Gambling is one of the most popular forms of entertainment in the world. Usually, gambling includes:
- lotteries
- sports betting
- certain types of card games;
- roulette;
- slot machines.
And no matter how much it may seem that gambling has reached its peak today, it is not. Gambling has long attracted people, and its history began in ancient times with the formation of human culture as such.
How and when the first online casinos appeared, what triggered the online gambling boom, and when gambling operators.
However, not everyone knows the history of the gambling world and virtual platforms and how they became so popular. This is what we will discuss in this article.
Antiquity, Middle Ages, and Modern Times
Nowadays, we know almost everything about the casino world thanks to the advertising blogs of such authors as Vitaliy Klymenko, Editor In Chief at Slotamia. In ancient times, everything was completely different. The prototypes of modern dice are known to date back to the XX century BC, i.e., they are more than 4000 years old. Dice were already widespread in Ancient Rome, which is documented by many documents. It is also reliably known that the first casinos appeared there, although some scientists claim that they existed even earlier. In general, most of the games that are popular today, including poker, appeared in the Middle Ages.
Modern times are characterized by greater structuring and regulation of gambling. Massive modern casinos appear. An important milestone was the emergence of such gambling entertainment as the sweepstakes, which was invented by The Tote company under the patronage of Winston Churchill. However, the real revolution was made by the American engineer Charles Fay in 1898, when he presented the world with Liberty Bell, the world’s first slot machine. Since then, slots have become an integral part of the gambling world.
Having learned a little bit about history, let’s move on to the topic of online casinos.
How did the first online casino appear?
Among all gambling sites, Slotamia occupies a special place. The versatility and convenience of this online entertainment segment allow it to attract more and more new users every year. But what was it like before? The first virtual gambling platforms appeared in the mid-90s. They were not yet the platforms we know today, and the functionality and number of games were significantly limited.
The popular Microgaming provider is considered to be the pioneer of the industry, and it still creates top products. The first virtual platform was created in 1994, offering simulations of various slot machines. Interestingly, in 20 years, the same provider will release software that will allow you to play online casinos on your mobile phone.
However, the aforementioned simulators were not full-fledged casinos, and a year after their creation, the Gaming Club online gambling platform appeared. At the same time, some countries started to create special regulatory bodies that could issue licenses for such activities on the Internet.
Very soon, several more virtual platforms appeared, and in 1998, progressive jackpots began to appear on some resources. Their appearance led to an even greater influx of users, and this segment began to gain popularity.
A new stage of online casino development in the 21st century
A real leap in the development of online platforms was made in the early 2000s. Gambling operators began to actively work on improving the software for their resources.
Virtual platforms encouraged even more new users with various bonus programs and new game formats.
Slots and table games became more and more interesting, and in the second half of the 2000s, online casinos reached a new level with the emergence of the first live games. Their essence lies in the fact that users can interact with live croupiers in real-time.
Very soon, the virtual casino segment migrated to mobile phones, which led to another surge in the popularity of online gambling platforms. The market expansion led to exponential growth of the industry. When push-button phones were replaced by smartphones, a wide window of opportunity opened up to improve the visual part of all online casino gambling products. At the same time, the virtual industry was legalized in more and more countries.
Toward the end of the last decade, technologies in the online industry opened up new opportunities for operators and ordinary players. More and more platforms that offer a huge number of different positions are emerging, and games with live dealers are becoming more interactive.
The industry took a huge step forward during the coronavirus pandemic. Many people were forced to stay at home, and this increased interest in virtual casinos. The real boom occurred in 2020, when many land-based establishments were closed for quarantine, and online platforms became the only alternative for gamblers.
Final thoughts
The development of computer technology and the means of transmitting information via the Internet has made it possible to move all gambling to the online environment. Today, you don’t have to go anywhere to place bets on sports or play slot machines, roulette, or poker. All kinds of gambling that mankind has invented over its long history are available to anyone who wants to play; if they have a gadget with access to the network in their pocket, even money is not needed. Moreover, developers are constantly working to offer fans new gambling types.
