A new research by ENV Media has pointed out the states in India with the most online gamblers per capita as the country’s online gambling market experiences “natural growth” brought about by better internet penetration as well as the rise in mobile device usage nationally.
Titled “India’s Richest Cities and Its Large Online Gambling Communities,” the ENV Media report revealed that Delhi and Maharashtra are the states where games like teen patti, andar bahar online, and rummy are played most online per capita.
Tech savvy players shape India’s market
In terms of traffic generation, Maharashtra has 17.4% followed by Telangana with 9.9% market share, according to figures from the ENV Media report. West Bengal and Karnataka have 9.3% share, while Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, and Delhi have around 8% of the share. The figures are based on publicly available statistics during the April 1 to September 15 period, which ENV media matched with its proprietary primary analytical data.
“India’s gambling population is rather diverse in economic and demographic terms, with complex behaviors, habits and consumption patterns,” the report noted, adding, “Mumbai, Delhi, Kolkata, Chennai, Bangalore and Hyderabad lead the way. To a relative extent, Pune, Ahmedabad and Surat also contribute to a better online gambling penetration in India.”
Delhi is considered to have the highest internet penetration, with 68% statewide, followed by Kerala with 56% statewide, while IT hub Karnataka only has 42% internet penetration, according to a report conducted by the Internet & Mobile Association of India with Nielsen.
Digital access bridges gap
A separate study conducted by McKinsey explored how digital penetration and GDP per capita are strongly related, especially for countries like India. States in the top third of GDP per capita levels—Haryana, Maharashtra, and Tamil Nadu—along with highly urbanized areas and union territories of Chandigarh, Delhi, and Goa, have the highest internet penetration. In comparison, states in the bottom third of GDP per capita have the lowest penetration rates.
According to the McKinsey report, “…given widespread adoption, Indian states are bridging the digital gap. In several areas, including the installation of infrastructure like base transceiver stations and penetration of internet services, the relatively lower-income states are growing the fastest.”
The nation has come a long way from the 4% internet penetration recorded back in 2007, to as high as 50% as of today. The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, which has grounded practically the whole of the offline sector—although the recovery rate is steady at 92% in Maharashtra—is opening opportunities for the online industry by helping create virtual communities for sectors including online gambling as well as i-gaming. That said, ENV Media expects total internet users across all platforms and devices to reach 560 million currently—placing India second only to China—and forecast to reach 650 million by 2023.
“Thus, as long as potential players have a stable internet connection (mostly 4G in India’s case), they are able to enjoy casino games, online betting and many pay-per-play types of games. And with computers not always a viable option for most, a smartphone remains the preferred device to access i-gaming platforms and Apps,” according to ENV Media.