Borgata Leads NJ Online Gaming, But the Lead Is Shrinking
Reports indicate that traffic was down over the past week for the New Jersey online casinos, though the dip may be nothing more than a holiday decline. After steady increases over the first three months since the launch of online poker and casino sites by Atlantic City gaming companies, the numbers in the past week returned to the levels they were at a month previously, in late-January 2014.
The declining numbers were across the board. The Party Borgata Network dipped 5%, the WSOP.com slumped by 11%, and the All American Poker Network‘s number declined 5%. Analysts have speculated about why the numbers regressed, though no definitive consensus has emerged. Some believe a plateau has been reached for the time being, while others see the mid-February numbers as the minor fluctuations caused by holidays and family commitments. What is know is, while the numbers of the Internet gaming community in peak times had reached 800, that’s not happening as often over the past week.
Valentine’s Day Ruined the Numbers
The dip may be nothing more than loyal men and women spending a bit more time with their spouses and loved ones. According to one source, the traffic declined from 800 on February 13 to around 500 on February 14. Many people may have taken the chance to have a 3-day weekend or other getaway for the romantic holiday, so it’s possible people had other things on their mind than iPoker–or other commitments.
Analysts much take such considerations into account when charting the numbers. Online casino management likely predicted the dip in numbers on the days surrounding Valentine’s Day.
Borgata’s Loses Market Share Again
In December 2013, Borgata had 50% of the traffic of all the Atlantic City casinos. That number dipped to 41% in January 2014. That decline continues, as Borgata Online Casino received 39% of the traffic over the past week. Meanwhile, WSOP has a 34% market share, which leaves it a steady second place. The All American Network, owned by 888 Holdings, continues in third place with 24% of the gaming action.
Borgata’s early lead seems to be giving away to parity, as the statistics show a real trend in the making. Whether the competition will pass and then surpass the early leader in New Jersey player signups is uncertain. With the Atlantic City online casino experiment a little more than 3 months old, a full picture has yet to come into focus.
Ultimate Poker Launches 2-Street Poker
A new variant of Texas hold’em was launched by Ultimate Online Poker this past week: two-street poker. In two-street poker, only two betting rounds prevail. This variant takes a lot of the skill out of gambling, which evens the playing field somewhat.
A pre-flop hand works the same way you would expect in traditional Texas hold’em. Once the flop comes in Two-Street Poker, all 5 community cards are dealt at once. Therefore, the flop, river, and turn all come at once. This eliminates two rounds of betting, so skilled players have two fewer rounds to raise and re-raise, hoping to push less confident players out of the pot. When you shorten a hand, it reduces skill as a factor and introduces more of an element of luck.
Dean Heller Says Poker a “Game of Skill”
While discussing his plan to end legal online gambling in the United States, Nevada Senator Dean Heller recently praised poker as a game of skill–not of luck. When asked why he would support online poker, but not online casinos, Heller suggested poker is a game of skill.
Since Nevada is going ahead with its iPoker initiative alongside Delaware, it’s a natural question to ask the Republican senator from Nevada why he supports iPoker, but not Internet casino gambling. Heller replied, “Games like poker, I think, it takes a little more skill.”
Delaware and Nevada’s Flat Numbers
The numbers had been much lower for the other two states which legalized online gambling: Nevada and Delaware. The Internet poker rooms in Nevada, which has a population of 2.7 million people, tended to have about 200 players online at any given time. Their counterparts in Delaware, which has a population just over 900 thousand, only has about 20 people online at any given time.
Due to the weaker numbers, Delaware Governor Jack Markell and Nevada Governor Brian Sandoval signed a compact on Tuesday combining their player pool lists. This instantly increases Delaware’s potential player sign-up numbers by 300%. While Nevada receives less of an advantage, the resulting gaming agreement provides a framework for other states to sign on. New Jersey was asked to join, but leaders in the Garden State declined, no doubt becuase they have a much larger populaton (over 9 million).
