Google Play Store will allow real money gambling in 15 new countries, welcomed by Real Luck Group
Published: Feb 8, 2021 - Last Updated: Apr 8, 2024
Currently the Google Play Store only allows real money gambling apps in the UK, Ireland, France, and Brazil. After a policy change at Google, on the 1st of March 2021 an additional 15 countries will be added to the mix. The Play Store policy change will allow gambling apps in Australia, Belgium, Canada, Colombia, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Japan, Mexico, New Zealand, Norway, Romania, Spain, Sweden, and the United States.
Expanding the mobile betting market
This is a huge expansion of the mobile betting market. According to the European Gaming & Betting Association, mobile betting was expected to account for 45.6% of online gambling revenue in 2020 and to reach 50.8% by 2022, surpassing the use of desktop for the first time. If Android users from these countries gain access to the cream of the crop of mobile betting services, we could see this trend continue.
The new policy
According to the new policy put in place by Google, the developers that want to certify their real money betting apps will have to make sure their application will fall in one of four categories. Online casino games, lotteries, sports betting, and daily fantasy sports. Developers will also have to fill out a special gambling application form and make sure their app has an International Age Rating Coalition (IARC) content rating and meets Google’s Developer Policy Centre requirements.
Like every other gambling or betting operator, regardless of whether they are online or in-person, they have to provide requirements to prevent underage users from accessing the apps. In many cases, this is on a by country basis but in the US, there are per state and per-category requirements for gambling apps. The biggest stumbling block for the average betting operator looking to enter the Android mobile betting market, are the countries restrictions, in many cases, the only mobile betting app that can be accessed will be government-run, state lotteries.
The response from Luckbox
Despite the restrictions, Real Luck Group, operator of Luckbox, have welcomed the news that more gambling apps are being made available on the Google Play Store. Luckbox is a very modern platform for online betting, it is built to be mobile friendly with about 50% of their traffic coming via mobile users. The addition of a mobile app allows operators an improved connection with customers, such as real-time notifications, deeper integration with devices, and additional security features.
Quentin Martin, Real Luck Group Ltd. CEO, said:
“Google’s addition of 15 nations (for a total of 19) that can now download gambling apps is a significant boost for the igaming sector. As an operator offering wagering on esports and sports via our Luckbox platform, this is a positive catalyst for the mobile betting sector, as it facilitates further player uptake in a responsible manner and signals the widening global acceptance of gaming.”
Before this change comes into effect, many users that have Android devices will have been forced to sideload the apps on their devices if they wanted to access their betting services on their phone. Now that the Google Play Store is expanding, they have created a safer and more reliable way for operators to distribute their apps.
