The Casino Outlook for the Summer 2021

The wait is over. Casinos have been  given the green light to increase the number of guests they can  accommodate to pre Covid 19 levels. This is welcoming news for the gaming and entertainment industry.The gaming operators have been forced to be resilient over the past 14 months. Most have found challenges with employee retention and acqusition. While that was eased because of the reduction of gaming space,the effort to attract employees must now intensify. Casinos on each coast are offering job referral incentives to current workers and propective hires. One consideration could be to reach out to former employees to gauge their interest in returning in a flexible or part time capacity.

There will be several revenue streams that will recieve a spike in the next 3 months. The Food and Beverage departments along with  hotel  occupancy will approach the historical month to month numbers of 2019. Entertainment will also be a draw to customers looking to go out to shows and concerts. The professional teams are going to full capacity for indoor events so the casinos should be looking to follow suit. Looking at local talent would be a win - win as a gate attraction. 

FYI for those looking for the two hottest concerts in Las Vegas. First is Usher at Caesars Palace. Here is a glimpse of what to expect from the IHeart Radio Awards 2021 and his residency . 

Performance: Usher Sings "Confessions/Love In This Club/My Boo/Yeah" | iHeartRadio Music Awards 2021 - YouTube 

Sports is the vertical that the casinos are betting on. Partnerships with professional teams will boost the use of mobile gaming and sports betting apps.  The marketing opportunities are not just related to wagering on the pre match odds. Extended options involving futures and in game betting should be explored. 

Atlantic City's  revival will be peak during the summer season. Las Vegas will see an increase in their mid week business. The covenience markets like Philly,Washington and Baltimore will have to become creative because they will be competing with other comericial venues for the entertainment spend in those respective cities. 

The leader in all of the aforementioned markets must find their niche and promote themselves effectively. Determine who your customer is and keep that person connected to you. I could expand and give concepts but it would behoove me to share those thoughts in a conversation. For now, you can follow me on LinkedIn and Twitter. 

I will have some exciting news to provide to all you very shortly. Enjoy your summer.

The second performance is Bruno Mars who will be performing at the Park MGM in July. 

Performance: Silk Sonic Sings “Leave The Door Open” | iHeartRadio Music Awards 2021

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The Battle for Philadelphia Gaming: Round One

The official opening of Live Casino & Hotel in South Philadelphia expanded the gaming casinos in this region to five. They include Rivers Casino Philadelphia, Harrah's Philadelphia Casino, Parx Casino and Valley Forge Casino and Resort. Each of the existing venues has it's own niche. It was a competive and comfortable environment with 4 players. Philadelphia's population of 1.5 million people can accommodate gaming and entertainment for 4 casinos. Live Casino is betting that 5 casinos can coexist and they will be the premiere destination. 

The revenue in Pennsylvania Gaming dropped by more than 20% in 2020. This was largely due to the closing of casinos due to COVID -19. Traditional land-based casino revenue nearly halved. Pennsylvania's casinos racked up approximately 1,500 closure days, or 33% of the days the casinos would have operated normally. Slot-machine revenue fell by $1 billion to $1.3 billion, while table games revenue fell by $400 million to $500 million. However, internet gambling shot up 17 times from $34 million in 2019 to $566 million, and sports betting more than doubled to almost $190 million.

These numbers give two conclusions. The first is the appetite for online gaming is substantial. There is a tremendous opppotunity because of sports betting to introduce new customers to your gaming operation. The second conclusion is that due to limits on capacity, each of the two casino in Philadelphia is on even ground. The relaxing of the food and beverage restraints will level the playing field equivalent to the venues outside the city limits that were able to continue those operations with safety protocols in place.

So each property in the Philadelphia region has the opportunity to rearraign it's share of the market. Some people see competition as a threat. I look at it as an opportunity to improve your game. Identify your strengths and shore up your weaknesses. Find ways to energize your staff and reconnect with your customers. COVID has made managing a gaming operation extremely challenging. One of the best owners I ever work for told me you can't be afraid to try new stuff. It's time.

                                                                      Time is Now

The challenge is there for all 5 casinos. The bell just rang! It's Round One!

Follow me on Twitter where I discuss #sportsbetting and #gaming entertainment.  Check out my articles in Bettors Insider and in the January edition of Igaming player. 

Friends of Gaming Guy M

This is the video that I wanted to share with you. This is part of my new marketing and promotion strategy on Instagram. I am targeting the age demographic of 22-65. The cities include in the strategy include Philadelphia, Atlantic City, Washington DC, New York and Las Vegas.

                              Mims Video

Follow me here for my blog posts. You can read my articles on Bettors Insider about casino,esports and sports betting.

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What effect the Pennsylvania Gaming Expansion will have on Atlantic City

The thought of Pennsylvania's Gaming expansion has the attention of the mid Atlantic region. The reasons are obvious. Operators within the Commonwealth will have additional options along with new competitors to choose from. Neighboring states like New York, Ohio and West Virginia will look harder at I Gaming as a way to keep their residents from coming to Pennsylvania for gaming related activities.

The effect on Atlantic City was considered minimal and not a major concern. We disagree with that premise. This is the same ideology that occurred in 2004 when gaming was legalized in Pennsylvania.That was the last major year before the decline of revenue at the shore. Imagine a gaming patron that goes to AC now that lives in Pennsylvania. The patron can't play online on a New Jersey site. The customer can play online from home. This will result in fewer trips to the Garden State. It will decrease the spend and affect the bottom line of the shore brick and mortar site.

Increase competition requires attention and strategy to maintain market share. Failing to plan is planning to fail!

If you want intelligent ways to prepare for your online experience as an operator or a player, you can reach out to us.

                                                #SmartResponsibleGaming
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                   Check out my app, Smart Responsible Gaming at thegamingguym.com/

This Week in Gaming Review

New York has moved it's online poker bill in their State Senate. This bill is now up for review in the Codes, Ways & Means and Rules Committees . While the chances are slim for passage this session, this is progress. If New York legalizes online gaming, poker will have the liquidity it needs to be successful in this region.

Pennsylvania Online Gaming legislation is moving forward despite one bone of contention. This involves VLTs. There should be a stipulation that no VLTs can be within a certain radius of a casino,school or church. This would protect the establish revenue operators and control the threat of underage gaming.Another requirement should involve the amount of seats available in the establishment where the owner is in possession of a liquor license. This would eliminate stop and go owners.

MGM welcome the NBA Golden State Warriors to Las Vegas to continue their Championship celebration. They attended the Ward - Kovalev Light Heavyweight Title Fight at the Mandalay Bay Event Center.

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What Pennsylvania Gaming Expansion Means to You

We predicted this at the being of the year so this comes as no surprise. Check out our bold predictions for 2017. So let's look forward to what the expansion means to you.

You will be able to play casino styles game legally online The same games that you play at a brick and mortar facility will now be on your mobile device and your computer. This is comparable to shopping at Macy's in Cherry Hill and ordering the same items from your house. You save time and money while getting what you want.

You can play video terminal games or slots in places like bars,airports and OTB sites. While this will detract from the current slot revenue that casinos have, it will give a added appeal to local small budget establishments. We see regulation concerns that should be addressed.

Fantasy Sports Wagering will be part of the gaming industry. If you enjoy fantasy sports similar to US Fantasy in Nevada and Colorado then you can have those same experiences in the Commonwealth. This will create marketing and job opportunities.

Pennsylvania is looking at a budget shortfall of approximately 3 Billion dollars. This won't fix it but with taxes, jobs and license fees, this is a step in the right direction.

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This Week in Gaming Review

Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf submitted his budget proposal for 2017-18. His budget includes over 250 million from new gaming revenue. This is a great sign for online gaming in the Commonwealth. There are two bills that are being talked about during this legislative session.

One is the bill sponsored by State Rep Youngblood and Dunbar. This bill includes online gaming and fantasy sports. It expands gaming to the Philadelphia International Airport via tablets. This bill also allows multi state linkage  on slots to increase jackpots. It also allows for the PGCB to set up new regulations to authorize skill based and hybrid slot games.

The second bill is sponsored by State Senator Acosta. Acosta's bill would impose a 25-percent tax on gross revenue from either form of gambling. The most recent House-approved bill from 2016 had  an online gambling tax rate of 16 percent and a DFS rate of 12 percent. In traditional casinos, the state gets 54 percent of gross slot revenue and 16 percent of table game revenue. Costa's proposal would ban Internet gaming on casino property because of the difference in tax rates. He anticipates some action on his bill by April 2017.

Both bills have similarities but the Youngblood and Dunbar bill has language stressing consumer protection that reins in  black market and off shore operators that target compulsive and underage gamblers. The proposed tax is casino favorable with a rate of 14% along  with a 2% local share. Youngblood and Dunbar's bill does not get blinded by the numbers and wants government and the economy to work for all people. There is a provision for Pre K Funding for Philadelphia I Gaming that occurs at the airport from ticketed passengers.

MGM Grand National Harbor

MGM Grand National Harbor has been open a little over two months and doing phenomenal numbers. They have surpassed Maryland Live as the top grossing revenue casino in their region.

The new Prince George's County casino, which opened in early December, generated $48.8 million from slot machines and table games, making it the state's top money maker by nearly $5 million, the Maryland Lottery and Gaming Control Agency reported Monday.

The Baltimore Sun reported that Maryland Live Casino, historically the top money-maker, brought in about $44 million in January, down 15.6 percent from the same month last year.

Horseshoe Casino Baltimore generated $20.2 million in January, down 14.5 percent from the same period a year ago. The State of Maryland showed prudent leadership by anticipating some measure of cannibalization from MGM's arrival. They allowed both casinos to keep more of their profits to account for the loss of revenue. Click here and read the entire article.

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3 Bold Gaming Predictions for 2017

At the end of every year we make three bold gaming predictions for 2017. We will give a percentage of the likelihood of these predictions coming true.

Number 1 is Online Gaming is approved in Pennsylvania. This came so close in 2016. There is a shortage of revenue and limited resources available to alleviate. We await the appointments of the new members of the Pennsylvania Gaming Oversight Committee. If the legislators selected are familiar with online gaming and fantasy sports, that will expedite the process. We would love to see this in place in time for the start of the 2017-18 NFL season.  Odds of this happening are 75%.

Number 2 is Skill Based Gaming expands in New Jersey and Nevada. While there has been movement in both markets to have these types of games on the casino floor, the interest has not been overwhelming. This is because the industry is still attempting to determine how much to invest in these types of games. Is the demand worth the changing the gaming floor?  We feel it is with the right marketing strategy. The customer base must start to trend younger now.  Odds of this happening are 30%.

Number 3 is Sports Betting Legislation being discussed on Capital Hill. We see the American Gaming Association initiatives to unify efforts and bringing this into the mainstream conversation. This is an issue that crosses political party lines. The public wants it and the new administration comes from a business centric place that embraces it, given the proper controls. While a timeline for enactment is still 2 to 3 years away, the discussion starts formally in 2017. Odds of this happening are 50%.

Check back with us in 2017 and we will update you on how these predictions are trending.

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Interview with Chris Sheffield: Penn National Gaming

Mr. Chris Sheffield has been Senior Vice President and Managing Director of Interactive Gaming at Penn National Gaming Inc. since January 2015. Mr. Sheffield is responsible for setting the Company’s strategy as it prepares for the launch of online gaming initiatives across its portfolio at Penn National Gaming.

1). What is your role at Penn National Gaming?  What did you do prior to this position?

"My role is Managing Director / Senior Vice President i-Gaming at Penn which is a new role created this year .  Previously I was managing Director of digital for Betfred in the UK who are a very large betting and gaming business which generates over $ 15 Bn in revenue per year from retail and online operations.  Prior to Betfred, I had an entrepreneurial career and most notably developed Million-2-1 into the largest mobile gambling business in the UK which was eventually acquired by International game Technology (IGT)."

2). Tell the readers the things in the I Gaming platform  that you feel could be implemented here?

"The UK is the World’s most advanced online gambling marketplace and every form of gaming and gambling online for real money is legal and regulated.  This creates a huge amount of tax revenue for Government,  tens of thousands of jobs,  consumer protection for players and drives innovation as operators race to deliver the next great product.  Sports betting is also legal via all channels,  and nowadays in the UK mobile and betting “In Play” as the action happens is the most popular betting activity with $ billions wagered every weekend on soccer, horse racing and other sports.  I see no reason why a similar model could not be implemented across North America and consumers here given the chance to wager legally rather than off-shore with all of the protection and additional tax revenues a regulated model would generate."

3). What would work best in the perfect I Gaming regulatory format?  A federal structure or the current state by state initiative.

"From an operator’s standpoint,  of course a federal position would work best as would be one size fits all and a lot easier to support from a single infrastructure.  However,  given land based gaming businesses are regulated state by state, this is more likely the way things will happen with each state being able to determine its own path and regulations."

4). In Europe, what games are the most popular in the I Gaming environment?  What are the demographics of the players?

"In the UK, sports betting is huge but it is quite a low margin and very competitive business.  The most commercial aspect of i-gaming is casino games (slots, roulette, blackjack e.t.c.),  live dealer casino games,  virtual sports, bingo and poker which is currently in decline.  The customer demographic depends very much on the brand and product and typically a sport-book operator would appeal more to the younger male whilst gaming / bingo focused would appeal more to the older female type audience.  However,  mobile gaming now has overtaken the PC and other devices and this is skewing to a younger more tech savvy customer who is able to play games or wager from anywhere."

 5). Online Gaming does have fears associated with it. The two that immediately come to mind are cannibalization of brick and mortar casinos and an up surge of compulsive gambling. Are these concerns valid?

"As can be seen from Europe,  there appears to be very little cannibalization from bricks and mortar to IGaming and the two channels can be used to help customers become more loyal to a single brand and increase lifetime value and wallet share.  This is also being seen in New jersey with operators such as Golden Nugget being able to report a very positive impact on land based customers  visitation and spend since the advent of IGaming in the State."

"I would also point to Europe regards compulsive gambling and again there is no evidence that there is a link between increased gambling problems and new technology.  At the end of the day,  technology allows the implementation of better controls to protect the customer than the land based environment."

6). Fantasy Sports Betting is the talk of the US. What would it take to bring Online Gaming to this level?

"The biggest challenge that igaming faces is that it is not currently legal in most states whilst fantasy sports for the time being is allowedin most states  across the country.  iGaming needs to prove volume and scale in New Jersey which is improving month by month and issues such as banking (high decline rates for transaction) need to be resolved. Once the model is proven I am sure other States will introduce bills to legalize igaming as a way to raise tax revenue, protect the consumer and bring illegal offshore business back to the US."

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Smart Responsible Gaming

This is the change I have been alluding to. Over the past weeks, I have mentioned that I was going to add a new feature to the website. I totally changed it. That change is Smart Responsible Gaming.

We will promote an intellectual view that will focus on a younger and new gamer. I am excited and passionate about this endeavor. Our posts will provide information about fantasy sports, sports betting and skill base games. There will still be updates about entertainment from the casino world. We will still provide interviews from the top executives,insiders and policy makers periodically.

What we were doing before this change was giving 70% of our attention toward the traditional casino player. A transition had to be made to stay relevant.

So we have invested in a new look for the website. smartresponsiblegamng.com

Gone are the static references to major sports leagues and gaming capitals. Our post will engage you with fresh content that will include this week in gaming review and  the current sporting event that is trending on social media.

You will get an insider perception of what going on. This will come from people that actually work in the professions they are sharing their opinions about. Imagine watching NFL Insiders and you'll visualize what we are doing. We will be data driven with analytics that will support assessments.

The biggest addition is the mobile app that accompanies this transition. Smart Responsible Gaming is available on Android and I phone versions. It is currently in the App Store - Official Site and can be downloaded for free. It will allow you to look at gaming as a social medium that requires planning to minimize risk.

It includes concepts that are novel such as nutritional advice. The app provide access to real time engagement.  The app will also increase your awareness so you'll make sound decisions. Decisions that will improve your gaming experience and allow for a balance quality of life.   If you are interested in online gaming or the aforementioned information targets, you can review it here.

Thanks to all that read any prior post over the past 3 years and are coming with us.

Welcome all the new audience members for joining in.
Enjoy the journey!
.
A new logo will accompany this change. For more details e mail info@smartresponsiblegaming.com

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                                                                  #ECGC20th

My Top Gaming Interviews of 2015

Just in case you missed it, here are my top gaming interviews for 2015. I won't rank them. I'll let you decide that. But these were my favorites based on number of hits and the content. I considered how they resonate with my audience.

 

My post about Marketing and Online Gaming with views provided by Luisa Woods from Tropicana Casino in Atlantic City. The interview with ESPN top writer on gaming and sports betting.

The imaginations of Greg Carlin and Wendy Hamilton were on displayed in my post about Gaming in 2025.

Jessica Dawley

 

The combination of Poker and Jessica Dawley captivated readers when SugarHouse Casino hosted Poker Night in America. The interview with Scientific Games CEO Gavin Issacs gave insight on how

to connect with millenials.

 

 

#HappyNewYear

 

 

 

 

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This Week in Gaming Review

This week includes 3 reports that will change gaming landscape in the mid Atlantic area. One is the

order to curtail Daily Fantasy Sports operators from operating in New York immediately. FanDuel and DraftKings plan to appeal this ruling. As this post was being written, this report was received from ESPN. 

Not in New York!

The second is a referendum to expand gaming outside of Atlantic City. This will be on the ballot during the presidential election vote in November 2016. Meadowlands would be a strong possibility if gaming is allowed to extend to north New Jersey.

 

Pennsylvania is in the process of finalizing the budget for 2015-16.  Since they are overdue by 5 months, the legislators are looking for new revenue streams. One strong consideration is online gaming and the expansion of slots to airports.

Pennsylvania Gaming Oversight Committee

DraftKings and FanDuel were granted a temporary injunction and can continue to operate pending appeal.

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Online Gaming News in Pennsylvania

The past three weeks have been similar to  Fast and Furious 7 with all the activity involving online gaming. Pennsylvania has at least two additional bills that are related to internet gambling. One takes on the logistics involving registration and the exclusion of any holders of a Category 3 license. This would deny Valley Forge the opportunity to participate.

 

The new bills are also asking for a tax rate of 54%. This is  the same level that Pa. taxes slot play. This will not work in an online environment. New Jersey is making things work with a rate of 17.5%. That rate has the operators able to market the product and turn a profit. With the rate of 54%, there would not be internet gaming in New Jersey. Delaware taxes online slots at a rate of 43.6 percent and 29.4 percent for other games, including poker. The first $3.75 million per year has a 100 percent tax rate. They are not making any money.

Mark Lipparelli

Mark Lipparelli, Former Chairman of the Nevada Gaming Control Board, told a California House Committee that he felt the proper tax rate would be the high single digits and that any amount higher than the low teens would hurt the growth of regulated online gaming. Promotions are the drivers of internet wagering. They are limited when the profit margin is minimal. A rate of 12 to 15% is suitable. It could start at the low end and increase over a 4 year span.

 

I am sure that the compromise phase will come when the bills reach the floors of the House and Senate. Here are my three bullets of what can make this happen successfully and by 2016.

• Remove the registration at the property stipulation. That takes the convenience factor out of it. This also limits the operator to a locals only atmosphere.
• Set up the capacity for compacting agreements with any state that has online gaming. This would increase liquidity in Poker and Slots when tournaments are held. It would also drive more revenue to the participating states.
• Limit the amount of providers to casinos that are currently operating  in this state. They are stakeholders and would maintain the integrity of the online product. Allow at least one partner that is independent of the casino to buy into the platform of shared revenue, provided that partner can pass a review by the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board. This would increase marketing efforts. 

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