The proportion of British adults participating in online gambling remained stable in the year to the end of June 2013, according to updated figures from the Gambling Commission.
The British regulator’s quarterly survey data on gambling participation showed that 8% of the 4,000 adults surveyed by ICM Research had participated in at least one form of online gambling, including betting, casino, poker and bingo, during the last four weeks. This figure was the same as for 2012 as a whole and in the 12 months to the end of March.
When the most popular form of online gambling in Britain was included, the National Lottery, the participation level was 15%, marginally up on the figure of 14% for 2012.
Online betting remained the most popular form of remote activity once lottery was omitted from the equation, with 4% of the 4,000 adults surveyed by ICM Research – based on an average of the figures for September 2012, December 2012, March 2013 and June 2013 – saying they had spent money on this activity during the last four weeks. This was up from 3% for 2012.
Overall gambling participation, including all land-based and remote forms, also remained stable, at the 2012 level of 57%, according to the quarterly dataset.
Gambling offline – or “in person only” as the Gambling Commission describes it – remained by far the most popular way of gambling, with 73% of participants choosing this method. A further 15% had gaambled both offline and online during the period, woith 12% gambling exclusively online.
Participating ‘online only’ was the most popular method of gambling for sports betting - joint with “in person only” - and spread betting.
Article written by Stephen Carter
