Russias cellular operators realize that the non-voice services that they can offer their subscribers are a real goldmine of future profits. Currently the revenues from non-voice services, the most popular of which is, of course, SMS (short message service), amount to approximately 10% of the total. And while this figure is quite admirable, there is still a way to go.
In order to attract the widest circle of subscribers, the cell network operators and their affiliated companies have come up with new services. Among the most recent ones are Mobile Bodyguards offered by MobileTeleSystems, the SMS service, announced by BeeLine, for lovers of Russian history, which can be easily used as a crib by high school and university students, and mobile casino for MegaFons clients. And while MegaFon, Russias third largest and fastest growing cell network operator, was the first to offer mobile casino service, it certainly wont be the last.
Considering how thriving the online casino segment of the Russian Internet is, it was only a matter of time before somebody came up with the idea of offering the same thing to mobile phone users, stuck in traffic, out at the country house, on the subway or anywhere else for that matter.
Last week saw the announcement of the first mobile casino, which is independent from all operators and therefore open to all mobile phone users. The Flash Money project was created from the intersection of a Java game technology and the real casino business, which is one of the most handsomely profitable branches of Russias entertainment industry.
The first game, introduced by the Flash Money company, is Flash Slot which is basically a slot machine on your mobile phone. The casinos creators point out four basic advantages of the project. They are mobility, security, availability and a good chance of winning. Concerning the high chances of winning, the projects internet site (www.flashmoney.ru) announces that every one in four bets is a winning one.
When speaking to reporters the projects creators give much higher figures, claiming that the chance of winning in Flash Slot game amounts to 90-95%. (For comparison, the chance of winning in online casinos currently runs between 95% and 98%). In order to experience the thrill of mobile gaming, users have to own a cell phone capable of supporting Java, WAP and GPRS technologies. To begin playing the Flash Slot game, the user has to adjust the WAP and GPRS settings, download the game using either the phone or a computer connected to the Internet, register in the system (once again, using the Internet) and put money into his game account. In order to start the game the user enters the name of his account and the password given during registration. This information is then passed onto the gaming server using a highly stable cryptographic algorithm, to quote the services creators. The services users can make bets ranging from 1 to 1500 rubles (~3.3 cents to $50), and creators of Flash Slot promise maximum winnings of 4.5 million rubles ($150,000).
The owners of the online casino claim that they are carrying out their activities in accordance with a license given by Russias State Committee on Sport and Physical Culture for a period of five years. However, the analysts note that until now the TimEx advertising group has had no connections with the gaming business, and it remains an open question whether mobile phone owners should trust the new project with their money.
An additional problem is that in order to begin playing in the mobile casino, the potential client has to perform a number of actions, involving both online and offline apects. The registration has to be done via the Internet, and replenishing the payments account can be done using five different systems of web money. However, in order to use the web money program the user has to perform certain offline actions, such as buying a card (for example, YandexMoney) which then can be activated through the Internet or using bank or postal money transfers to replenish the account. All of this just might be too much bother to get involved in a nameless project and to spend your money on it.
But even if the Flash Money project fails, its place is sure to be taken by other market players who have a real expertise and a respected trademark backing them. For example, the Russian branch of Microgaming Group, which runs the online Goldchip (Goldfishka) casino, has already announced that it sees mobile casinos as a promising segment of its future work. We are ready to supply the mobile gaming business with our experience, reputation, honesty guarantees and international standards of client service, said John Huse, the online casinos marketing director.
We would like to offer our present and future clients an opportunity to gamble both online and from a cell phone using the same payments account. Such a technical solution would be optimal for Russias thriving population of online casino players because it would free them from the worry of replenishing their account using their mobile phone. Overall, Goldchips management believes that mobile casinos should not be separated from online ones, but instead should be seen as two components of one service.
Perhaps the best solution that can be offered in this case is the close affiliation of a mobile casino services provider with one or several cellular network operators. Such an affiliation would permit the services creators to offer their clients a practically cashless method of settling financial issues, which will in turn make the mobile casino a truly mobile business. There are, of course, certain undercurrents in this sea of opportunity, as this service cannot be offered to mobile phone subscribers who pay for the operators services using a credit system for fear of a failure to pay ballooning game bills. However, considering that the majority of mobile subscribers currently use the system of pre-payment, this issue should not present too many problems for the accounting departments of cell network majors.
And while it is too early to evaluate the results of the mobile casino projects offered by both MegaFon and Flash Money, it is not too early to say that mobile gaming is here to stay. The window of opportunity is wide open and the only question that remains is: who will make the most of it? Will it be domestic providers, or cellular network operators, or international majors with previous experience? The answers to those questions is just around the corner, as Russias mobile services market is one of the fastest growing branches of the countrys economy.
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