Slow to expand, internet casino gambling is the future of US betting, industry execs say
SECAUCUS, NJ — Internet casino gambling is only legal in a handful of states, but the industry is convinced it is the future of gambling, even as some worry about cannibalizing land-based casinos.
Speaking Wednesday at the SBC Summit North America, a major gambling industry conference, industry executives acknowledged the difficulties they have had in expanding the legalization of online casino games.
Yet they remain confident that, like many other industries, the future of gambling lies online.
“Once you get to the millennials, people can basically focus on their cell phones their entire lives,” says Elizabeth Suever, vice president at Bally’s Corporation. “This is where gaming is going.”
It just won’t happen that quickly.
Only seven US states currently offer legal online casino games: Connecticut, Delaware, Michigan, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and West Virginia. Nevada offers internet poker, but not online casino games.
In contrast, 38 states plus Washington DC offer legal sports betting, the vast majority of which is done online, usually via cell phones.
When the U.S. Supreme Court cleared the way for every U.S. state to offer legal sports betting in 2018, such betting “took off like a rocket,” said Shawn Fluharty, a West Virginia lawmaker and chairman of the National Council of Legislators of Gaming States.
“A lot of people thought i-gaming would follow suit,” he said. “That did not happen.”
“It’s been a tough road,” agreed Brandt Iden, vice president at Fanatics Betting & Gaming. “I-gaming comes first; this is the direction the industry needs to go to be successful, and this is where consumers want it to go.”
Last month, Deutsche Bank published a research note saying it is likely a matter of “when, not if” Internet gambling in Atlantic City will overtake land-based casino revenue.
Panelists agreed that the industry needs to do a better job educating state lawmakers about Internet casino gaming, making explicit comparisons to the illegal, unregulated offshore websites that attract customers from across the country. Legal sites are strictly regulated and offer customer protections, including responsible gambling options such as self-imposed timeouts and deposit and activity limits, they said.
Cesar Fernandez, a senior director at FanDuel, said online casino games should become increasingly attractive as federal post-pandemic aid dries up and states look for new revenue without raising taxes on their residents.
“Since 2018, FanDuel has paid $3.2 billion in taxes,” he said. “That’s a lot of teacher salaries, a lot of police officers and firefighters.”
The industry cites several challenges to broader adoption of Internet casino gambling, including fears of an increase in gambling addiction by “putting a slot machine in people’s pockets,” Iden said, adding that casino companies need to do a better job in publicizing the protection of players that online companies provide. .
Then there’s the ongoing industry debate over whether Internet gambling cannibalizes land-based casinos. Many in the industry have long said that the two types of gambling complement each other.
But recently, some casino executives have said they believe online gambling is hurting land-based casinos’ revenues.
Adam Glass, an executive at Rush Street Interactive, an online gambling company, said his company also has relationships with land-based casinos and is working hard to play a “complementary” role there.
He said online gambling can also create jobs, not only through the design and operation of the games themselves, but also in related sectors such as marketing and media.
The conference was scheduled to continue debating whether Internet gambling is cannibalizing land-based casinos later in the day on Wednesday.
___
This story has been updated to correct that Shawn Fluharty is a lawmaker in West Virginia, not Michigan.
___
Follow Wayne Parry on X, formerly Twitter, at www.twitter.com/WayneParryAC