COPENHAGEN: Danish gambling regulator Spillemyndigheden cited expansion within the country’s online casino market as one of the main reasons behind a year-on-year hike in gross gaming revenue during 2016.
Gross gaming revenue (GGR) from sports betting and online gambling over the past 12 months amounted to DKK3.7 billion (€5 billion/$5.3 billion), up 13% on the amount generated by the end of 2015.
Overall, Denmark’s gambling market heralded a GGR of DKK8.9 billion in 2016, up 6% on the DKK8.4 billion achieved in 2015.
The country’s overall sports betting market was able to collect DKK2.2 billion in GGR, which is 8.8% more than the previous year, despite a relatively flat fourth quarter, with online betting responsible for DKK1.4 billion of this total.
However, Spillemyndigheden highlighted online casino as the area that saw the most growth last year, with GGR from this market hiking almost 24% to DKK1.4 billion.
The regulator cited a year-on-year increase in online slots play as one of the key drivers behind this overall growth as it accounted for 72% of all internets gaming in 2016.
However, although online poker improved slightly from its worst-ever quarterly performance in Q3, the amount collected in Q4 was unable to prevent a drop of over 10% in full-year GGR, which came in at DKK148 million.
Spillemyndigheden also announced mixed results for the country’s land-based market, with GGR from gaming machines in halls and restaurants down 3% year-on-year to DKK1.5 billion, but casino GGR up 8.5% to DKK379 million.
