Despite all that has been going on in 2020, Pennsylvania has continued to push forward with some of its plans for gambling expansion. Perhaps one of the most notable ones is the launch of mini-casinos in the state. The Live! Casino in Westmoreland Mall is the first that comes to mind.
Satellite casinos are, however, not the only development that has been making waves in the Keystone State. Other notable ones include the launch of BetMGM’s online casino this month.
Now, unlike other aspects of the state’s gambling industry, retail casinos have been in a bit of a tight spot particularly due to the coronavirus pandemic. There is currently a lot of uncertainty despite all of the measures that have been put in place to prevent the further spread of the virus. That said, the mini-casinos that recently went live now have to deal with all of these uncertainties and that seems to be just the beginning of their problems.
The Shift to Online Gambling
Perhaps the biggest issue that may be raised with regards to the viability of online casinos is the massive increase in online gambling traffic. There is no doubt that Pennsylvanians do love to play their favorite casino games online and the pandemic only served to make the sector more popular. Several online gambling operators have taken off in 2020 and they have enjoyed some success amid all the chaos.
While there is no guarantee that this will continue even after the pandemic, it is still quite easy to tell that it has set a new precedence for the Keystone State. Revenue figures for online gambling activities in the state have been very impressive, to say the least, something that is very likely to continue for the foreseeable future. This could be the case even after retail gambling destinations eventually return to full operations post-pandemic.
High Hopes
The tough times that the gambling industry is currently going through, fortunately, does not necessarily spell doom for the retail gambling sector. In fact, according to the projections experts have been throwing around in Pennsylvania, the new retail gambling additions could bring in an extra $500 million in revenue.
Case in point, the newly-launched Live! Casino in Westmoreland by itself is promising to bring in over $60 million in slots and table game revenue once it starts operating at full capacity. There are plans for two more mini-casinos in the state and these too will significantly contribute to the earnings. To top it all offer, one more full-size casino is also set to launch next year pushing the revenue projections even further.
It seems like all that Pennsylvanians need to do for now is be a little patient. Things should get much better for the gaming industry very soon.