Sweeney Talked about a North New Jersey Casino
New Jersey may get casino style gambling in the northern part of the state, but the New Jersey Senate president is not certain where the location would be. Much speculation has been about converting the race track at the Meadowlands into a racino, but Stephen M. Sweeney says his state might opt for a more traditional casino in the metropolitan areas outside New York City or Philadelphia.
Sweeney told the Press of Atlantic City he could see a land-based casino placed in distressed areas like Camden, Jersey City, or Newark, but he’s uncertain how long politicians should wait before green lighting such an initiative. In fact, the senate president suggested it might be advisable to wait up to 5 years before opening a gambling house outside of Atlantic City.
Chris Christie Promised Moratorium on New Casinos
Governor Chris Christie promised the tourism district in Atlantic City that the state would impose a 5-year ban on opening new gaming establishments. The state government wants to give Atlantic City casino interests a boost after years of decline. Gambling revenues for Atlantic City declined from $3.3 billion in 2011 to $2.4 billion in 2013, though Sweeney did mention that non-gambling revenues from establishments like clubs, restaurants, and shopping increased over the same time.
Both Christie and Sweeney believe the full five years are important, because it gives confidence to outside investors that they won’t face stiff new competition. Governor Christie says that February 2011 is when the five years officially began, so those tracking when a casino in northern New Jersey might happen should note that the current leadership in New Jersey appears unlikely to support new casino initiatives opening before February 2016.
Multi-Faceted Atlantic City Revitalization Plan
The plan is to revitalize Atlantic City as a tourist destination. Writers in Newark and Jersey City have stated the experiment is failing, but part of the revitalization of Atlantic City is its new-found ability to open US-friendly online casinos which can sign up American players. So far, 150,000 people have registered new accounts, but building up a customer base online takes time.
Those in the online gambling industry understand that an Internet business builds up over time. More signups happen all the time, adding to a percentage of those older customers who’ve been retained over the months. Unlike a land-based casino, some visitors never leave. The number of legal gamblers playing at the Boardwalk’s online sites in February 2014 should be just a sampling of what the membership numbers for those online casinos will look like in February 2015.
Morgan Stanley Says Online Casinos Future of Gambling
Online gaming experts are not the only ones making these claims. According to Morgan Stanley Brokerage, the US online gambling industry will make as much money as Las Vegas and Atlantic City combined–an estimated $9.3 billion. Often, getting in on the ground-floor of an Internet enterprise is pivotal. After the UIGEA law was passed by the U.S. Congress in September 2006, many of the top online casinos, sports books, and poker sites were effectively pushed out of the American market. Software design companies and the money transfer services, also left the states, leaving a major void in the US-friendly gaming industry.
While some of the support companies have returned, most of the biggest-name online gambling websites have not. That presents a major opportunity for those companies who delve into the new legalized gambling opportunities being presented in the wake of the Justice Department ruling in 2011 which opened the door for online gaming.
The same goes for the U.S. states which seize the new opportunity. Those states which started accepting licensed players in late 2013 (New Jersey, Nevada, Delaware) have less competition than they ever would have before the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act. From a practical standpoint, they are the ground floor of a new American online gambling industry.
Gaming trends suggest online gambling will eventually eclipse land-based gaming. Getting an early start should help the Atlantic City casinos, which have been hamstrung these past years by their inability to accept sports bets, stay viable financially. When February 2016 arrives, the various new revenue streams open to Atlantic City casino interests might make the city’s gambling industry viable. In two years, it’s possible a sustainable Atlantic City could join a casino in Camden, Newark, or Jersey City and both could prosper.
