Playing on the Go: The Development of Mobile Gambling
Mobile gambling is gradually changing the way we play games of chance. In recent years, the proliferation of onlne casinos and game rooms has given gambling a serious shot in the arm. As more technological advances are being made, gambling is becoming ever more convenient with the establishment of the mobile phone as the next gambling frontier to explore.
Back in the early stages of the mobile phone's development, phoning bookmakers was about the only use it had that pertained to gambling. The cell phone had proven a quite expedient tool in gambling as one can instantly communicate with their bookie from any location so long as a cellular network was at hand. The downside was in the system of payment through credit card, as many were particularly leery of publicly sharing personal data via phone.
The manufacture of the 2G cellular phone ushered in the first technological innovations that would eventually lead to the perfection of online gambling. Initially fitted with Wireless Application Protocol or WAP, and then later with the addition of Java programming applications, it became possible to specifically program casino games like roulette and card games like poker to be handily played through one's cell phone.
However, these mobile casino games cannot be considered as true mobile gambling as there was no money involved. At the time, money transfer through cell phone was an idea that had yet to catch fire. But as mobile phone technology continued to progress at a rapidly increasing rate, the 3G cell phone would improve upon the features of its predecessors and satisfy gadget accessorizing consumers' constant hunger for new technological trends and applications.
The upgraded models brought in vast improvements in the quality of the graphics and audio, making for better-looking games. And the eventual development of transmitting funds through cellular phone, mobile users were finally allowed to gamble for real stakes.
Mobile technology still has quite a ways to go, and the evolution of mobile gambling is as yet ongoing. But even as it takes its baby steps, the users who have taken up this new and exciting way to gamble number in the millions. The concept of a handy-dandy casino within reach of one's pocket and the prospect of easily winning loads of money at the touch of the button are just too appealing for many to pass up. The game's arena may have shrunken down, but the market for playing them continues to expand.
