Gambling in the USA
The legality of online casino apps in the USA
Both online sports betting and online casinos are racing toward legalization in all 50 states. While online betting for sports is currently in the lead, online casino gambling apps are making strides to catch up.
As of October 2023, you can legally gamble using online casino apps in these states: New Jersey, Michigan, Delaware, Pennsylvania, Nevada, West Virginia, Iowa, and Illinois. Also worth noting is that the new iGaming law will become effective on March 1, 2024, when Rhode Island will join the list, and many others are expecting to follow in years to come.
From the list, Delaware was the first to lead the charge on legalizing online casinos in 2012, when its governor Jack Markell legalized wagering. The state-owned Delaware Lottery keeps a close eye on regulations for the state’s online casinos.
The Keystone State of Pennsylvania joined the fray and became the latest legal state for online casinos on Oct. 30, 2017. Its predecessors’ successes and revenue increases were one of the driving factors for legalization. From 2019 and onwards, Pennsylvania has been one of the largest iGaming markets in the country and allows residents to bet on a number of casino apps, including many of Techopedia reviewers’ highest-rated picks. The state’s gaming revenue for July 2023 came to a huge $467 million, an increase of just under 9% from a year ago.
New Jersey started its online gambling legalization in 2013, and the hot topic of debate is its mandate ending next month, in November 2023. Currently, it’s expected for the legislature to be extended. The Garden State’s thirty or more online casino operators offer enticing bonuses to stay competitive, and it’s expected that they will all probably continue to operate well past the November 2023 mark.
West Virginia and Michigan are among the newest candidates, where both aimed to legalize online gambling by 2019. Even though West Virginia was one of the first states to legalize online sports betting, it currently has just four online casinos. But more are expected to come soon, following the success of online gambling legalization. The state saw over $320 million in online wagers in July 2023.
The Great Lakes State of Michigan tried to follow in West Virginia’s steps, but its predicted official online casino launch in 2020 got pushed back to January 2023. But that did not stop the Michigan iGaming market, as it now has ten fully functional online casinos operating and awaiting new players. As of August 2023, online gambling revenue from both sports betting and casinos had grown over 13% compared to the same month the previous year. The total sum was an impressive $175.4 million.
Lastly, a bright future for online casinos in the USA, as Rhode Island will join the wave of changes soon. One twist the Ocean State is putting out is the requirements for all online table games to have a live dealer, by law. So you’ll get to play blackjack from your mobile phone with a live dealer stream rather than against a random number generator if you live in Rhode Island.
Gambling in the USA
Zula Casino Kicks Off its Spectacular 1-Year “Zula-versary” with a Month of Events and Promotions
Zula Casino launched its online social casino in the US exactly a year ago delivering more. More games. More rewards. More free-to-play entertainment through a personalized experience. Zula Casino marked its one-year launch by crossing the 1000 casino-game threshold – a milestone that positions it among the top platforms nationwide.
The month-long birthday bash intends to go over the top to give back to its amazing player community that helped make this first year so incredible. With its advent calendar format, players can unlock a special surprise each day ranging from a “Win-a-Vacation” event, a carnival event, free spins and new exclusive games, and a prize pool of over 25 billion Gold Coins (GC) plus 150,000 Sweeps Coins (SC) to be given out throughout the month. Over this period, Zula Casino will run other special events, including surprise happy hours with special coupons, various social media contests, and special giveaways.
“We’re incredibly proud of the player experience we’ve built over the last 12 months. The platform has garnered a substantial and loyal pool of players, and it’s not just because we offer one of the largest game selections from leading global providers, but also the exclusive experiences we’re providing, and the platform’s continued evolution with enhanced promotions, personalization, and seamless user experience,” said Tamar Laypan, Program Manager of Zula Casino.
Zula Casino has added over 1000 games across all categories over the past 12 months, including slots, jackpots, fish, table, plinko, megaways, crash, hold and win, tumble games, and more. These additions include top games like Big Bass Vegas and Fire Stampede, as well as branded exclusives like Gold Gold Gold 5000, supplied by Booming Games, and Sweet Bonanza 1000 by Pragmatic Play. With recent additions, Zula Casino now boasts 25 game providers, including Relax Gaming, Habanero, Evoplay, Pragmatic Play, RubyPlay, Gamzix, Let Us Entertain You Inc., to name a few.
Zula Casino flourished in a tough and highly competitive market, launching its proprietary-integrated platform in September of last year. With an average TrustPilot score of 4.6 and almost 9K reviews, the online social casino is among the highest-rated free-to-play sites in the market.
Zula Casino was also previously shortlisted for the prestigious Global SBC Awards in the category of “Rising Star in Casino”.
Diana Goode
NCPG Welcomes Diana Goode to the Board of Directors
NCPG has announced the appointment of Diana Goode to the National Council on Problem Gambling’s Board of Directors. Diana, who has served as the Executive Director of the Connecticut Council on Problem Gambling (CCPG) since May 2018, brings over 25 years of nonprofit leadership experience to this role.
In her time with CCPG, Diana has championed initiatives that address problem gambling and promote responsible gaming across Connecticut. Additionally, she has played an active role on the NCPG Affiliates Committee, contributing valuable insights from her years of experience.
Before joining CCPG, Diana held executive roles in nonprofits focusing on poverty alleviation and financial literacy in Connecticut. Her academic credentials include a degree from Dartmouth College and an MBA in Finance and Marketing from the University of Connecticut. She resides in the Greater Hartford area, where she remains deeply engaged in her community.
Diana will serve an interim appointment in the Affiliates seat on the NCPG Board of Directors until Spring 2025.
Gambling in the USA
Gaming Executives Positive on Current Business Conditions, Cautious on Future Growth Expectations
Overall Balance Sheet Health, Access to Credit Continue to Improve
In the face of slowing revenue expansion, gaming industry leaders continue to hold an overall positive view of the current business situation, with a notable improvement in credit conditions, according to the latest American Gaming Association (AGA) Gaming Industry Outlook.
The majority of respondents (88%) view the current state of the gaming industry as either good or satisfactory. Meanwhile, executives have a more conservative outlook on future business conditions, with respondents split on whether they expect conditions to improve over the next three-to-six months (3% net positive) and many expecting a decrease in customer activity (28% net negative).
“After years of very strong consumer gaming spending growth, expectations around customer activity over the next three to six months have cooled considerably,” said AGA Vice President of Research David Forman. “Still, gaming businesses remain well positioned, with executives touting strong balance sheets and more viewing access to credit as easy than restrictive for the first time in two years.”
Gaming Executive Panel
Since Q1, gaming executives’ sentiment has shifted, with a greater number of respondents now expecting a decline in customer activity over the next three to six months (28% net negative, up from 4% net negative in Q1). Despite this, panelists foresee improvements in overall balance sheet health (34% net positive).
Additionally, more executives reported access to credit as easy (19%) rather than restrictive (3%) for the first time in two years, and fewer cite interest rates as a major limiting factor than in the spring.
Hotel (56%) and food and beverage facilities (56%) continue to be the main and growing focus of capital investment among operators, followed by live entertainment (28%) and casino floor slots (22%).
Meanwhile, gaming equipment suppliers now believe their pace of capital investment and game sales will decelerate (13% net negative).
These expectations are impacted by evolving macroeconomic challenges, with uncertainty of the economic environment vaulting to the top of executive concerns (56%, up from 34% in Q1), followed by state regulatory concerns (31%), and inflationary or interest rate concerns and geopolitical risk (both 34%).
The Current Conditions Index
The Current Conditions Index for Q3 2024 was 97.3, which is consistent with real annualized contraction of 2.7 percent. The Current Conditions Index measures real economic activity in the industry, as measured by gaming revenue, employment and employee wages and salaries.
The Future Conditions Index
The Future Conditions Index, a leading indicator of changes in industry conditions, measured 98.9 in Q3. This indicates an environment in which real economic activity in the gaming sector, after controlling for underlying inflation, is expected to moderately decrease over the next six months (1.1% annualized rate).
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