Casino software: script, turnkey solutions, or custom development
Three decades ago, gambling industry was exclusive, accessible only with significant starting capital and right connections for support. However, rapid development of digital technologies has dramatically changed the landscape. Proliferation of online casinos has made gambling more popular and profitable, with many countries becoming more legislatively amenable to the gambling business. Now, anyone can enter gambling business, with primary conditions to operate within law and withstand stiff competition. To achieve this, an online casino must be as attractive as possible to players — in fact, players should want to revisit your website and bring their friends along.
What do you need to achieve this?
For a start, robust and high-quality casino software.
Navigating complex structure of online casino and understanding the principles of its operation can be challenging for a new operator. Besides the casino software, study several layers of essential information:
- Licensing and legislative requirements associated with it;
- Payment systems and aggregators for online casinos, their features in different regions, including cryptocurrency;
- Marketing and its various directions, which are quite extensive;
- Gambling business news, current trends, and tendencies — significant adjustments to the business plan may be based on these as well. Dynamic nature of this industry is a factor to consider, with few other sectors boasting such rapid changes and regulatory innovations.
Therefore, several types of solutions exist in the gambling market. Some imply complete responsibility of the owner for managing the online casino, while others allow delegating some duties to the supplier of the license and casino software.
Turnkey online casino solution
Turnkey solution in gambling industry implies a fully customizable online casino where the operator independently chooses direction, characteristics, and set of services deemed necessary for operation. A turnkey casino requires significant investment and more time for launch, but in the hands of a skilled businessman and team of professionals, it can become a unique, vibrant, and multifaceted gaming portal. This attracts hundreds or even thousands of players with a variety of games and slots, promotions, and loyalty programs.
The advantages of turnkey casino are clear:
- Uniqueness: A turnkey casino is built on an individual project, not a template, offering more opportunities to compete for players. Unique product always attracts more attention, is valued higher, and reflects the effort invested. Additionally, the target audience of such an online casino can expand in any direction.
- Custom Development: The operator has opportunity to hire contractors for creating website interface, integrate casino software and payment aggregators, all in accordance with the specifications set by the operator.
- Language and Currency Support: Turnkey casino is not limited in supporting different languages and currencies, offering broad possibilities for expanding user base to global scales.
White Label solution
In essence, a White Label solution is similar to a franchise: operator works on a provided platform for a relatively small fee, promoting the online casino under the license and brand of the contracting company. This solution is often chosen by novice operators who want to avoid risks associated with legal or technical complexities, as well as purchase and implementation of casino software, which are handled by the contracting company.
This solution allows market entry approximately two months after signing the contract. However, the operator is significantly limited in choosing software and gaming content and is entirely dependent on the license owner. The operator's responsibility lies in the marketing component and attracting traffic to the product. Nevertheless, before opting for such a structure, it's crucial to delve into the interplay between marketing and product to determine whether this system can generate desired revenue.
Scripts and ready-made websites for online casinos
Purchasing a casino script appears very enticing: the owner, without wasting time, buys an already prepared foundation for the website, installs it on server, and proceeds with page layout and design customization. Additionally, the script allows for unique design implementation and creation of an unlimited number of websites on the same script.
However, this solution has more drawbacks than advantages:
- Not all developers can guarantee the quality of their script. When choosing such products, utmost attention is required, ideally with the support of competent specialists. Gambling project on a substandard and unsuitable script is doomed to failure.
- Buying a script makes sense if owner has a team of designers and developers; otherwise, it can be too expensive considering the risks mentioned above.
- A script does not include licensed games from recognized industry providers, depriving players of the experience of playing on genuinely quality software. A script is a cheap solution, not worthy of serious business, and can damage the project's reputation. Primarily because a belief that scripted projects might modify the RTP (return to player) of the offered games, leading to distrust among players and immediate suspicions of unfair manipulations.
- If operator plans to work with a license for the long term, this solution is unsuitable as licensing authorities will not approve such website.
A less risky option is to purchase a ready-made website. This is one of the fastest ways to launch an online casino, obtaining all rights to it. However, a ready-made website has limited functionality, and its expansion can be more expensive and complex later on — not every casino software is suitable for integration. This solution should also be chosen with a reliable team of designers, developers, and lawyers, as the owner is also responsible for licensing.
Self-developed casino
This solution is another option for creating a unique, customized product that is more competitive in the market. In this case, procurement and implementation of all software are the responsibilities of the operator and their team: programmers, web developers, designers, and system administrators. This approach differs from the turnkey casino in that the owner delegates the development of the casino not to a contracting company but to their hired staff. A custom casino is a solution for those who have a team of reliable and competent professionals, understanding gambling industry.
In this scenario, the operator is responsible for everything — from selecting the casino software and gaming content to implementing payment systems. Special attention should be paid to the latter.
Casino software: characteristics of quality payment aggregator
Gambling industry falls under high-risk category. This, combined with the massive volume of transactions, high risk of chargebacks, and fraud by dishonest visitors, shapes specific requirements for payment systems and aggregators for online casinos.
- Highest Level of Security: Casino software must incorporate anti-fraud modules with the ability to personalize flexible, effective, and reliable protection. It's also crucial that these systems are PCI DSS certified for security standards.
- Support for Routing and Cascading Transactions: This feature is vital for maintaining the highest possible rate of successful payments. In the competitive gambling business, every player counts. High rates of transaction failures can pose catastrophic consequences for a gambling project. Casino software should, therefore, support these tools. Routing facilitates, speeds up, and automates the movement of funds between payment providers, reducing overall commission rates. Cascading, on the other hand, finds alternative payment routes and offers players a different gateway in case of failure, while saving their data in cache until the transaction completes.
- Wide Range of Settings: The more customizable your software, the better. This includes support for cashback options, and the ability to manage automatic and regular transfers.
- Multi-Currency Support along with Cryptocurrency: It's essential for payment software to support multiple currencies, and importantly, cryptocurrency transactions, which are increasingly popular across many markets.
Initial structure of an internet casino is complex and multifaceted, so choosing the software for it better with professionals or at least consulting about any doubts. This is an expensive and fundamental investment.
Experts at Monoup can answer all questions related to selection and implementation of any payment infrastructure solutions. We can provide not just one-time consultations, but comprehensive support for your gambling project on all matters related to providing gaming business with payment solutions and stable operational technology.
