The Microgaming Poker Network, more commonly referred to as MPN, has partnered with another operator to expand its online poker network in the emerging market of India.
Last week, PokerLion became the newest room on the network. MPN’s latest addition is the result of a new partnership with Indian game developer Stuti Hardware Pvt. Ltd. (Ability Games).
Severe weather was a factor in Atlantic City casinos getting off to their worst two-month start in recent memory. But as they say, every cloud has a silver lining, and the disruptive weather was no exception.
With land-based casino revenue in the tank, the weather helped demonstrate how beneficial the addition of online gambling has been to the market, because without online gambling, the first two months of 2018 would have been much worse.
Furthermore, it may have uncovered a new benefit for states prone to snowy winters.
Online gaming is at the forefront of a gaming renaissance in Atlantic City.
Following a decade of decline, land-based casino revenue has increased in each of the last two years, with the turnaround believed to be in large part because of additive effects of online gambling.
There’s complete agreement among the land-based casinos that operate online gaming websites in New Jersey, rather than cannibalistic, online gambling has been beneficial.
According to the casinos, online gambling is helping on all fronts:
The severe winter storms that hammered New Jersey in January and February have managed to uncover yet another benefit of online gambling: When you can’t come to the casino, the casino can come to you.
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Visit WSOP NJMultiple winter storms effectively shut down entire parts of the Northeast in January and February, Atlantic City included.
With people stuck in their houses, the weather wreaked havoc on Atlantic City casino revenue in January and February (and storms in March are likely to bring similar results).
Not surprisingly, land-based casino revenue fell 12.6 percent in January and 8.9 percent in February.
Short of power outages, online gaming isn’t at the mercy of Mother Nature.
As such, the precipitous drops in land-based casino revenue were softened by rises in online gaming revenue of 16.7 percent and 17.5 percent.
Thanks to online gaming, total casino revenue during the first two months of 2018 was down 9.9 percent and 6.5 percent, instead of 12.6 percent and 8.9 percent.
Other Northeast states considering online gaming legislation should take notice. Not only did online gambling provide a softer landing for revenues, but it provided an outlet for people who would have visited the casino had weather permitted. It’s quite likely that the inability to travel to Atlantic City was part of the reason that January and February were record-setting months for online gaming revenue.
The casino industries in Massachusetts, Rhode Island, New York, and Connecticut are all as or more susceptible to winter storms than New Jersey, and all it takes is one storm to decimate casino revenues for the month.
Worse, a really bad winter could decimate casino revenues for the year, and cost casinos tens-of-millions of dollars (the January and February storms alone cost Atlantic City casinos some $40 million in revenue).
March saw Massachusetts take not one, not two, but three Nor’Easters on the chin in the span of two weeks, the last dropping upwards of two feet of snow on parts of the state.
And this winter isn’t some once in a generation anomaly.
Boston was buried in snow during the winter of 2014/2015, with over 80 inches falling in a three-week span, and a record-setting 110 inches falling for the season. The snow, combined with historical frigid temperatures, meant that no one wanted to go outside if they could avoid it. February 2015 has been called the most extreme weather month in New England history.
Online gaming could help casinos in the Northeast protect themselves from a loss of revenue caused by severe winter weather.
If your customers can’t come to you, it’s nice to be able to go to them.
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The month of February may be short on days, but that didn’t stop New Jersey online gaming from shattering records.
On Wednesday, the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement released the Feb. 2018 revenue numbers for the state’s online gaming industry and the picture is rosy.
For the second month in a row, online gaming revenue came in at nearly $22 million. That figure is good for a 17% increase compared to Feb. 2017.
Posting a number north of $21 million has only happened five times, and it is the first time we’ve seen it happen in consecutive months.
It’s the casinos that continue to carry the bottom line while poker still struggles to find its way. Poker revenues remained relatively flat compared to last month but are still posting a double-digit deficit percentage when compared to the previous year.
Golden Nugget, once again, comes out as the big winner. The online casino continues its domination of the space by more than doubling the revenue of its nearest competitor, Borgata.
The growth and consistency of online casino revenues are exciting. If February is any indication, another record number for March is a real possibility.
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Visit Golden NuggetGolden Nugget remains golden. Its revenues are so far out in front that it has the other online operators wondering what they can do to close the gap.
Golden Nugget produced $7,885,648 in February, for an increase of 19.60% compared to Jan. 2018 and a 53.36% compared to this same time last year.
Borgata once thought to be the one to watch in the industry had to relinquish its role quite a while ago.
Coming off a January decline in revenue, Borgata is probably sighing with relief at the small increase it posted.
It is technically sitting in second place, but the reality is it is practically sharing second place with everyone else.
While it’s overall revenue is less than that of Borgata’s, Resorts revenue growth comes in second behind that of Golden Nugget.
At this rate, it won’t be surprising for Resorts take over the second-place spot soon.
The one dark spot on an otherwise excellent month for Resorts is PokerStars. The online poker room posted the largest month-over-month loss percentage at 6.04% and is down over 22% year-over-year.
Caesars bucked the trend by producing a stronger poker room revenue then it did in the casino. Coming off a dismal Jan., Caesars poker posted 19% increase compared to last month.
The poker room held the New Jersey Poker Classic II and started running satellites to the World Series of Poker last month. Those two things could explain the significant bump.
It will be interesting to see if the trend continues as the WSOP gets closer and a more aggressive satellite schedule gets underway.
Even so, Caesars still sits in last place and the only operator that has an overall negative year-over-year number.
Tropicana just keeps chugging along. It had a solid month, moving out of the last place with $3,346,460 in revenue.
That number was good for a 13% increase in revenue compared to last month. And while it’s year-over-year number is in positive territory (2.88%), it’s doesn’t reflect the strength of the industry as a whole.
Online gaming in New Jersey is only five years old. And while most businesses don’t expect to produce a profit until year five, online gaming and its double-digit growth are getting noticed.
As online gaming legislation works through the process in other states, a robust online gaming industry in New Jersey can only help further the cause.
To sum up the month, we find ourselves celebrating casino revenues and lamenting at the poker room returns.
And while the casino revenues are strong enough to carry poker, some heated boardroom discussions might be taking place about how to fix the downward trend.
Overall, though, the online gaming industry in NJ is gleaming after posting record numbers for the second straight month. Let’s hope the trend continues.
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The New Jersey legislature began discussions about legalizing the recreational use of marijuana in the state. Atlantic City Mayor Frank Gilliam sees a natural fit between the activity and Atlantic City.
The post Mayor Sees A Match With Legal Marijuana And Atlantic City appeared first on Play NJ.
The list of New Jersey online casinos has grown by one this week. Without much fanfare, GVC rolled out a PartyCasino product to operate alongside PartyPoker NJ.
The post New PartyCasino Joins NJ Online Gambling Industry Under Borgata License appeared first on Play NJ.
Foxwoods Resort Casino came out in full support of online gambling and sports betting In written testimony submitted ahead of a public hearing.
The post Foxwoods To Connecticut Legislature: Legalizing Online Gambling Is State’s ‘Strongest Opportunity’ appeared first on Online Poker Report.
In the face of various hurdles, including Australia, Colombia, and casino cannibalization, TSG followed through on its commitment to grow PokerStars last year.
The Stars Group has reported incremental growth in its online poker vertical despite tough regulatory pressures throughout 2017 and the flourishing online casino and sports vertical that continues to exert a cannibalizing effect on the business.
Total revenue from online poker hit $234.4 million in Q4 2017, up 8% year-over-year. The year finished at $877.3 million, beating out 2016 by 4%.
Spring and summer will see MEGASTACK and live Festivals adorn the schedule with an emphasis on French and Spanish stops.
PokerStars has added five new stops to its live circuit over the spring and summer months under the MEGASTACK and Festival brands.
Headed back to tried and tested destinations such as Dublin, London, Marbella, Lille and Gujan-Mestras, the live schedule seems to lean towards supporting the newly created online Southern European shared player pools of Spain and France. There will be two stops in France (June and July) and one in Spain.
Stars Group financial results for 2017 hit management targets and promise six to 12 percent growth in 2018.
The post Is Stars Group In The ‘Strongest Position In Its History’ After Releasing 2017 Full-Year Results? appeared first on Online Poker Report.
The second half of the Season 5 schedule for World Poker Tour DeepStacks North America was released this week.
While it included some repeat stops in California, Florida, and Canada, there are some new additions bound to get poker players excited in 2018.
Canada has played host to the DSPT in the past, but never at Playground Poker Club. The tour is rolling into Montreal, Quebec, Canada in August to kick off the second half of the season.
The Main Event, scheduled for Aug. 31 – Sept. 5 is at one of Canada’s favorite poker spots. The buy-in for the event is C$1,650, and the DSPT has yet to announce the guarantee.
Immediately following the stop in Montreal, the DSPT rolls into Texas for the very first time.
About three hours south of Houston is Robstown, the town that put the “Texas” in Texas hold’em in the early 1900s.
Surely you’ve heard tales of the rough and tumble games that included legendary names like Doyle Brunson and Amarillo Slim. Back in the day, making a living playing poker in Texas was hard work and dangerous business.
The most interesting part of the history of poker in Texas is that it has been practically illegal to play the game from the time hold’em was spread.
But is poker still illegal in the state today?
Poker clubs have been springing up around Texas over the last few years. The membership clubs do not profit directly from the poker game and instead charge membership fees to play. It’s a business model that scholars and businessmen in the state say is legal.
In case you haven’t heard, Texas is a pretty conservative state and gambling of any kind doesn’t sit well with the morality and politics of the state legislature and its constituents.
For now, it looks like membership club poker is following the letter of the law, if not the spirit of it.
“I suspect we’ll see the Cowboys move to Tulsa before we see full-scale gambling in Texas,” University of Houston political science Professor Brandon Rottinghaus said to the Houston Chronicle. “Trying to get around the law on this issue is never profitable. I think that’s the real danger that the people running these clubs have. You may technically be in the right, but this issue is so fraught with politics and morality that you’re unlikely to succeed.”
For now, it looks like the poker playing public found a way to scratch their itch without raising too many eyebrows.
“Fortunately, it appears this is an issue where legislators don’t want to touch it,” State Senator Jose Menendez told the Houston Chronicle. “They understand that people want to have the freedom to do this, so they’re willing to not get into it. For now, at least they’re letting these membership-based card rooms be safe places for people be able to practice their hobbies.”
The DSPT making a stop in Houston puts the spotlight directly on poker in the state. Stay tuned as players “practice their hobbies” on the big stage later this fall.
Coming off its recent win for Mid-Major Tournament Circuit of the Year at the American Poker Awards, the DeepStacks Poker Tour (DSPT) also announced its season-ending championship event would take place at Grey Eagle Resort & Casino in Calgary, Alberta, Canada.
The DSPT Championship Main Event has a buy-in of C$2,500. Players are taking notice of the C$1 million guaranteed prize pool.
“We are thrilled to increase the WPTDeepStacks schedule for Season 5 with the addition of five events that boast combined guarantees of more than $2 million and include the tour’s first-ever trips to Montreal and Texas,” said WPTDeepStacks Executive Director Chris Torina in a press release on Tuesday. “Together with our incredible casino partners, we look forward to providing the premier mid-major offering that poker players want and deserve.”
| Tournament | Location | Dates | Main Event Buy-In | Guarantee |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| WPTDS Hollywood | Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino – Hollywood | Jan. 10-24 | $1,100 | $1,000,000 |
| WPTDS Jacksonville | bestbet Jacksonville | March 2-12 | $1,500 | $300,000 |
| WPTDS Maryland | Live! Casino | March 16-26 | $1,500 | $300,000 |
| WPTDS Thunder Valley | Thunder Valley Casino Resort | April 6-9 | $1,100 | $500,000 |
| WPTDS Edmonton | Casino Yellowhead | April 6-16 | C$1,100 | C$300,000 |
| WPTDS Immokalee | Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino – Hollywood | April 9-12 | $1,100 | $250,000 |
| WPTDS Fresno | Club One Casino | May 11-21 | $1,100 | $300,000 |
| WPTDS Tampa | Seminole Hard Rock Hotel & Casino – Tampa | June 7-18 | $1,100 | $300,000 |
| WPTDS Montreal | Playground Poker Club | Aug. 31-Sept. 5 | C$1,650 | TBD |
| WPTDS Houston | FreeRolls Poker Club | Sept. 21-25 | $1,000 | $100,000 |
| WPTDS Edmonton | Casino Yellowhead | Sept. 29-Oct. 8 | C$1,100 | C$300,000 |
| WPTDS San Diego | Oceans 11 Casino | TBD | $1,100 | $200,000 |
| DSPT Championship | Grey Eagle Resort & Casino | Nov. 23-Dec. 3 | C$2,500 | C$1,000,000 |
Lead image courtesy of World Poker Tour/Flickr
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