Nearly 50% of online customers now gamble on mobile devices with sportsbook accounting for 47% of the mobile market

Paddy Power is reaping the benefits of early adoption of mobile app marketing with 18.9% of the overall organic mobile click share

Blanket ban on real-money applications in Google Play brings challenges but commercial potential is huge

Small number of high value keywords, including ‘mobile casino’ are driving the greatest volume of traffic

Early adopters of mobile application marketing, Paddy Power, William Hill and Betfair are leading the growth of mobile app gaming, according to Stickyeyes latest gambling intelligence report on the mobile app market.

These brands are reaping the commercial benefits of investment in highly usable apps to support half of all online gamblers who state mobile apps are their preferred way to bet or play. Sportsbook is leading this growth in mobile gaming (see supporting figure – online market size by segment), accounting for 47% of the mobile market whilst casino follows with just over a quarter (26%) then bingo (16%) and poker (11%).

The growth of mobile comes despite restrictions on Google Play, which prevents the listing of real-money apps, and forces gaming brands to employ dedicated search marketing campaigns to aid app discovery and adoption. As a result, the mobile keyword landscape is becoming increasingly competitive, with an average of 111,607 searches per month for betting, poker, casino and bingo keywords on mobile devices.