Online casino games generated $3.4 million in revenue in its first full month of operation, according to figures released this week by the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board (PGCB).
Following a limited soft launch of regulated interactive gaming on July 15 which saw online slots, video poker and online casino table games offered to those in Pennsylvania under the oversight of state gaming regulators for the first time, online gaming operators continued to refine their offering in August with an number of licensed operators still not having launched and online poker still not making its legal debut.
As of today, only three land-based casinos in the state are offering their casino games on the internet:
• Hollywood Casino
• Parx Casino
• SugarHouse
The PGCB divides interactive gaming into three categories representing the three classifications of licensing it offers:
• Online Slots
• Online Table Games
• Online Poker
Other forms of online gambling offered over the internet such as sports betting, Daily Fantasy Sports and lottery games are not classified as interactive gaming and are not included in the same financial data sets. However, for comparative purposes some of those figures are included in our reporting below.
Only two of the three verticals categorized as interactive gaming (online slots and online table games) have launched in the Keystone State so far. While there has been plenty of speculation throughout the industry about exactly when online poker will be offered in Pennsylvania (including here on pokerfuse), the situation proves to be fluid with the current best estimate based on the latest information being early to mid Q4.
Pennsylvania Online Casino Game Revenue
SugarHouse has jumped out to a commanding lead in the fledgling interactive gaming category, capturing over 48% of the market with $1.6 million in revenue reported in August.
Parx Casino also eclipsed the $1 million mark with $1.1 million in revenue reported, and Hollwood Casino generated just over $684,000 with its efforts.
The majority of the revenue generated by SurgarHouse came from slots which accounted for $1.4 million of its total haul from interactive gaming for the month. The same held true for Hollywood which brought in nearly $620k from its slots games.
Parx on the other hand, saw was more balanced between slots and table games with the latter bringing in $552k compared to the $544 from its slots.
Online Sports Betting in Pennsylvania
Revenue from online sportsbooks operating in Pennsylvania nearly doubled the amount generated by online casino games. All operators in the stated combined to bring in $6.3 million for online sports wagers last month. That figure also represents nearly twice as much as was generated from land-based retail sportsbooks in the state which at $3.6 million brought in just slightly more than online casino games.
The Stars Group in partnership with FOX Sports launched its online sportsbook in the state just prior to the NFL season on September 5, and while its first revenues are not represented in the data from August, the company did release a statement to pokerfuse indicating that there has been an increase in television ratings through the first two weeks of the season.
According to a TSG spokesperson, Pittsburgh and Philadelphia saw NFL ratings rise 19% and 9% respectively compared to the average metered market rating.
Daily Fantasy Sports (DFS), which have been offered under regulation of the PGCB since May 2018, saw both a year-on-year increase and an uptick from July with nearly $1.4 million in net gaming revenue reported in aggregate by all operators in the market.
