Casino operator Penn National Gaming is entering the social games market through a partnership with gaming solutions provider Scientific Games.
The company plans to launch a “‘Mobile Concierge” and “Play4Fun Network” through Penn National’s Hollywood Casino at Charles Town Races in the coming months. Other properties are expected to launch shortly after. Game play for iOS and Android devices is due to launch this summer.
“The launch of social gaming is an important strategic initiative for Penn National that we expect will enhance loyalty and retention of our customers, drive casino visitation and build engagement with our brands both on and off premises,” Penn National’s senior vice-president and managing director of iGaming, Chris Sheffield, said in a press release. “We’ve spent a great deal of time developing our Marquee Rewards customer loyalty program, which includes nearly three million active regional gaming customers nationwide.
“We’re looking forward to offering those customers in West Virginia, and other markets as they come on line, this social gaming offering, through which we’ll be able to provide player rewards that can be redeemed at our physical casino locations.”
In another matter, the company—which operates the Hollywood Casino at Penn National Racecourse in Pennsylvania—came out in support of online gaming expansion in the state at a hearing in front of the House Gaming Oversight Committee.
Company officials told the committee that they estimate the state could bring in $250 million in online gaming revenue in its first year.
That immediately set off cautions from analysts, already burned by too high estimates for online gaming revenue in neighboring New Jersey. That state took in $123 million in online gaming revenue in its first year of operation.
An earlier estimate by Econsult done for Pennsylvania estimated the state could take in $184 million from online gaming in its first year.
