- Online poker in New Jersey had it worst year on record in terms of generating revenue.
- Only Caesars (in conjunction with the All American Poker Network) has seen an increase in revenue from its poker operations, a spike due entirely to cross-border liquidity sharing.
- In total, online casino providers in the state generated $277.3 million in revenue last year, over 13 times what poker generated.
Online poker in New Jersey had its worst year on record in terms of generating revenue. Totaling $21.4 million, 2018 dipped below 2015 ($23.8 million) when only two online poker networks were active in the state.
The landscape changed when PokerStars entered the market in 2016, injecting marketing dollars into what was hoped to be the first of many states where the world’s online poker leader would reemerge after exiting the country following Black Friday. However, no other online poker markets have opened in the state since and revenue from online poker in NJ has been in steady decline since.
For every month (except one) since March 2017 (coincidentally, one full year after PokerStars first opened its doors in a fully regulated US market), total online poker revenue in New Jersey has declined on a year-on-year basis.
That trend continued into the closing month of 2018 with both competing operators posting declining annual revenue figures in December.
Over this period of time, only Caesars (in conjunction with the All American Poker Network) has seen an increase in revenue from its poker operations, a spike due entirely to cross-border liquidity sharing with AAPN poker rooms in Nevada and Delaware that began in May 2018.
While partypoker (licensed in New Jersey by Borgata) and PokerStars (licensed in New Jersey by Resorts) had hoped that they could replicate of Caesars once Pennsylvania comes online this year, a reinterpretation of the Wire Act by the US Department of Justice earlier this month has put all online poker networks that cross state lines in jeopardy.
Online casino revenue, on the other hand, has been trending in the opposite direction. In total, online casino providers in the state generated $277.3 million in revenue last year, over 13 times what poker generated.
During December, online casino revenue rose by 44.75% over the final month of 2017, one of the biggest annual increases on record in the market.
Gaming operators in the state also took their first online sports bets in 2018, creating another gaming vertical that outperformed poker in just a few short months.
