September 24th, 2013
Via VegasChatter, a look at social casino gaming:
Remember two years ago when we reported that social gaming was the next big thing for casinos? Social gaming was remained the future of gambling last year. So, guess what?! Social gaming is still the next thing that will impact casinos and it seems like it will be that way for a while.
The first day of G2E was all panels discussing the future of the casino business. The expo itself with zombies, Batman and bridesmaids begins tomorrow. Today, this writer listened to casino execs, lawyers and marketing people speak about what’s actually happening in the biz. It’s sad to hear, but there really isn’t much new on that front that hasn’t already been happening for the past few years.
Judging by the white hair, bald spots and suits in the morning social media panel I attended, it seems as if social media may finally be catching on with the higher-ups. Social gaming, on the other hand, still has a long way to go. The younger and smaller audience for that panel feverishly took notes on how social casino gaming may be good. If the decision-makers in the casino are the grizzled veterans of the business, however, social casino games haven’t reached them yet. There were few suits, plenty of hair and more women at the social media marketing panel.
It amazes me that the same topic is now in its third year as the next big thing at the annual get-together. I guess that’s how the gaming industry works. Earlier in the day at a social gaming regulation panel, it was interesting to hear from someone who works/consults with Caesars Entertainment mention how Caesars doesn’t look at social casino gaming as a way to lure people into their physical casinos. Meanwhile, at the social media panel, customer acquisition was freely discussed as a reason to have social gaming. Clearly, there isn’t one vision on how social casino games will matter to players, or casinos.
All social games are growing in popularity and, thus, social casino games continue to grow as well. A report says that 95 percent of real money online gamblers would prefer to gamble with a trusted brick-and-mortar casino (you know, like Caesars Entertainment properties) so the trend of social and online gaming branded by casinos won’t end any time soon. Social casino games will continue to grow as casino executives learn that these games can be a very popular way to grow their customer base. First, they have to stop playing FarmVille, though.
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