The New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement (DGE) released the latest figures for the state’s infant internet gambling industry on Sunday and so far, so good. According to the report, 126,231 online gaming accounts have been registered at the various Atlantic City-based sites, an increase of about 15 percent over the previous week.
New Jersey’s online gambling era was born November 26, though there was a “soft launch” on November 21 so that sites could test things out in a live environment. That first week was, as one would expect, the liveliest for new accounts, with over 50,000 created. To give an idea of the clout New Jersey could have in the U.S. market, compare its numbers to its neighbor to the south. Delaware launched online gambling on November 8; as of December 1, it had about 2,800 registered gaming accounts.
Delaware State Lottery Director Vernon Kirk wasn’t disappointed, though, telling newsworks.org of the numbers, “They’re not New Jersey-esque, but we’re operating with a different player base.”
There are four online poker rooms/networks open for business so far in New Jersey. The Party Borgata Network, created in a joint effort by the Borgata and bwin.party, is the largest, with a seven day average of 240 cash game players, according to PokerScout.com. Next is the World Series of Poker-branded WSOP.com, a Caesars Entertainment and 888 Holdings product. All four of Caesars’ Atlantic City casinos – Caesars, Harrah’s, Bally’s, and Showboat – link to the site, though Bally’s and Caesars are the only two of the four to have been issued full online gaming licenses by the DGE. WSOP.com has averaged 150 cash game players. The All American Poker Network (AAPN) is a little more than half the size of WSOP.com with 85 cash game players. It also uses 888’s software and is using one of Caesars’ two licenses, even though Caesars and AAPN are not related beyond having a relationship with the same software provider. Finally, there is Ultimate Poker, which has teamed with the Trump Taj Mahal. It has struggled in New Jersey, attracting just 20 players on average.
Tropicana (with Gamesys) and Trump Plaza (Betfair) have also launched offerings, but have limited them to just casino games such as blackjack and craps, not online poker. Golden Nugget got its poker product online during the five day soft launch, but took it down at the official launch date in order to spend more time testing.
