We Spoke To Casino.Org About How Sweepstakes Have Changed The Face Of Online Gambling
Ever since the very first online casinos started to appear in 1990, it has been a process of innovation and development. Recent years have seen a particularly seismic change in the form of the emergence of sweepstakes casinos. For the uninitiated, it might seem hard to differentiate between a sweepstakes casino and a normal online casino, but they’re two very different entities.
What separates sweepstakes casinos from the alternative is the unique way that they allow players to enjoy casino-style games like slots, roulette, blackjack, and baccarat without having to bet any real money. This has made them very popular, especially in regions where online casinos are not officially sanctioned.
How they operate
They work by letting players use virtual currencies and traditional sweepstakes techniques to play in a risk-free environment. The typical sweepstakes casino operates using two very distinct forms of payment. The first of these is called Gold Coins. These are issued free of charge and can be used for casual play. There is no opportunity to convert these into anything other than more virtual Gold Coins.
The other currency, and this is where it gets more complex, takes the form of Sweep Coins. Often, these are offered as part of a welcome bonus and can also be purchased to use to play. Any winnings gained from playing with Sweep Coins can be converted into cash prizes as well as other gifts, depending on the sweepstakes casino in question.
It’s important to understand the difference between sweepstakes and the traditional online casino. The latter requires cash deposits to be made, which can then be used for real-money bets. They are also bound by fairly strict laws and regulations that vary depending on where they are operating. But thanks to the way they are set up, sweepstakes casinos sidestep these restrictions. As a result, they are far more accessible to a broad audience of players.
A growing market
The inexorable rise of the sweepstakes casino has been shown in the figures surrounding the industry. It’s estimated that the market value of $73 billion in 2023 will more than double to $157.8 billion by 2032, and that by the end of 2025, game purchases will be almost $7 billion.
Many leading online casino review sites now even have a section specifically dedicated to online casinos, including Casino.org. With so many sweepstakes rated by Casino.org in terms of everything from the bonuses that they offer to the games they have available, they seemed like the perfect people to talk to about the phenomenon.
They told us that, in their opinion as experts in the field, these kinds of casinos are rewriting the rules when it comes to online gambling through traditional platforms. They manage to do this by combining compelling games with innovative and totally legal structures under the letter of the law.
They do this by using the Prize, Chance, Consideration principle that is the hallmark of any legal sweepstake. This means that as long as at least one of these elements is missing, then a sweepstakes is legally permitted, even where one might expect the law to say otherwise.
So even though the 2006 UIGEA ruling that saw so many poker and other online sites close down still applies, sweepstakes casinos are exempt from the restrictions that would normally apply.
Who’s playing?
Casino.Org has also noted that the emergence of sweepstakes casinos has started to attract a whole new demographic amongst players, including a far wider age range than ever before. There are a number of reasons for this, the first of which is the different games on offer. Games like poker and slots traditionally attract younger adults in the 20 to 30 age range, while older players tend to opt for the more old-school type games like roulette and blackjack, all of which are available on leading sites.
The fact that sweepstakes casinos are also always optimised for play on mobile devices and offer engaging gameplay and user-friendly interfaces simply adds to their appeal. The strategic use of social media, including bonuses, competitions, and other promotions, is an additional factor in their growing popularity. What effect, you might wonder, is this having on traditional online casinos and their profitability? Because there are so many restrictions on them in the US, in particular, this offers great potential for operators of sweepstakes casinos to capitalize. So it would be no surprise if many started to incorporate a free play offering to themselves.
There is, however, one possible roadblock on the way. There are some instances of legal challenges being raised about sweepstakes, so it will be interesting to see what transpires.
However, they have managed to stay on the right side of the law thus far, and there’s every reason to expect that this will continue.
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