The Nevada Gaming Control Board is opening up public comment on the idea of expanding the state’s online gambling options to include online casino games. It’s a move that’s supported by the state’s powerful gambling industry, but it’s not something that the big casino operators have always been in favor of. It’s also a move that may not generate a particularly large amount of revenue due to Nevada’s relatively small population.
As it stands today, online casino gambling is technically legal in the State of Nevada. When online gambling was approved by the Nevada State Legislature in 2013, it actually approved “online gambling” without specifying what type of online gambling was actually approved. In the ensuing years, the state’s gambling operators have offered online poker and online sports betting, but have shied away from online casino games.
The prevailing thought was always that online casino games could cannibalize revenue from land-based casinos. But that was before the nationwide trend towards regulated online gambling and casino games. It also probably helps that the biggest opponent of online caisno games, Sheldon Adelson, passed away last year and can offer no further resistance to common sense regulation.
It’s quite likely that casino operators have noted the success of online casino games, particularly online slot machines, in places like New Jersey. In New Jersey, online casino gaming revenue has eclipsed that of online poker literally every month since it was offered.
The bigger question regarding online casino games in Nevada is whether or not the state’s population of 3 million is large enough to sustain any meaningful revenue for the vertical?