In short: Live casino games are streamed from studios or casino floors where real dealers use physical cards, wheels and dice. Several cameras film the table, while Optical Character Recognition (OCR), card scanners and wheel sensors convert each result into data, and a Game Control Unit links the table to the betting interface on your screen.
How does a live casino work? Live casinos are a well-established form of online gambling, which represents the action that takes place in traditional casino venues. However, the player is able to place a wager from the comfort of their home, and live casino games follow broadly the same rules and house edges as their land-based equivalents.
While some claim that only slots have a better RTP, others consider table games to bring higher profits despite the established house edge. Return to player depends on the game and its rules rather than on whether it is streamed or played in person.
Live casinos that are reputable and popular on a global scale, use studios run by specialist suppliers such as Evolution, Pragmatic Play Live, Playtech and Ezugi (part of Evolution).
What makes Live casinos so exciting is that the games are run in real-time by a human dealer and players are able to take part in the game via a console on their computer. In the event they have a question or need assistance, live chat is among the available functions.
The physical transactions made by the dealer are translated into data used by the software or to be more precise, by the so-called Optical Character Recognition (OCR). The latter enables the player to take part in the casino action without noticing a difference between the live dealer casino and the brick and mortar one. In addition, results come from real cards, wheels and dice handled by the dealer rather than from a random number generator.
Despite being widely popular among players, live games require the casino to make a considerable investment in staff and technology. An average casino studio usually employs a cameraman, croupiers, an information technology manager, and a pit boss. These costs once limited live lobbies to a few classic games, although large suppliers now also stream game shows and many table variants. Most of them have sic bo, baccarat, blackjack, and roulette available. In comparison, the cost of running virtual games is much lower.
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A live casino consists of at least three rooms. The first one comprises a live studio, the second is designed as a software room, and last but not least, the presence of an analyst room is required. Yet, this configuration may vary from casino to casino.
Depending on the casino you pick, you may also have the option of enjoying live games through the casino’s TV channel or your mobile phone.
Below, you will find information about the components of the live casinos as well as a brief description of their purposes and how they help you make your game session a trouble-free one.
Key Live Casino Components
Cameras
Needless to say, cameras play an important role in the successful streaming of live games. The latest technological breakthroughs made it possible for smaller but more powerful cameras to be used for streaming the live feeds.
Let’s take the game of roulette as an example. Usually, a roulette table has three separate cameras for an overview, shots of the table, and the wheel, and the third one features the so-called picture in picture display.
Game Control Unit
The Game Control Unit is probably the most important component of the live casino. Every table has a GCU attached to it. The device itself is no bigger than a shoebox and its responsibility is to encode the video that is broadcast. The GCU is the true specialist which assists the dealer in running the game. In a nutshell, no live game is possible without the GCU.
Wheel
Depending on the game, the live casino room might include a wheel as well. Casinos work with major manufacturers of casino configuration and in general wheels have their built-in sensors and the casino software interfaces with them.
Dealer
As mentioned above, dealers are responsible for handling the game so the player does not feel even the slightest difference between the online format and the traditional casino games. No self-respecting casino would tolerate a dealer who is not familiar with the game rules, so they make them undergo thorough training. Card scanners, wheel sensors and OCR software record the outcome of each round the dealer runs.
Monitor
The monitor can show what online players see on their screens. Online players are not filmed; only the dealer and the table appear in the stream. Studio cameras are positioned to cover the table and the game equipment.
The presence of a monitor is important to the dealer too as it urges them to take action when necessary and enables them to keep track of the bets that can be placed and those that can be closed. The monitor also allows the dealer to see the players who are online. As mentioned above, players and dealers can engage in a live chat, so every issue is promptly solved.
Regions Where the Majority of Studios are Located
If you do not have much experience in playing at a live dealer casino but you find this activity enjoyable, you’d likely benefit by taking the details below into consideration so that you don’t get disappointed in the end.
When you do research about the pros and cons of creating an account in a live dealer casino, you have to take into account the country where the provider is based. If you fail in finding any information about the location of the operator, opting for another casino is probably the best alternative. In most cases, live dealer casinos are streamed either from a traditional land-based casino or from their own live casino of the site.
Another thing that indicates you should stay away from that casino is the type of software they use and the quality of the live stream. If you have trouble with placing bets, reaching the live chat operator, etc, that is probably a casino that is not worthy of creating an account in.
Even if you do not keep yourself informed about the development of the casino industry on a global scale, you must have heard about the most attractive gambling destinations in the world. Online casino gaming is regulated in a growing number of countries, and an increasing number of authorities are considering legalizing remote gambling activities.
As for the US…
…real-money online casinos are legal only in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Michigan, West Virginia, Connecticut, Delaware and Rhode Island; offshore sites that accept players elsewhere hold no US licence. Although the choice is a bit limited, the tendency is for the live dealer casinos to continue their expansion.
Canadian players can find live tables from Evolution, Pragmatic Play Live, Playtech and other suppliers, and Evolution runs studios in Canada. Which casinos are available depends on the province; in Ontario, only operators registered with iGaming Ontario are licensed to offer online casino games.
When it comes to the place where most of the live dealer casinos are located, Europe and Asia are competing for the first place for live dealer casinos per capita.
Asia is the place where Macau, Singapore, and the Philippines are located and every passionate player is dreaming of rolling the dice in one of the exclusive casino resorts there. As for live dealer casinos, the current restrictions country’s authorities have imposed, limits the opportunities for the expansion of remote gambling activities but the majority of Europe-based live dealer casinos, welcome players located in Asia. Playtech, whose headquarters are on the Isle of Man, is among the suppliers that have run live studios in the Philippines.
Speaking of European countries where the live dealer casino sector is developing and the headquarters of some leading casino operators are located, we have to mention Spain, Malta, known as the gambling Mecca of Europe, the UK, Latvia, Ireland, Isle of Man.
Optical Character Recognition (OCR) Technology
Optical Character Recognition (OCR) is widely used in the live casino industry. In brief, it reads what the studio cameras capture, such as card values and the winning number, and turns it into game data. Players are able to place their bets via a console on their computer screen. If they need assistance, a live chat operator is also available.
The OCR allows everything to be transformed into a piece of meaningful data in electronic format. Together with card scanners and wheel sensors, OCR captures the result of each action, such as the cards dealt and the number the ball lands on, which makes the process of playing a live dealer casino game quite similar to those, available in brick and mortar casinos.
The Gaming Process in Stages
Depending on the game you engage in, the stages of the gameplay might be slightly different. Let’s presume you are going to take part in roulette.
First of all, the dealer will be filmed and the software the casino uses will transform the image so that it is compatible with the live stream and the interactive interface of the user. Then, the generated data will become available to all participants in the game as the server will transmit it.
Players are supposed to place their bets and the dealer will ask for some additional information. Meanwhile, players will place their bets, which will be processed by the software the casino runs on. “No more bets” announcement will be made and players will be informed about that in through the server. In other words, the betting buttons will not be active.
Then, the dealer will spin the wheel and the result will be captured by the available cameras.
Players will be aware of the results in a matter of seconds and the information about those who won and those who lose will be displayed on their screens.
If a player wants to continue playing, they are supposed to repeat the above steps upon the completion of the round.
