Analysis: Play your cards right
App analytics firm App Annie takes a look at the UK mobile casino market and how it has transformed over the past year
The UK is a particularly interesting market for mobile casino game publishers as strong growth in mobile social casino gaming is complemented by the availability of real money casino gaming through iOS apps.
The UKâs appetite for mobile casino gaming is illustrated by the relative size of the casino gaming subcategory on iOS. Worldwide, in November 2014 the iOS Card game subcategory saw around 55% more downloads than the iOS Casino subcategory. In the same period in the UK, the iOS Card subcategory saw only around 30% more downloads than the iOS Casino subcategory.
Download growth in the iOS Casino subcategory was also stronger in the UK â worldwide, download growth from November 2013 to November 2014 in the Casino subcategory was relatively flat, but in the UK the Casino subcategory experienced approximately 10% growth in the same period. Year-on-year revenue growth was even stronger than download growth in the UK iOS Casino subcategory, exceeding 60% growth and outpacing the worldwide subcategory growth.
Specialist publishers dominate the landscape
The growth in the iOS Casino game subcategory in the UK was accompanied by changes in the distribution of both downloads and revenue within the subcategory.
While the top 10 publishers took a greater share of iOS Casino game downloads in November 2014 than they did in November 2013, the proportion of Casino subcategory revenue going to the top publishers has decreased over the same period. Despite consolidation within the industry, it appears that revenue is becoming increasingly distributed as competition heats up.
However, the top 10 companies in the subcategory still generate the majority of the revenue, producing around 65% of the subcategory revenue in November 2014. Both downloads and revenue were more concentrated within the top 10 Casino game publishers on Google Play than on iOS. In November 2014, the top 10 UK Google Play Casino game publishers by downloads took around 60% of the subcategory market, while the top 10 companies by UK revenue in the subcategory took around 75% of the market.
In general, the strongest performing companies in mobile casino gaming in the UK are specialist mobile gaming or social gaming publishers. The exceptions to these are mostly where parent companies have acquired social gaming publishers â Caesars Entertainment downloads and revenue are driven by its subsidiary publisher Playtika, Churchill Downs is boosted by recent acquisition Big Fish Games, and Sonyâs high ranking stems from its subsidiary publishers Game Show Network and Bash Gaming.
Amongst these specialist game publishers, Sky Betting & Gaming stands apart as the only company ranked in the top 10 that also has an extensive sports betting presence in the app stores. It reached the top 10 Casino game by downloads in November thanks to its real money gambling apps.
Mobile has become a vital channel for bookmakers in the UK, on which most offer their primary sports betting services, as well as a number of casino gaming apps. Skyâs success in November was driven by its most recent casino gaming release, the iOS-only Sky Casino, emphasizing the importance of continually delivering new and refreshed gaming experiences.
Future opportunities in mobile casino gaming
Although existing apps dominate the top ranks, apps such as Sky Casino demonstrate the potential for new entrants with strong brands to make an impact in the market. Sky Casino was released in August 2014 and climbed into the top ranks in the iOS in late September. In addition to the backing of a strong brand, Sky Casino distinguished itself from many other similar apps with a feature that gave players real-time interaction with dealers. Even the release of a new variant of an existing app can result in a significant market shift.
In November, Amaya Gaming released a UK-specific variant of its existing PokerStars Poker app and saw an immediate gain in the ranking for the new app when compared with the existing variant. The potential for new apps to reach the top ranks is indicative of the value of creating new content and the extent to which the market is receptive to new and rising companies.
The mobile casino gaming market is poised for substantial growth as it continues on its current path and mobile casino publishers build their user acquisition strategies. An increasing proportion of online gambling revenue is expected to be directed to mobile channels as device adoption increases and companies focus strategies in response to this. In addition, there are key developments occurring in the market that may help accelerate this growth for mobile publishers.