This opinion was published in 2016 by Howard Stutz and today, 7 years later, much of what is said there has been fulfilled, judge for yourself.
Away from the noise and bustle of the casino machines, Rahul Sood found himself at a conference inside a Las Vegas hotel listening to experts discuss the future of gambling.
But what impressed him was that the speaker was hesitating about the increased attention from attracting younger customers to his luxury casinos, since these customers have no money and don't like to gamble. “If you create an environment where customers feel comfortable and enjoy the experience, then they will come and keep coming because when you like something, you can afford to spend time and money on that activity.”
“What young people tend to do when they go to Las Vegas, is that they enter the casino, they go through and continue to the clubs,” Sood said. “After going to the clubs, they go back to their hotels. They are the ones that generate the most profit for the casinos”
If the industry is not able or willing to change, the next generations will take their money elsewhere, said Sood, who was one of those who started Unikrn, an online gambling company that has attracted big investors like Mark Cuban, the owner of the dallas mavericks and actor Ashton Kutcher.
Seattle-based company Unikrn hopes to change this perspective, which currently offers its users in Australia and the United Kingdom (where Internet gambling laws are clearer and more permissive than those in the United States and Canada) the opportunity to watch and bet online to highly regarded video games such as “League of Legends”, “Counter Strike”, “Call of Duty” and “Starcraft 2”.
But the eSports company wants to take its idea further and Sood realized that casinos need to capitalize on the attachment to video games in the young generation. “There is definitely a great opportunity”; He at the same time exclaimed that eSports will be the future of entertainment and will replace traditional sports.
“In the next 5 to 10 years, everyone who matters will be a Gamer. Anyone who makes decisions, anyone who grew up in the developed world is playing video games and it's part of their lifestyle." Sood said Unikrn is creating model experiences based on the idea of betting on casino games that are spectator and talent driven. This could draw audiences for its events in line with the audiences of UFC events.
Despite the positive response many of the operators have been unable to switch via this internet method. “They are slow to switch and don't understand the industry terrain; They don't understand the customers and are often run by people who are too driven by numbers and who fail to understand that it is a long-term bet that they must stick with and commit to make the necessary changes.”
At the same time, Sood hopes that eSports or online gaming regulations will be expanded to the United States and Canada. He also hopes to make an agreement with a casino to do it properly within the next few years.
