Online Gambling Revenues Plummet
Online casinos and sportsbooks saw a decline of 16.2 percent in their total gross revenue month over month in April. That’s $10.27 million. The online gambling industry in NJ generated a total of $53.08 million in gross revenue. The same for the previous month was $63.36 million.
The industry observers and the casino operators were quick to dismiss the decline as a seasonal affair and not an indication of a declining industry. The industry does appear to follow a seasonal trend, considering that the sports season enters a lull phase in the month of April in the US. After March Madness, the number of big-ticket sporting events in the US drops drastically, which inevitably leads to less activity on the sportsbooks.
Despite the significant drop, April marks the second best-performing month revenue-wise since online gambling became legal in NJ. The contribution of sports betting to the overall revenues continues to be quite high. In fact, the breakup of the gross revenues from online gambling in NJ for the month of April stood at:
- $34.91 million from online casino
- $16.50 million from sportsbooks
- $1.67 million from online poker
It must be noted that the NJ online gambling industry is a fledgling industry. Online gambling became legal in the state only last year. The industry is in the rapid growth phase, and analysts expect it to grow fast for many years to come until it becomes a mature market.
The UK, a vibrant online gambling market, for instance, generated revenues of £4.7 billion in the year 2018. Few restrictions, a more liberal attitude towards the industry, and a stringent regulatory body that protects the interests of the citizens have allowed the UK online gambling industry to grow spectacularly over the years.
Whether NJ can overtake international online gambling havens like the UK is to be seen.
