2020 was unlike any other year in terms of business and industry. We have never witnessed such disruption across the world as we did throughout 2020 due to the spread of COVID-19. At the time of writing, the disease is still with us and could be for some time, but we are learning to live with it and re-open society.
Despite 2020 being a bad year for many businesses around the world, there were some markets that gained a big boost. A good example is the iGaming industry and many people turned to online gaming as a leading form of entertainment in 2020. This was due to the fact lockdown was enforced and people could not leave their homes for anything other than essential reasons.
The online casino industry is a good example of a market that thrived in 2020. While land-based casinos took a big hit as they were forced to close their doors, online casinos witnessed an increase in traffic. In fact, we saw the introduction of new online casinos in the UK and there were not many markets which saw new additions during 2020, which speaks volumes for the iGaming industry.
It will be interesting to see if the numbers of people playing online casino games remains at the same level in 2021 and beyond but there can be no doubt the online casino industry gained a big boost in 2020.
Online gaming was not the only computer-based industry to prosper throughout 2020. Software applications such as those that help people work from home also performed well. Much like the iGaming industry, working from home software came into its own due to the fact people were told to stay at home and not leave, even to travel for work. Businesses did not want to close completely and that forced them to look at new ways of operating. Software applications that allow groups of people to get together, talk, send documents, and create ideas thrived and it will be interesting to see how many businesses continue to operate in the same way in the future.
Internet retail was another market to gain a big boost in 2020. With high street shops being forced to close their doors, people turned to online shopping. Millions of people were already using the internet to buy products but the number and people shopping online, and the regularity of purchases increased for online retailers.
Ordering products online would not work without having companies to deliver the goods. Freight and logistics were another sector to witness a boost in 2020. With so many people ordering products online, delivery companies were having to work harder than ever to complete deliveries. This was alsoimportant in terms of food deliveries and the supermarkets remained open but could only sell what they had in stock. Without the freight and logistics market, 2020 would have been a lot worse and this sector enjoyed a strong growth throughout the year.
