Warrington already has its share of casinos. These properties bring people to the area, enhancing local businesses and pumping revenue back into the area through employment and taxes. Yet the gambling industry no longer only exists in physical locations.
It has a huge online presence, with thousands of workers employed to keep it operational. This growth has led to an explosion in popularity for the iGaming industry.
One way areas may be able to benefit from this is through the use of live casinos, a new form of entertainment emerging in the sector. Below, we discuss how a live casino hub could boost the Warrington economy.
What is a Live Casino?
When you log on to play an online table game, you see a video simulation of the table, dealers, and other players. While this is convenient, many players still look for the level of interaction you find when visiting a real casino. Live casino gambling manages to create a hybrid of the two, by offering an online experience that provides real croupiers through streaming technology, to allow for an immersive playing experience.
A player can see the dealer spin roulette wheels, and shuffle cards and can even chat with them. The player uses controls on the screen to place bets and make wins or losses as usual, but with a more visually appealing element.
This method of play is taking off in a big way. It has spread from its use in table games to other areas, particularly slot games.
Here, bonus rounds are also akin to game shows, which people can enter to increase their totals and win new prizes. Big names such as Endemol have even got in on the act, creating iGaming titles based on existing properties like Deal or No Deal.
How Can It Benefit the Local Economy?
Anything that can bring employment to the area has an obvious impact on local revenue. Employed people have more money to put back into the region, spending on property and local businesses. Employment in the casino industry is growing by an average of 8.4% per year and while most of this is remote work, with live casinos, many of the elements to produce them need a base.
These take the form of studios, which are required for croupiers and hosts to participate. If a hub for this is created, employment in Warrington will bring more people to the town itself. Situated between Manchester and Liverpool, Warrington would be a perfect spot to pull in the best presenters, particularly due to its proximity to Media City Salford.
As well as the presenters and croupiers, the games need a whole host of technical assistance to monitor and keep them running. With so many higher education establishments close by, all providing access to the best tech graduates, a live casino hub would have all the staff it could need.
The hard part would be attracting investors to the area. Yet with lower rents than the larger neighbours surrounding the town, it would be an attractive proposition for many. As iGaming expands into areas such as the Metaverse, Warrington could be the next great hub.
