Industry leaders of Atlantic City gaming recently met to celebrate the 45th anniversary of casinos being legalized in New Jersey. They warned, however, if they want to continue to thrive, they are going to have to evolve.
“The customer is always going to determine the industry, and a lot of those folks are young right now, and they game online and do things differently than what was offered in the past,” Michael Epps, former commissioner of the New Jersey Casino Control Commission told the Press of Atlantic City.
A panel composed of five people and hosted by the Lloyd D. Levenson Institute of Gaming, Hospitality and Tourism at Stockton University talked about the future of gambling in the seaside town.
One of the biggest trends, the panel concluded, was that sports betting needed to be foremost in casino operators’ minds.
Sports wagering was legalized in 2018 when the US Supreme Court ruled 6-3 to overturn the 1992 Professional and Amateur Sports Protection Act (PASPA). That federal law, which was championed ironically by New Jersey Senator Bill Bradley, had outlawed states from being able to pass laws allowing sports gambling.
15 years later, another New Jersey lawmaker, Governor Chris Christie, was one of several Garden State officials that took on the goal of having PASPA repealed.
New Jersey has since reaped the benefits of sports betting. They are consistently one of the top states in the country in sports betting handle, routinely taking in $1 million or more in bets monthly.
Sports betting wasn’t the only activity the panel said should be nurtured. Esports was another trend they saw as something that could become popular in casinos. Also recommended was more slot machines and dealer-run card tables.
Then, the conversation shifted towards the controversy of banning smoking in casinos. Several casino employees came to the panel discussion and pleaded with the panelists to help ban smoking.
Critics have maintained that banning smoking in casinos would likely result in a loss of profits that would necessitate job cuts.
One issue most agreed on was that casino coming to Atlantic City was the best thing that happened to the city.
“Would Atlantic City be better off today without having casinos? I don’t think there’s a soul alive who could answer that question with ‘yes,’” said Steven Perskie, a former lawmaker who helped draft the legislation in the ‘70s.
