UK Online Gambling Worth $6.3BN in 2016/17

Last week, the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC) released its gambling industry report covering the period from April 2016 to March 2017, and the news was once gain hugely positive with the country’s industry continuing to generate growth, particular in regards to its online sector.
During the 12 month period covered, the UK’s gambling industry as a whole saw its gross gambling yield (GGR) increase by 1.8% to £13.7 billion, compared to the same period of time in 2016. From that tally, online gambling accounted for £4.7 billion ($6.33bn) of revenues, higher by 10.1% year-on-year. As a result, online gaming currently commands a 34% share of the UK’s gambling industry, up by 1.5% from a year earlier.
Breaking the online casino figures down further, slots generated a whopping 64.5% of all GGY, followed by table games with 15.8%, while poker is positioned a fair distant back with a mere 5.9% share of the market. Meanwhile, online betting continues to dominate the online gambling sector, with football and horseracing producing 51% of all GGR over the 12 month period.
On the flip side, online gambling accounts for 96% of all self-exclusion bans imposed during 2016/17, in addition to 77.6% of all self-exclusion breaches that subsequently took place. Commenting upon the overall figures, UKGC Executive Director Tim Miller, stated:
“These latest figures show that the gambling market is continuing to grow, particularly in the online sector. However, with such growth comes a great responsibility for operators to prevent gambling-related harm to all consumers and the public. We would urge all gambling businesses to be acutely aware that as their market grows so too will our focus on ensuring that consumers are protected.”
Meanwhile, land-based betting grew by 1% to £3.35 billion over the period, giving it a 24% of the overall market; and the country’s 146 brick-and-mortar casinos saw their GGY spike by 16.5% to £1.16 billion; while retail bingo GGR stayed flat at £687 million. The National Lottery, on the other hand, had a terrible year with GGY falling by 12.8% to £2.98 billion.