The sports and digital technologies of the present time have had a major impact on peripheral industries, such as betting and investments into different sports disciplines.
These technologies came into being to not only improve the training and performance aspect of the athletes, but also to improve the viewing experience of the fans. With more states legalizing sports betting, it would make sense that advancements in digital technology would allow for more ease in online sports betting.
Early Days
Although computers used to be extensively utilized during the early days of online sports betting, mobile devices hadn’t found their feet in this industry yet. By this time advancements in internet and digital technologies opened up a whole new range of sports bets and also transformed the world of broadcasting. It led to further innovations, with new age companies like ESPN investing significantly into new technologies to advance the fans’ experience. The first internet-based casinos started making their appearance in 1994 and the online sports betting portals followed suit soon thereafter. As there were limitations in the processing power of computers and the speed of internet, these sites were crude and simple; however, they created the foundation for further growth and innovation in this industry, which continues even today.
The Boom Time
With the performance and speed of both computers and internet increasing, sports technology also improved with time. The biggest change came via digital technology, with the innovation and invention in the real-time, small-yet-powerful devices that provided instant feedback on performance. Innovations in the field of sports formats, sporting equipment, clothing, media communication also played their part. With high-end Android and Apple mobile devices coming into use, fans started using more and more apps, thereby broadening the scope of the content they could consume. On the other hand, sports persons could measure their performances more accurately and work on their skills. On the whole, the past decade and a half can be termed as the boom time for sports as well as sports betting industry.
Mobile Sports Betting
With mobile sports betting, anyone could bet on their favorite event, at any time of day or night, from anywhere the light. The mobile betting market has grown exponentially over the years and is rapidly eating into the revenues of offline and desktop betting. People can use a wide variety of deposit and payment options through their mobile phones and place their bets without any hassles. With 5G technology round the corner, it is expected to drive mobile sports betting of the future and take it to new heights.
What Lies Ahead?
Big data is expected to play a huge role in the future of online sports. Many companies are already using it to predict the outcomes in financial markets, sports, and other industries. People specifically into sports betting should look out for advancements in this technology as it will help them gather useful information, and place safer (not failsafe) sports bets. Companies like Facebook, Google, and Microsoft are all showing interest in large scale legalization of sports betting operations world over, and they are doing it for a reason.
