The ongoing success of the gaming market in Pennsylvania continues to astound with the latest set of numbers, covering November 2023, showing the industry made revenue in excess of $444 million for the month.
This represents a drop of almost 2% year-on-year but the healthiness of the market in the state overall is good, especially when you take into account online action.
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Sportsbooks took something of a hit, but the state’s brick-and-mortar operations more than made up for that. Retail slots in these establishments netted $189.7 million, and table games another $77.8 million.
Interestingly, despite the losses experienced on the sporting side, it is worth noting that the amount bet on sports, otherwise known as the ‘handle,’ was actually up by 18% and that the losses are, therefore, primarily down to bettors being successful with their bets. This all adds up given the fact that the state’s main sports team, the Philadelphia Eagles, are in good form of late and once again pushing to get to the Super Bowl.
In terms of internet action, interactive slots made $109.3 million, that’s a massive 26% increase on the same period in 2022. Table games brought in $46.4 million, a rise of 18%, and online poker brought in a healthy $2.3 million.
Of the online providers, it is DraftKings that leads the way. They are the market share leader in the state in 2023.
An update from the company states, “Older states are generating significant contribution profit after the initial investment period as customers are retained, handle per player increases, hold rises, promotional intensity declines, and external marketing decreases.”
The Pennsylvania market is a very competitive one, making DraftKings’ successes all the more impressive. There are now 21 online casino operators in the Keystone State, with Tropicana Casino, Bally Casino, Golden Nugget, and Jackpot City all joining the fun in 2023.
Table games in the state topped $400 million in revenue in 2023 in terms of online action, and clearly, slots will remain the biggest source of revenue for online casinos, there is no doubt that this area of the market is fast improving.
A lot of this is down to the advances in technology when it comes both to the quality of the table games themselves as well as the improvement in the apps that host them. This makes the action all the more realistic, and the absence of glitches and speedy play help players recreate what they might experience in an offline table game scenario, minus the smoke and noise distracting them.
These moves were touched upon by the Chief Product Officer of Fanatics, Scot McClintic, who said,
“We really focused on making the blackjack experience have that premium feel. All of the details from how the cards flip over, the speed, the animation were painstakingly thought through.”
The popularity of online blackjack and other table games is sure to rise, especially as the live dealer facilities continuously improve.