Computer Games

Gambling online sites are simply virtual locations where you can gamble. At these gambling online sites you can play games for money and also bet on others, in general you can basically perform the same activities you would normally in a land based casino. These online casinos have increased their profits tremendously because of the step of making themselves accessible via the internet eliminating the overhead of paying for a building, upkeep of the equipment and paying for employees. At present there are dozens of online gambling casinos.

These gambling online sites provide several offers, such as; if you are a member you get certain privileges. If you are worrying that it may not be the same as in a normal casino – of course it will. The concept and majority of the rules are exactly the same, the only differences would be the lack of distractions that may be present in a normal casino, keep in mind though this should be a good thing. Now there are disadvantages despite all the advantages of gambling online, so I am quickly going to highlight just a few in each area.

Let’s first start with the advantages of these gambling online sites. The first advantage would be no money needed to get a building, when comparing setting up a website to a physical structure the savings are enormous. Another advantage this would be in the favor of the gamers, they can play more than one game at a time. Also when you register with an online casino you are given a welcome bonus, now this cash could be allocated to playing, therefore the individual would not have to take their personal savings to gamble and the winnings could simply be profit.

Now let’s focus on the disadvantages of these gambling online sites. The first disadvantage is the chance of the individual becoming addicted to gambling. Another disadvantage is that anyone and everyone has access to gambling online sites once they have a computer with an internet connection, this would be particularly for teenagers as they use their parents information to gain access and gamble. Now gambling online sites have tried to put up strategies in place which would help in this serious problem but there are still those individuals who slip through the cracks. In closing keep in mind though that gambling online sites are here to stay and are constantly improving and expanding, so remember they can be fun once utilized properly.

Computer and video games have become very popular. In particular the interest in playing fun free online games over the internet is increasing strongly.

Despite the growing popularity of YouTube, MySpace, and Facebook, gaming remains the king of online entertainment, driven largely by casual gaming activities.

Sites like Yahoo Games and EA’s Pogo.com offer users access to a wealth of advertisement supported free online games, where sponsors have options for branding opportunities, and display and banner ad placements.

Online games on the consoles could become a $10.5 billion business by 2011 from $981 million in 2007, according to market researcher IDC.

In 2007, online console revenue is at 2.5% of total global video game market revenue, including console and handheld hardware and software revenue. By 2011, revenue from connected consoles will represent 18.6% of total market revenue.

Although subscription revenue for premium online services and games will grow from $476 million in 2007 to over $2.4 billion in 2011, its share of online console revenue will decline from 48.5% in 2007 (already down from a high of 86.5% in 2006) to 23.2% by 2011.

Downloadable content (DLC) consisting of games and game-related items, which at $35 million in 2006 represented a 13.5% market share of online console revenue, will become connected consoles’ primary revenue source in 2007, growing from $493 million in 2007 to $7.2 billion in 2011. In 2011, game-centric DLC will make up 68.6% of online revenue.

Advertising revenue from sponsored services, in-game ads, and product placement in connected consoles will reach $12 million in 2007, posting the first significant online console ad spend. Advertising revenue will grow to $858 million in 2011, with an 8.2% market share of online revenue.

Video game growth will be strongest in the Asia Pacific region, its largest market, with a 10% annual growth rate through 2011, but will increase in the Europe/Middle East/Africa region (10.2%), the U.S. (6.7%), Canada (9.4%), and Latin America (8.2%) as well.

Certain trends hold steady across most regions: For instance, driven by increased penetration of broadband access, online gaming is surging. In the U.S. and Europe/Middle East/Africa, online gaming represents the fastest-growing consumer segment (19.3% and 24.6%, respectively); in Asia Pacific and Canada, online growth came in second only to wireless (at 16.1% and 13.9%, respectively). Other trends are more regional. The in-game advertising market is expected to increase 64% in the U.S. And in China it is expected to rise at a compound annual rate of 14.3% to $2 billion in 2011, most all of that growth will come in online games.

Spurred by the new generation of consoles and handhelds, and by increased penetration of broadband and wireless technologies, the video game industry is ripe with opportunity. “Growth in platforms allows you to hit new demographics,” says Stefanie Kane, a partner with PwC’s entertainment and media practice, noting that handheld game devices have brought more women into the market, and that the entrance of cable and on-demand TV channels will further widen the base. “There is a lot of unlocked potential.”

You might think the face of one of the hottest areas in gaming right now is a young male in his 20s who owns the latest supercharged gaming system from Microsoft or Sony – or both.

But you’d be wrong.

Instead, the epitome of the new-era gamer is a woman in her late 30s or early 40s who plays on an average PC.

Yes, the video game industry seems to have been turned on its head.

For years, the dominant themes have been faster game machines, increasingly realistic graphics, more immersive play, as well as the old standbys – blood, guts and blowin’ stuff up.

But that picture has begun to look increasingly outdated. While young men dominate the gaming industry as a whole, casual games are one of the fastest-growing parts of the industry and attracting a whole new demographic.

You can find signs of the revolution everywhere. One of the fastest-growing parts of the game industry is centred on so-called casual fun free online games, PC-based titles that users can generally start playing in minutes and usually don’t require the mastery of some combination of multiple buttons to enjoy.

The upheaval has spread to the console market, as sales of Nintendo’s Wii console and DS handheld, both of which stress fun-to-play games over powerful processors or realistic graphics, are far outstripping their supercharged competitors from Microsoft and Sony.

Revenue streams enabled by active online consoles in this cycle show the strongest growth in the sector and will not only determine the future success of the console vendors but also be crucial to the success of many third-party publishers.