[toc]Stop me if you’ve heard this before: New Jersey’s online gambling operators tallied over $20 million for the month.
You should have stopped me, because September was the seventh-consecutive month New Jersey’s online casino industry eclipsed $20 million in revenue.
Online casino continues to grow by leaps and bounds, posting 30 percent growth in September. The industry now accounts for more than 90 percent of total online gaming revenue.
On the other hand, online poker has petered out. Online poker represents just 9.3 percent of the state’s online gaming revenue.
Top line numbers
Here are the top line numbers from the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement’s latest monthly revenue reports:
- Online casino revenue: $18,489,533
- Online poker revenue: $1,902,249
- Total online gaming revenue: $20,391,782
- Year to date online gambling revenue: $183,670,496
Year-over-year, online poker revenue was down nearly six percent.
Total gaming and casino revenue were up 30 percent and 25 percent respectively.
- Online poker: -5.69 percent
- Online casino: +30.07 percent
- Total revenue: +25.63 percent
As seen in the chart below, the New Jersey online gaming industry has yet to experience a year-over-year decline in any month.
Land-based revenue is also on the rise
After a decade of declining revenues, land-based casino revenue is on pace to grow for the second-consecutive year. Through the first nine months of the year, total casino revenue stands at $2 billion, compared to the $1.8 billion the industry had tallied at this point last year.
Online gaming revenue represents close to 10 percent of total gaming revenue.
That should put the final nail in the coffin of cannibalization arguments, considering land based casino revenue is on the rise at the same time that:
- Online casino revenue is growing.
- Online casino revenue as a percentage of total gaming revenue is also growing.
“This isn’t just luck. Business is building,” Matthew B. Levinson, chairman and chief executive officer of the Casino Control Commission told the Press of Atlantic City. “Revenue at one operator was flat, but every other casino and every internet operation was up for the first nine months of this year.”
Market share analysis: Golden Nugget bounces back
Golden Nugget’s market-share lead shrank in August thanks to a few substantial jackpots the casino paid out. In September Golden Nugget once again put some distance between itself and the rest of the pack, as its market share went from 24 percent to 28 percent.
There was also a shakeup in the trail pack, as Borgata has moved in front of the other operators – Resorts, Tropicana, and Caesars – that are now tightly bunched in the three, four, and five positions.
Casino-by-casino analysis
Borgata starting to surge
Borgata and its sub-brands eclipsed $4 million in revenue for the second consecutive month.
The casino is starting to separate itself from the rest of the trail pack, and is looking like the clear number two in the market.
Golden Nugget increases its lead
- License holder: Golden Nugget
- Brands and sub-brands: Golden Nugget, Betfair, SugarHouse
Golden Nugget came close to another $6 million month in September, falling a few hundred thousand dollars short.
Golden Nugget has now eclipsed $5 million for eight-consecutive months. This is all the more remarkable when you consider no other online operator has hit the $5 million mark once.
[show-table name=cta-golden-nugget]
Tropicana holds steady
- License holder: Tropicana
- Brands and sub-brands: Tropicana, Virgin
Tropicana is back to its usual steady, consistent self. Tropicana’s online casino revenues have fallen between $3.4 million and $4 million over the past seven months.
Resorts eyeing a big October
- License Holder: Resorts AC
- Brands and sub-brands: Resorts, Mohegan Sun, PokerStars NJ
Resorts online gaming revenue has been extremely consistent since June:
- June: $3,678,622
- July: $3,750,529
- August: $3,524,344
- September: $3,589,922
Revenues should get a boost from online poker next month thanks to the popular PokerStars NJCOOP series and a live tournament series at Resorts last weekend.
Caesars falls back to earth
- License holder: Caesars
- Brands and sub-brands: 888, Caesars, Harrah’s, WSOP
After posting what was by far its best month ever in August, Caesars and its online gaming sites slipped back in September.
Still, Caesars is no longer a cellar dweller, and is right in the mix with Tropicana, Resorts, and even Borgata.
Historical look at iGaming revenue in NJ
Be sure to check our New Jersey iGaming revenue page for a detailed breakdown of online gambling revenue in the Garden State.
