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A fully digital world was, for a long time, something resigned to sci-fi story ideas, but in a few short years has gone from outlandish to the likely scenario for the future. So many industries have already shifted heavily to digital solutions over traditional ones, and today we’re looking at some of those industries we’d expect to make the change sooner rather than later.
Casino
We’re starting with an example that has been sitting on the edge of going entirely digital for some time now. For those unaware, casinos have had both a physical presence and an online space operating in tandem for decades now. Players have long been able to play similar games like the classic Starburst slot on both real machines and at places like https://casino.betfair.com/game/starburst-cev, both sides in harmony with each other. The accessibility of the on-demand online sphere is proving hard to compete with, and there has been a debate over whether digital will one day replace the analog entirely.
Thanks to tech such as virtual reality, remote play with real dealers on table games is now a genuine option. With that said, brick-and-mortar casinos have always proven resilient in their popularity, although the possibility remains open for things like digital roulette or blackjack tables to complement the slot machines already working with a digital basis.
Finance
It has become a familiar sight for many to see bank branches and ATM locations gradually disappearing around the country, and this is by no means a local trend. Globally, banks have been weighing up the costs and benefits of having a physical presence, particularly in less populated areas, and have been going towards a digital approach.
As you can read here https://eu.usatoday.com/story/bank-branches-closing-study, predictions are that branches could vanish within the first half of the century. With the success of online payments and banking services like Revolut or PayPal, digital is simply the more cost-effective option, particularly with more airtight forms of security available for apps making it safer to use. Expect more features on banking apps as well as other processes like bill payments get gradually folded in.
Retail
Speaking of a disappearing physical presence, the decline of malls and shopping centers has been well-documented over the past couple of decades. You can look at Capital One’s own statistics at https://capitaloneshopping.com/research/mall-closure-statistics to see just how sharply they have declined along with retail outlets in general.
Source: Unsplash
The simple fact is that globally, online retail is slowly but surely taking over as it gives retailers far fewer overheads in terms of staff and rent, while still providing the same services. It also comes with a raft of other benefits such as the ability to integrate digital marketing far more easily, quicker updates to pricing in the event of sudden market changes, and many more plus points on top. There will always likely be a space for some physical stores but it certainly feels that they are quickly becoming the niche more than the standard.
The only thing that remains unknown in most of these cases is the speed of the change, Our advice is not to underestimate how fast things can change in tech!
