January 25th, 2011 – by Glen Farmer
Though Atlantic City has been on a decline over the past four years, some expected the market to rebound in the upcoming years. Unfortunately, analysts are predicting that Atlantic City is once again slated to falter through the upcoming year.
The Spectrum Gaming Group, a group of major casino analysts, has predicted that each of the 11 casinos in Atlantic City will continue to lose money and market share to the surrounding casinos. The Spectrum Gaming Group has also noted that surrounding competition will likely improve and prosper through the upcoming year.
Pennsylvania and Delaware have both been rabidly expanding gambling, with thriving industries that include table games, slot machines, poker and more. These regions have been thriving, with most of the press coming from Pennsylvania. Delaware’s limited sports gambling options have been dragging customers to the state.
Spectrum Gaming has predicted that Atlantic City’s revenue will fall more than 13 percent this year. They further predict that Pennsylvania’s casinos, as well as gaming centers around Delaware, Maryland and New York will all increase their revenue by approximately 27 percent.
The Group predicts that the staggering decline gambling revenue has been because Atlantic City has had no “catalyst in sight to turn that [gambling revenue] around.”
New Jersey’s recent legalization of online gambling has brought about the possibility of further increases in gambling revenue.
The Wall Street Journal Contributed to this article.