The use of the internet and smartphones to place bets or wagers on games of chance. This includes casinos, sports betting, online poker, and other types of eGaming. It does not include video lottery terminals (VLTs).
In the late 1990s, the emergence of the internet led to the growth in popularity of online gambling. By 1998, there were more than 200 gambling websites, and yearly revenues exceeded $830 million. In the same year, the first multiplayer online gambling games were introduced.
Online gambling allows individuals to access the game whenever and wherever they want, without having to travel or go to a casino, increasing accessibility and addictive potential. In addition, a variety of psychological strategies are used to entice and retain players, including visually and auditorily engaging features, intermittent reinforcement schedules, and surprise rewards. These factors can contribute to the development of pathological gambling, where people become preoccupied with the activity and engage in risky behaviors such as chasing losses.
Personality traits also elevate the risk of developing a gambling addiction. A 2023 study titled, “Association between problem gambling and personality dimensions” found that those with high levels of neuroticism and low levels of conscientiousness are more likely to develop a gambling addiction.
In the United States, penalties for FIs processing illegal gambling transactions vary at federal and state level. New Jersey is an early adopter of iGaming and is considered a pioneer in the industry, with a solid regulatory framework for casinos, sports betting, and online poker.