EiG 2017: Ulrik Bengtsson, former CEO, Betsson Group

Ulrik Bengtsson, who was CEO of Betsson Group until September this year, has predicted that 75% of the gambling industry will be online as soon as five years from now.

Likening the migration of betting businesses online to the rise of online travel agents, he said he saw no reason why gambling should not move from high streets to online in the same way.

“If you look at global gaming only about 13% is happening online today,” he said.

“I sometimes compare that with the travel industry. Ten years ago you had shops along your high street where you went a booked your trip to the Canary Islands, no one does that anymore. There are very few travel agents on the high street, and there is no reason why gaming should not go the same way”.

While there might not be 100% penetration online, Bengtsson said we would probably see at least 75% of gambling business online in the next 5 to10 years.

Talking to Clarion Gaming at last month’s EiG Expo, the former Betsson boss said technology was becoming increasingly core to the industry.

“Technology is becoming increasingly important for all companies in our industry in order to develop competitive products. You’ve got to have good developers in your teams to be sure you have the development capabilities that you need, but at the end of the day, it’s also the customer. You understand what you need to do,” he explained.

He said as time went on gambling products were “almost synonymous with technology” and that operators should consider themselves as “tech companies” rather than bookmakers.