take advantage of this revolutionary platform. However, it wasn’t until recently wherein the online gambling market really started to take flight and cement itself as a lucrative industry for investors and operators. Now, various platforms on sites like Casinofy USA are drawing in new gamblers and players from all over the world on a daily basis.
How Did We Get Here?
When online gambling sites first started sprouting up, many of them were forced to shut down because of the Federal Wire Act of 1961. This law prohibited wired communication for gambling businesses, including online gambling platforms. However, this law was created back before the era of the internet and computers. In 2011, the United States Department of Justice declared that “interstate transmissions of wire communications that do not relate to a ‘sporting event or contest’ fall outside the reach of the Wire Act.” It was this declaration that led to the legalization of online casino gambling under federal law. The Supreme Court decided that state legislatures had the power to draft and enforce their own regulations surrounding gambling activities.
Another huge development in the world of online gambling took place in 2018 when the Supreme Court struck down a federal law from 1992 that barred sports betting. This allowed sites to offer sports betting services for basketball, baseball, and football events to name a few. In addition to this, the government also passed the Unlawful Gambling Enforcement Act in 2006 in order to protect gamblers from fraudulent or suspicious gambling establishments.
The Value of Technology
Ultimately, one of the main reasons that the United States government has taken a more lenient and progressive stance on online gambling is its inherent desire to stay relevant, particularly when it comes to technological development. All over the world, technology has served as the driving force for various industries. When the COVID-19 pandemic took place in 2020, many traditional land-based casino establishments were forced to temporarily close their doors and shut down their services. It was here wherein people started turning to technology for basic goods and services, gambling included. Even as the gambling industry suffered due to the closure of land-based casinos, online gambling sites soared to new heights. More and more gamblers took to online casino platforms in order to partake in one of their favorite forms of recreation throughout the pandemic period.
There have also been a number of notable development in the world of online gambling that are reliant on the evolution of technological standards. For one, a lot of casino platforms now offer extended reality features that allow for a higher level of immersion when gambling. Many casinos are also offering live dealer games to reinstitute the human component of gambling into the online experience.
Nowadays, as cryptocurrency and blockchain technology grows more in popularity, many casino sites are also offering crypto-based gambling services that allow users to transact with cryptocurrency.
Moving Forward
Current trends and patterns indicate that the online gambling industry is going to continue to thrive, especially in the United States. The rest of the world is also expected to follow suit in terms of easing up on their restrictions and regulations in order to allow a greater deal of access to various online gambling services and platforms.
