Due to the increasing global population and Internet penetration, the online wagering industry has grown significantly. The relaxation of requirements and regulations in countries such as Singapore, Brazil, Argentina, Ghana, and Australia has also been a market driver. According to Coherent Market Insights, the global market for online gambling and wagering is projected to grow from $ 46.9 billion in 2017 to $123.5 billion by 2026, at a CAGR of 11.4% during the forecast period.
The COVID-19 pandemic had an impact on the development of the online wagering industry, including casinos. The majority of players were forced to transition from traditional brick-and-mortar casinos to digital platforms as a result of the coronavirus outbreak. Now that brick-and-mortar casinos have reopened, many users continue to play on their electronic devices. Therefore, the future of online casino development is bright. From licencing to design and functionality, our software experts will discuss how to create a casino website in this article.
How do you start an online casino in 5 steps?
1. Acquire a gaming license
Obtaining a gambling licence is one of the principal requirements for launching an online casino. With a licence, a business can legally offer wagering services, establish a bank account, and collaborate with casino software developers. Obtaining a gaming licence also enables platform operators to enhance their credibility with customers.
Casino operators can obtain a licence from the United Kingdom, Curacao, Malta, Antigua, Gibraltar, Denmark, Belgium, and other countries that permit online wagering.
Let’s review a few popular licenses:
- Gibraltar. With the goal to obtain a license, a company has to showcase a business plan and proof of its financial stability while performing transactions through Gibraltar’s banks only. Licensees have to pay 1% of their annual revenue but no less than £85.000.
- Curacao. The cost of a gaming license generally does not exceed $150,000. The island imposes no tax on casino profit and low ongoing expenditures. The licensing process usually takes 1.5–2 months, which is rather fast. However, there are some restrictions, for instance, casino website owners have to place servers in the territory of Curacao. In addition, license holders have to pay 2% corporate taxes.
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The United Kingdom Gambling Commission (UKGC). Released under the Gambling Act 2005, the Gambling Commission is responsible for regulating commercial gambling in Great Britain. Representing one of the worldwide largest authorities to control gambling, the UKGC requires licensees to pay a fee when a casino founder submits an application. To provide online casino services, it is also necessary to pay an annual fee.
The price of a license depends on its type and other factors. Basically, the UKGC charges a fee between 15%–50% of the Gross Gaming Revenue (GGR) depending on its amount. In order to receive a license from this authority, businesses have to demonstrate a business plan, prove their financial solvency, and confirm no criminal conviction.
- Kahnawake. Introduced in 1996, Kahnawake Gaming Commission enables organizations to secure a license—so-called Client Provider Authorization—to open an online casino in Canada. The license charges the first annual fee of $40,000 and the annual renewal fee of $10,000. What’s more, casino website operators have to pay software inspection costs amounting to $15,000.
When choosing a license to open an online casino, it is essential to consider the countries in which it is valid, terms of cooperation, license duration, price, submission review time, and other aspects. Business owners should take into account that some countries legislate against online casino games, involving France, Poland, and the majority of the US states.
2. Turn to trusted casino software providers
To start an online casino and attract an audience, a company has to add numerous games like poker, roulette, baccarat, bingo, slots, and blackjack. There are two options to incorporate games into a casino website. The first way is to choose a provider of casino software that offers application programming interfaces (APIs) for game integration.
Popular vendors are Vivo Gaming, NetEnt, Ezugi, Pragmatic Play, Evolution Gaming, EGT Interactive, Playson, Betsoft, Digitain, and TVBET. Evolution Gaming, for instance, contains more than 40 games that are optimized in a way that users can play them on desktops, laptops, tablets, and smartphones (iOS, Android). In order to enforce security, the system utilizes an SSL protocol.
Founded in 1996, NetEnt is another trustworthy casino software provider. Supporting web and mobile devices, NetEnt enables users to access over 220 games featuring graphics, animations, video intros, and sound effects.
The second approach is to develop tailor-made games for an online casino platform. Although this approach is more costly, it allows software engineers to create an immersive user experience and ensure the highest level of security.
3. Choose casino gaming content
Since the majority of users enjoy having the possibility to play different games, a company should offer a diversity of gambling content. Basically, an online casino platform should provide the most popular games like poker, roulette, and baccarat. However, to meet customer needs and expectations, it is advisable to conduct an audience analysis before building a casino website.
4. Design a casino website
When building a casino website, it is important to focus on the user interface (UI) / experience (UX) design. The design appeal has a direct impact on customer engagement and, this way, return on investment (ROI). According to Adobe, 38% of users are likely to discontinue interacting with a web solution if the layout is unattractive. SWEOR reports that the first impressions of visitors entering a website are 94% design-related.
Analysts also note that survey respondents negatively react to factors such as the lack of navigation aids, small print, inconvenient search, excessive text and pop-up advertisements. Additionally, SWEOR informs that 94% of negative feedback is associated with website design while a modern intuitive UI contributes to improved user satisfaction. Therefore, creating a user-friendly design of an online casino platform should be a top priority.
With the goal to develop an appealing design, it is crucial to:
- Make an intuitive user interface. Online casino players should be able to easily find what they need.
- Deliver a seamless UX, which comprises smooth navigation, a convenient search system, and a simple menu structure.
- Ensure consistency across all operating systems and devices, including smartphones and tablets.
- Implement a unique branding style. With a custom UI/UX design of a casino website, a company will manage to stand out from competitors and increase brand awareness.
- Choose a color theme with color perceptual psychology in mind (for instance, blue is associated with trust and reliability).
5. Build and test a casino website
Before creating an online casino, a gambling business owner has to identify the key functionality for the first product version. For this purpose, a company has to analyze the audience’s needs. Here at BetCasinoScript for example, we can help clients develop impact maps and user personas that showcase what actions different parties—players, dealers—should be able to perform when using an online casino platform.
What’s more, our business analysts create user stories describing product features from an end-user perspective, for instance: “As a player, I want to have access to games like poker, bingo, baccarat, etc., as well as deposit and withdraw funds”.
After online casino development ends, there comes a quality assurance (QA) stage, vital to building a website that meets project requirements. Thanks to QA, software experts deliver solutions that are characterized by high usability, performance, reliability, and maintainability. With testing and debugging, you will prevent potential bottlenecks and security vulnerabilities.
Now, let’s consider the main online casino features that have to be implemented for satisfying user goals and expectations.
Top 5 features of a casino website that you should deliver
1. Registration
2. User profile
3. Online payments
To make purchases and deposit funds, it is essential to include online payments. With the aim to attract as many players as possible, a casino platform operator has to provide various payment options , including credit and debit cards, digital wallets, WebMoney, and PayPal. In order to gain a competitive advantage, you should let users pay using cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin, Ethereum, Litecoin, Bitcoin Cash, and Dogecoin.
Speaking of trusted solutions, Clik2pay is a payment system that enables users to securely make payments from their bank accounts. It is possible to use the Click2Pay as a digital wallet and deposit funds on it.
A lot of payment systems serve the online gambling industry, for instance, Neteller and Skrill. Released in 1999, Neteller started processing digital gambling payments in 2000. At the moment, millions of people in more than 200 countries use the service to transfer money in a secure way. Neteller allows for carrying out payments via cards, local bank deposits, and cryptocurrencies.
4. Customer support
5. A loyalty program
Since the online gambling industry is very competitive, it is crucial to engage players. Thanks to a loyalty program, a casino platform owner will manage to boost customer satisfaction while motivating players to use a casino website more often.
A loyalty program can offer various bonuses, for example, for registration, friend invitation, and everyday participation in games. By implementing this functionality, you will be able to prevent user churn and increase revenue.
The cost of starting an online casino significantly depends on numerous factors, involving the size and complexity of a software solution. To estimate the budget that you will need, contact our team and describe the requirements. We are ready to sign a non-disclosure agreement before a detailed project discussion.
Why should you hire Betcasinoscript to make a casino website?
Established in 2014, Betcasinoscript.com helps startups and SMEs create superior solutions and generate profit. Our custom software development company has considerable experience in blockchain development, vital to ensuring data security and protecting against hacker attacks.
By now, our team has launched several gambling projects, involving a gaming platform and two games for a live casino , as well as a web app for playing poker. Following best practices and using advanced technologies, our software experts enable scalability, high availability, and performance while automating testing and deployment.
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