PENN Entertainment announced on Tuesday morning that it launched its standalone Hollywood Casino app in New Jersey. The Garden State becomes the third online casino market the new platform has gone live in, following Pennsylvania and Michigan.
The new app is available on Android, iOS and desktop. It can be accessed through the ESPN BET sportsbook app, too.
Hollywood Casino has hundreds of slots, along with table games and popular live dealer titles. The platform recently launched Devils Blackjack through PENN Entertainment’s partnership with the New Jersey Devils.
PENN Entertainment Chief Technology Officer, Adam LeBerge, said in a statement:
“We’re thrilled to introduce our dedicated, casino-first experience to customers across New Jersey. Hollywood Casino delivers a best-in-class experience with an extensive game library, seamless gameplay, and exclusive content from our in-house studio.
“This launch builds on the strong momentum we’ve gained since introducing our enhanced standalone app in December.”
Customers can use ESPN BET credentials, without any extra steps, to log into the new Hollywood platform.
New app has shown improvement in other states since launching
PENN Entertainment has seen tangible increases from its Hollywood app in Pennsylvania and Michigan. According to a Q4 2024 earnings presentation, PENN Entertainment broke down the following improvements in the Keystone State:
- 16% increase in average weekly users
- 38% increase in gross gaming revenue
- 35% increase in net gaming revenue
It certainly helps that PENN Entertainment is able to utilize an omnichannel approach in Pennsylvania. However, there’s no reason the app can’t be successful in New Jersey.
During the Q4 2024 earnings call, company CEO Jay Snowden spoke about the strengths of the Hollywood app:
“We were laser focused on speed and [user interface/user experience] and it shows. Optimizations like this are only possible because we own our technology stack.”
The Hollywood app jumped seven spots to No. 2 on the Eilers & Krejcik Gaming rankings.
Snowden also gave some details on Michigan, growing market share at 0.25% in January, through only three weeks. With a strong app features, PENN Entertainment is expecting growth in the Garden State, too.
Hollywood cannot use omnichannel approach in New Jersey
Despite New Jersey being a strong online casino market, it’s likely the less attractive state for PENN Entertainment. The company does not have any retail Hollywood locations in the Garden State.
Pennsylvania is likely the strongest market, as PENN Entertainment has four retail locations. That is likely why Hollywood launched in the the Keystone State first, and early at that. Snowden said on a Q3 2024 earnings call that it planned to release the app in “early 2025.” It ended up doing so before the end of the year, which showed the priority.
Then, PENN Entertainment brought the Hollywood app to Michigan in January. The company has Hollywood Casino at Greektown in downtown Detroit. It’s obvious why Snowden prioritized Michigan and Pennsylvania. He said last November:
“What we’re doing right now is messy, because you’re marketing to your land-based casino database at Hollywood properties, and telling them that they should download the ESPN bet app to play their favorite slot machine.
“We’ve watched our competition launch standalone iCasino apps with great success and many times it was the same brand.
“It’s not only leading with iCasino in that app, but it’s also the brand connection which is going to be, I think, will be pretty powerful for us.”
None of what Snowden said applies to New Jersey, since the company doesn’t have a retail property to link to.
Despite it being a slightly less attractive market, it doesn’t mean the Garden State isn’t important to PENN Entertainment’s success.
