Is now the time to bet on an innovative new future for online entertainment?

Millions of people around the globe are stuck indoors. It could stay this way for months and it could change consumer behaviour forever.

How? Live streaming and video calls are slowly becoming the norm for all ages, with the technology becoming more accessible than ever. Apps such as Houseparty blur the lines between a traditional call with your mates and a fully-fledged games night round their house.

Virtual games are winning the public over, as witnessed when over four million people tuned in to watch the Virtual Grand National. Those once sceptical of RNG-based virtual events are not so anymore.

The technology, trust and changes in consumer behaviour have aligned and the door is wide open for those brave enough to innovate.

The hidden opportunity among the chaos?

One vertical often ignored among the online entertainment sector is bingo, despite its global popularity and reach.

You may have seen the man from Bolton in the news recently, playing bingo with his neighbours on the street. On the other side of the world, Matthew McConaughey was playing bingo with his family over Zoom in Texas. Online, we noted a 40% increase in the search term ‘bingo’ in the last week.

Bingo is known and loved all over the world; could this be a hidden opportunity among the chaos?

Where is bingo right now?

Bingo is, has and possibly always will be, regarded as entertainment. It doesn’t carry the same negative press as slots, sports or casino, and rightly so due to the nature of the game mechanics. It’s almost ‘safety by design’ without trying.

However, while the likes of Bongos Bingo, Dabbers Social Bingo et al are redefining bingo for a new generation in the events sector, little is being done online in the same vein.

It’s great that the latest online bingo products have focused heavily on the user journey, interface and experience; the more attention we can draw to online bingo, the more people may feel comfortable experimenting with new ideas.

However, we feel there’s so much more you could do with it if you’re brave enough.

Is this the time to invest in online entertainment?

The capital markets are in freefall and investors far and wide will be searching for new and innovative opportunities that capitalise on the new world we’re facing, with a real need to satisfy consumer demand for online entertainment.

A shining example of someone who isn’t afraid to push boundaries is Buzz Bingo; they’re making huge strides in their efforts to become more than just bingo. What their team has achieved in such little time is amazing and I hope others in our industry take note.

It’s clear that Buzz understands the UK marketplace specifically, with a clear focus on keeping their customers entertained by blurring the lines between traditional gambling products, bingo and other forms of entertainment.

Will other online operators follow suit? Will land-based operators try to break into the online entertainment space in a bid to capture their customers they can no longer entertain during lockdown? Or will it be the Positively Distinctive companies that fuse the two together?

Whatever happens during the next couple of months, it’s clear that the world needs entertainment and that’s exactly what an online gambling business should provide.

Those who believe in an entertainment-led model that can provide consumers with hours of safe, fun and fair gambling, without the ability to lose too much too quickly, should cast their eyes on the significant untapped potential of bingo. The possibilities to innovate in and around it are endless.

Kevin McGinnigle is a new dad and the founder of Positively Distinctive Media, a start-up company passionate about adding value to the egaming space through design, technology, product, marketing and promotions.