Casino City's iGaming Pocket Directory - 2017 Edition

40 Sponsored by Casino City’s iGaming Pocket Directory games Games have played an important part in human society for as long as we have recorded history. Chess, backgammon and mancala have been played for millennia. Board games, such as Monopoly and Scrabble, have been standards for decades. And even before the internet took hold, games migrated to computers as new technology provided opportunities for new gaming experiences. According to Statista, the number of available game applications in the Google Play Store (formerly known as Android Market) has gone from less than a million in July 2013 to 2.6 million in December 2016. When internet access became the norm, people started playing each other in more complex games. They also sought to prove their mastery in a variety of games of skill that they previously hadn’t had access to — both simple and complicated. Social gaming has become a high priority for brick-and-mortar properties because it allows casinos to learn more about their existing customers and keep them “engaged” when they leave the property. They can test new games and keep their brand “front of mind’ with their guests outside the casino walls. It also serves as a gateway to other forms of real-money gaming, giving operators the chance to convert players into casino, poker or sportsbook customers. Social gaming is also a big business. It is already a $3.4 billion market and Eilers & Krejcik Gaming predicts that number will reach $4.4 billion by the end 2017. games INDUSTRY OVERVIEW