iPhones and Computers are Losing on Indian Online Casino Fans
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Recently revealed user statistics by the Casino Days casino platform from the first five months of 2023 show that an astonishing 96.60% of players in the region now use their mobile phones to play real money games, while only 2.90% still rely on computers, and only 0.50% utilise tablets.
Computers enjoyed the status of exclusive media for online casino games in the beginning of their evolution in the late 1990s, but developments in handheld device productivity and network data speeds opened the door to mobile gaming, including with real money.
More recent advancements such as gameplay in portrait mode and touch controls allowed for ever more immersive and visually rich casino games to be created and optimised specifically for various smartphones and different screen sizes, leading up to the current overwhelming domination of smartphones.
Computers Dropped Nearly 10% Share over Two Years
Earlier data, pre-dating the Casino Days statistics by two years, can be found in an ENV study on the most frequently used mobile devices by Indian online casino players.
Analysed user traffic data between January and April 2021 shows the usual mobile device dominance, but computers stand over a far more substantial chunk of user base of 12.38% among online casino players than the 2.9% registered in 2023.
The ENV paper attributes the “somewhat surprising” high share of computer users to “the importance of Tier-1 urban agglomerations and their player extraction characteristics”, hinting that we’re probably speaking about young professionals logging in for a quick gaming session from their workstations during office hours.
While tablets have stayed on a stable half percent share, the significant downward shift of computers which shrank more than four times over the last two years may mean that smartphones and network services have become powerful enough to offer greater convenience and better user experience.
A wider adoption of a mobile-first approach in optimising their games among studios is also a viable explanation to the observed nearly complete disappearance of computers.
Global Leader Apple Cannot Make It to 3% Local Share
Apple has consistently been among the top 3 vendors by worldwide shipments for the last decade, yet on the regional level iPhones seem to walk hand in hand with computers when it comes to losing their user shares among local online casino fans.
The Casino Days data from 2023 shows that Chinese brands such as Xiaomi (21.90%) and Vivo (20.79%) dominate the regional market, along with South Korean brand Samsung (18.10%).
These brands, together with others like Realme (11.43%), OPPO (11.23%), and OnePlus (4.07%) run on the Android operating system (OS) unlike iPhones and their exclusive iOS which has turned them into a niche product with a share of just 2.29% despite their reputation for high quality and innovation.
The open-source status of Android is among the chief factors contributing to the success of this OS, as it makes the lives of App developers much easier and facilitates the review and approval procedures for new apps.
While iPhones are traditionally high priced, Android-focused brands usually offer a full range of cheaper device series. Mobile phone affordability in India and the region is further enhanced by local manufacturing facilities and government incentives.
iPhone Usage has Shrank More than Twofold Since 2021
Checking with ENV’s data from 2021, we see that Apple’s presence on the Indian market was not so badly limited two years ago as it is now.
While iPhones were used by 5.44% of desi online casino players during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic in the country, their share has dropped more than twofold by now.
Apple’s efforts to establish a solid marketing channel in India, both physical retail and online, have apparently failed to bear fruit. The poor integration of Apple Pay in the regional economy compared to the penetration achieved by Google Pay has been producing the same detrimental effect on the premium brand’s presence in the region.
