Interactive

UK – Online gaming increases by 29 per cent in October

By Phil - 21 December 2020

The UK Gambling Commission has published further data showing how the renewed tightening of Covid-19 lockdown measures has impacted gambling behaviour in Great Britain.

The data reflects the period between March and October, inclusive, and covers both online and in-person gambling with data from Licensed Betting Operators (LBOs) found on Britain’s high streets.

The latest data for October shows the online market grew, with a month-on-month increase of 29 per cent in gross gambling yield (GGY), and a seven per cent increase in active accounts. The main driver for this was real event betting – which saw 53 per cent growth in GGY. Although there were increases in both the number of bets (up by 12%) and the number of active players (up by seven per cent), the main driver for the growth appears to be an increase in operator margins.

The number of online slots sessions lasting longer than an hour increased by 12 per cent (to 2.2m) in October from September, although this rise was at the same rate as the increase in overall sessions. The average session length remains steady at 21 minutes with around eight per cent of all sessions lasting more than one hour.
Licensed betting operators also experienced month on month growth across some metrics, with increases of one per cent in bets/spins placed and nine per cent in GGY (to £204m) likely to be impacted by the same sporting results.

The commission stated: “Gambling behaviours have continued to evolve as the country responds to varying levels of restrictions and we will remain vigilant in light of new national lockdowns announced in recent weeks.”