New Jersey Reports Online Gambling Revenues of $8.3 Million in 2013
The results are in for the first six weeks of New Jersey’s online casino gambling industry, which kicked off on November 21 with a “soft launch” that lasted for five days and drew in the major players in the New Jersey gaming scene. When the numbers were revealed, Borgata/PartyPoker, WSOP.com, and others were able to draw in a tidy $1.3 million by the end of November.
The November numbers showed that Borgata/PartyPoker and Caesars Interactive Entertainment were able to pull in approximately the same revenues for the month, $401,162 for Borgata and $348,813 for Caesars. The others in the market lagged behind.
After the start of New Jersey’s internet gaming on November 26, the industry took off during the month of December. Total revenues (or “win”) for the month came in at $7,388,672 for the six companies in New Jersey. Along with the revenues from the ten-day period in November, the overall 2013 “win” was $8,368,837.
Borgata/Party was the overwhelming leader after the first six weeks, pulling in revenues of $3,750,174 by December 31. Caesars followed Borgata/Party and posted a win of $2,380,178.
The other competitors in the New Jersey market have some work to do if they want to catch up with Borgata/Party and Caesars. The Golden Nugget, which went live in the middle of December, was able to rack up $177,653 for the month. The other three properties that were part of November’s “soft launch” had less-than-stellar numbers. Tropicana/Gamesys brought in $603,579 for December, Trump Plaza/Betfair earned $401,971, and Trump Taj Mahal/Ultimate Poker had a win of $825,092.
For the month of December, casino games, not online poker, were the major draw for players, with $5.17 million of the December revenues coming from electronic options such as blackjack and roulette. For online poker, revenues were $3.2 million, or just over one-third of the total.
Finally, New Jersey is reporting tax revenuesthat have come from internet gambling. The six sites have ponied up $1,255,733 in gross revenue taxes. The Garden State taxes online gaming at a 15% rate and, naturally, Borgata and Caesars have paid the most money in taxes to this point, $919,680, to be exact.
Extrapolating the early numbers out, the New Jersey online gaming scene is on pace with what was projected by many industry insiders. Using the December revenues as a base, the New Jersey online gaming scene would bring in a win of $88.7 million in its first year.
The online gaming revenue numbers have given a glimmer of hope for revitalization of the overall New Jersey gaming industry. For the first time in 22 years, Atlantic City revenues fell under $3 billion at $2.86 billion due in part to increased competition from neighboring states. Wayne Parry of the Associated Press discussed these numbers with Tropicana President Tony Rodio, who said, “Obviously, it is disappointing to see another year where it’s a [revenue] decline. With the addition of internet gambling, I think you’re going to see an increase in 2014.”
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