A number of stakeholders in the online poker industry have set their sights on Pennsylvania in the hope that the state’s yet to launched online poker operations will achieve what New Jersey’s online poker industry failed to achieve in five years. That is, boosting the entire United States online poker market.
Already, there are rumours flying around that online gambling might go live in the state by fall as Pennsylvania expanded gaming keeps moving forward. While the launch of online poker in Pennsylvania is highly anticipated, it certainly raises a number of questions most of which are more complex than the traditional land-based gaming.
One of these questions revolves around whether or not Pennsylvania will be able to be the much-needed cure-all for the future of online poker in the United States. Who would have thought we would need a panacea just four years after the debut of online poker – back then it seemed like a number of states were preparing to get in on the online poker industry.
Up until two months ago, revenue generated by the New Jersey online poker industry has been disappointing, to say the least. This, coupled with the reluctance of states to legalize online poker has yielded results that certainly paint a bad picture for online poker. New Jersey is currently on the verge of implementing a poker liquidity sharing deal with Nevada but, even though it will present certain opportunities, it will probably not be the cure-all everyone is hoping for.
What Are the Options?
New Jersey, Delaware and Nevada all have significant issues that would only be solved by co-mingling their population bases and poker games and adding Pennsylvania to the mix. This multistate poker arrangement could create a more interesting product and provide the needed boost for US online poker. This implies that the inclusion of Pennsylvania is the best option.
By late 2018 or early 2019, Pennsylvania will be the state with the most gaming opportunities. People will be able to gamble at airports, truck stops and get to enjoy a variety of online slots and table games. In addition to this, a number of new mini-casinos are to be launched and they will be working alongside the state’s12 existing casinos, the lottery and, of course, legalized sports betting which could soon be a reality. The point here is that, for the US online poker to flourish, it will need many more players and Pennsylvania can provide that.