Online Gambling in the UK Reports Multi-Billion £ GGY

Those who have taken to online gambling may not know what it means to the nation to be reporting a multi-billion £ GGY, but for the economy, that’s good news indeed. The acronym ‘GGY’ stands for Gross Gambling Yield, which in the case of online gambling is reported to be approximately £4.5 billion annually, or in easier to understand terms, it accounts for more than one-third of the nation’s gambling revenue. With so many other ways to wager, it looks like legalizing online gambling was a good move on the part of Parliament in 2005.

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Why Is Online Gambling So Popular?

No, the UK isn’t a nation of gambling addicts but online gambling has made it easy and fun for those who are looking for that little stroke of extra luck. It’s easy to get in, you have a wide choice of games to bet on and on Crazy Winners and similar sites, you don’t need to leave to find a game that interests you. Most gambling sites also have mobile apps and if you have been reading the news of the past few years, greater numbers of people are accessing the Internet on mobile devices than on stationary PCs.

With increasing numbers of consumers taking public transport back and forth to work each day, what better way to pass the time on the train than to try your hand against Lady Luck? You might win more than a week’s salary in a single game. One man won more than a year’s salary in a single game and this, in a nutshell, is why online gambling is so popular.

Breaking down the Numbers

The most recent figures released by the UK GC (Gambling Commission) indicated that the UK shows an annual GGY of £13.6 billion, of which £4.5 billion is from online gambling. From April of last year through March of 2016, online gambling accounted for just over one-third the nation’s yield while gambling shops were found to be on the decline. The GC reported that the UK currently has 8,709 such shops which may seem like a lot but that number has declined by 1.8 percent from the year prior at the same point, which was September.

Then there’s the ever-popular bingo shops which saw an even greater decline, down by more than 4.3 percent in a little more than a year. From April of 2015 through to September of 2016, the number of bingo shops fell to only 575 in the country and these numbers are set to fall even further within the coming year. It is forecast that online gambling will continue to grow proportionate to the decline in local gambling premises across the board. This is why the GC has issued stern advice to online gambling sites which are accessed by UK consumers.

Online gambling sites are tasked with seeing to the safety of gamers accessing their sites. The Gambling Commission warns that these sites must be vigilant in protecting consumers just as the GC makes it known they will be watching to make sure they are compliant.