In this article we will focus on How to Set Up Casino Online, from licensing to design and functionality. The online gambling industry has grown significantly due to global population growth and internet penetration. Another market driver is the loosening of requirements and regulations set by countries such as Singapore, Brazil, Argentina, Ghana, and Australia. According to Coherent Market Insights, the global online gaming and gambling market will grow from $46.9 billion in 2017 to $123.5 billion in 2026, at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 11%.4% over the specified period expected to grow.
The development of online gaming businesses, including casinos, has been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. The coronavirus outbreak has forced most players to switch from traditional brick-and-mortar casinos to digital platforms. Now that physical casinos have reopened, many users are continuing to play via high-tech devices. Therefore, there are promising prospects for online casino development.
How to Set Up Casino Online in 5 Easy Steps
Step 1: Get a Gaming License
How to Set Up Casino Online? One of the main requirements for starting an online casino is obtaining a gaming license. With a license, an organization can legally offer gaming services, open bank accounts, and partner with casino software providers. Additionally, gaming licenses allow platform operators to improve customer trust.
Speaking of jurisdictions that allow online gambling, casino operators can obtain licenses from countries such as England, Curaçao, Malta, Antigua, Gibraltar, Denmark, and Belgium.
Let’s look at some popular licenses:
- Curacao: Typically, the cost of a gaming license does not exceed $150,000. The island does not tax the casino’s profits and ongoing low costs. The approval process is very fast, although it usually takes 1.5-2 months. However, there are some restrictions, including that casino website owners must host their servers on the island of Curacao. Additionally, licensees must pay 2% corporate tax.
- Gibraltar:To obtain a licence, businesses must provide proof of a business plan and financial stability, only to be negotiated through a Gibraltar bank. Licensees must pay 1% of their annual turnover, but this should not exceed £85,000.
- Kahnawake: Introduced in 1996, the Kahnawake Gaming Commission allows organizations to obtain a license to open online casinos in Canada (so-called customer vendor certification). The license comes with an initial annual fee of $40,000 and an annual renewal fee of $10,000. Casino website operators will also have to pay for a $15,000 software overhaul.
- The United Kingdom Gambling Commission (UKGC): The Gambling Commission, established under the Gambling Act 2005, is responsible for regulating commercial gambling in the UK. The UKGC, which represents one of the world’s largest gambling enforcement authorities, requires a license for gambling startups to pay a fee when they apply. To provide online casino services, you must also pay an annual fee. License prices vary depending on the type of license and other factors. By default, UKGC charges between 15% and 50% of gross game revenue (GGR) depending on the amount. To obtain permission from this authority, the company must justify its business plan, demonstrate its financial solvency and ensure that it has no criminal convictions.
When choosing a license to open an online casino, it is important to consider legal country, cooperation conditions, license period, price, submission review time, etc. Business owners should consider that many countries have enacted laws for online casino gaming, including France, Poland, and most states in the United States.
However, thanks to the latest legal changes, more than 15 US states have allowed online gambling services.
Step 2: Choose a Reliable Casino Software Provider
To launch an online casino and attract the attention of the audience, the company needs to add many games such as poker, roulette, baccarat, bingo, slots, and blackjack. There are two options for displaying your games on casino websites. The first way is to choose a casino software provider that offers an API (Application Programming Interface) for game integration.
The most popular providers include Vivo Gaming, NetEnt, Ezugi, Pragmatic Play, Evolution Gaming, EGT Interactive, Playson, Betsoft, Digitain, TVBET and others. For example, Evolution Gaming includes over 40 games optimized for users to play on desktops, laptops, tablets and smartphones (iOS, Android). For more security, the system uses the SSL protocol.
Founded in 1996, NetEnt is another reliable casino software provider. With support for web and mobile devices, NetEnt gives users access to over 220 games with graphics, animations, video introductions, and sound effects.
The second approach is to develop games suitable for online casino platforms. Although this approach is more expensive, it allows software engineers to create a pleasant user experience and ensures the highest level of security.
Blockchain technology allows organizations to protect themselves from hacker attacks and prevent fraud and data breaches. Additionally, with custom development, it is generally easier to achieve scalability, fault tolerance, and uninterrupted performance for your casino website.
Step 3 : Select Casino Game Content
Most users like to be able to play a variety of games, so the company should offer a variety of gaming experiences. Basically, online casino sites should offer the most popular games such as poker, roulette and baccarat. However, to meet customer needs and expectations, it is best to do a general review before building a casino site.
If you plan to create a custom game, you can start by adding 3-5 and gradually add new content. If you decide to choose a casino software provider, it is important to consider supported game content, certifications, cooperation terms, and technical support.
Step 4 : Design a Casino Website
When creating a casino website, it is important to focus on user interface (UI) and experience (UX) design. Design appeal has a direct impact on customer engagement and hence return on investment (Republic of Ireland). According to Adobe, 38% of users are more likely to discontinue interacting with a web solution if the layout is unappealing. SWEOR reports that 94% of visitors’ first impressions of a website are related to design.
Analysts also noted that respondents responded negatively to factors such as lack of navigation tools, small text, cumbersome search, excess text and pop-up ads. In addition, SWEOR reports that 94% of negative feedback is related to the design of the website, with a modern and intuitive user interface that helps increase user satisfaction. Therefore, creating a user-friendly design for your online casino platform should be a priority.
If you want to create a pleasing design, it’s important to:
- Create an intuitive user interface. Online casino players should find what they want quickly.
- Ensure a seamless user experience with intuitive navigation, convenient search mechanism and simple menu structure.
- Make sure all operating systems are secure, including smartphones and tablets.
- Implement your own branding style. Custom UI/UX design for casino sites allows businesses to stand out from their competitors and increase brand awareness.
- Choose a color theme based on the psychology of color perception. For example, blue is associated with trust and authenticity.
Hiring a reliable UI / UX design service provider is essential to create a casino website with a good layout and content. At Arateg, our software experts analyze your competitors to determine their strengths and weaknesses and discover what appeals most to customers.
Step 5: Build and Test Casino Website
Before creating an online casino, the gaming business owner must decide on the most important features of the first version of the product. For this, companies need to analyze the needs of the masses. For example, at Arateg, we can help our clients develop influence maps and user personas that show the actions that different parties (players, dealers) need to take when using an online casino platform.
Business analysts also create user stories that describe the features of the product from the end user’s perspective. For example: “As a player, I like to have access to games like poker, bingo and baccarat, as well as making deposits and withdrawals.”
Once online casino development is complete, the critical quality assurance (QA) phase begins to create a website that meets the project requirements. Thanks to QA, software experts provide solutions characterized by ease of use, performance, reliability and maintainability. Testing and debugging avoid potential bottlenecks and security vulnerabilities.
