Atlantic City Profits Soar in 3rd Quarter
The end of the 3rd quarter of the year has passed, and the revenue figures are coming in. It was expected that Atlantic City would have a dip in the revenue due to the closing of several land-based casinos, but it was exactly the opposite – Atlantic City not only matched their revenue from last year, they beat it.
For the months of July, August, and September 2014, Atlantic City reported a gross operating profit of $147.5 million dollars. This number is up 7.2 percent from the 3rd quarter of 2013. That number includes the money made by four of the casinos in Atlantic City that are now closed.
This large gain is thanks to the online gaming industry. Without the online gaming industry, Atlantic City would’ve had a terrible quarter, since four of their casinos closed. A fifth casino, the Trump Taj Mahal, is scheduled to close on December 12th.
The timing couldn’t have been more perfect – the numbers were posted a day before the first anniversary of Internet gambling in the state of New Jersey.
Opponents of online gambling have long used the excuse that online gambling hurts the land-based casino industry, while we’ve always maintained the stance that it doesn’t hurt it, it supplements it. These numbers should prove just that – Atlantic City had four casinos that were bleeding money, they were closed, and online gaming filled the void.
The gross operating profit reflects the earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and other charges. People have taken to online gambling due to its various benefits, the primary being the promotions. Whether it’s a welcome bonus or a no deposit promotion, you just can’t get the same deal at a land-based casino.
The casinos that were closed in Atlantic City lost a ton of money in 2013. The Revel lost $23.5 million, and The Atlantic Club posted a $1.7 million loss in the 3rd quarter of 2013. Both the Resots Casino Hotel and Golden Nugget Atlantic City had a profit of $4-$5 million.
These numbers will definitely be brought up next year when the debate continues as to whether online gambling should be legalized. Losing several casinos should’ve destroyed Atlantic City’s revenue, but thanks to online gambling, there wasn’t any damage whatsoever, and they actually beat last year’s numbers.
Opponents of online gambling like Sheldon Adelson and Rick Perry are going to have a difficult time arguing with these figures. They’ll likely stick to the usual “it’s difficult to verify a user’s identity” excuse, even though there’s yet to be a single case in the world of online gambling of a child using an adult’s phone to gamble. Online gambling opponents are running out of excuses – it’s only a matter of time before anyone in the United States can hop online and enjoy a virtual trip to the casino.