Land-based Casinos vs Online Casinos

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As huge Internet enterprises began to gain momentum in the early 90s, the traditional casino niche started losing ground among gamblers worldwide. Shortly after the first online casinos were successfully launched in 1994, the popularity of brick-and-mortar casinos started to decline. But they still managed to retain a strong influence over old-school players who kept aloof from any recent innovations in the gambling world. Ever since, two gigantic branches of a casino business have been striving for excellence and supremacy in the gaming industry!

Both land-based and online casinos have their distinctive features: i.e., there are some advantages and disadvantages for those who choose to gamble there. This leaves players with a tough choice when it comes to deciding on whether to visit a casino located just around the corner or instead, to simply google some reputable online gambling institution. Indeed, by far the starkest difference between the two of them is the actual location – the virtual world and reality. However, there are a lot more ways in which these two types of casinos differ from each other. Besides this, the choice of gaming venues largely depends on what casino players are looking for, as well as their gaming preferences. So we’ve laid out an overview of how land-based and online casinos contrast with each other.

And, before moving closer to the differences between online and brick-and-mortar casinos, let’s try to define each of the two options at issue.

So, what is a land-based casino? In plain language, these are gaming premises located in the real world. These are just good old-fashioned classic gambling establishments, brick-and-mortar casinos are the predecessors of online venues. A land-based casino gives its players an amazing gambling experience within a natural gaming setting, which includes all the essential elements a good old traditional casino should have. So brick-and-mortar casinos are largely favored by old-school gambling admirers who are looking for a classic, authentic casino ambiance. To wrap up: a land-based casino is a place you want to go to if you’re looking for a game amid the traditional gambling environment.

It’s now time for us to shed some light on what a virtual casino is. An online casino is an online version of a traditional land-based casino. Although an online gambling venue mirrors the full spectrum of games and rule mechanisms offered by a brick-and-mortar casino, it still can’t make up for the abundance of advantages and benefits you can get from playing at a real casino. However, online casinos do have their perks, as well as some unique and indeed highly distinctive characteristics that land-based venues lack. But who are the target audience of virtual casinos then? Online venues are appreciated mostly by players who care very little about the traditional casino-like setting, and who prefer a cozy “home sweet home” gambling experience to whatever the land-based casinos are offering them.

The Main Differences Between Land-Based and Online Casinos

• Bonuses
  The bonus systems offered by land-based and online casinos are drastically different. There’s a much greater chance for players to receive bonuses at an online casino than at a land-based one. The problem is that online casinos have pretty rigorous wagering requirements. For instance, if a casino offers you a $200 bonus, you’re expected to bet the bonus amount at least 30 times, in order to get a payout.
• Profitability
  One more aspect that land- and website-based casinos differ in is the kind of revenue they bring in. The amount of revenues generated by the online casino industry has already exceeded the profits of land-based casino enterprises and it seems the online casino owners are not going to stop.
• Jackpot Amount
  Virtual casinos are widely praised for offering huge payouts which actually put land-based venues in the shade! Brick-and-mortar casinos are more inclined toward offering progressive jackpots that are considerably smaller than those given by their online counterparts.
• Payout Time
  There’s also a startling contrast between virtual and real casinos, with respect to payout processing. Land-based casinos do better than online ones in this regard. At brick-and-mortar casinos, you can have your payout nearly instantly, while with online casinos it can take up to several days. There are certain online casino operators who use something known as a “pending withdrawal” period in their payment system. Such a peculiarity implies that the time that payout processing may take is undefined; so, it can take a very long time for the payment to be received by players. However, the “pending withdrawal” period is implemented by very few online casinos; due to its inconvenience, and the high risk it poses to customer retention.
• Legislative Restrictions
  Age restrictions are usually the only restrictions you can find at land-based casinos. So, the majority of brick-and-mortar casinos do allow visitors from other states or countries to enter their establishments. By contrast, online based casinos apply a little more restrictive rule system. In order to get permission to operate, they need to have a license from an appropriate governing body. For example, residents of the UK, Italy, France, Denmark, and Belgium can only play in online casinos that have the license issued within the respective countries. For most other countries it’s a bit easier, as there are worldwide licensing bodies like Malta and Curacao.

All things considered, the online casino industry does seem to be outdoing its land-based counterpart, in terms of the benefits and advantages it can offer the players. The greatness of online gambling may lie in the more advanced and modernized approach to the operational process that virtual gambling enterprises are bringing to the table. Even so, the traditional land-based casino industry has managed to keep hold of its high-end status, while managing to remain popular among certain categories of avid gamblers.