For some time now, Indiana has been one of the states with serious potential for expanded igaming legislation, but that was all put to a halt in November last year when a major bribery scandal pushed back the online gambling agenda.
A state lawmaker, who was a major supporter of expanded igaming in the state, plead guilty to a bribery charge and admitted he was accepting bribes from a gaming company in return for favorable treatment.
The situation caused Indiana lawmakers to put any igaming legislation they had in mind on ice, with both House and Senate leaders deciding not to introduce any bills regarding online casino or poker in 2024.
The delay in legislation for Indiana online poker apps came as a major blow to thousands of potential players who were hoping to be able to enjoy legal, regulated internet poker in the near future and were encouraged by a report by Spectrum Gaming Group released in July 2022 that projected Indiana online poker would generate $43.2 million in revenues over its first three years.
A new report by Spectrum Gaming Group is now here, as reported by pokerfuse and it’s even more bad news for all proponents of igaming in the Hoosier State, as the projected numbers are now down by about 20% compared to the previous report.
iGaming Revenues on the Rise but Role of Online Poker Reduced
According to the new report by Spectrum Gaming Group, which was created based on data collected from three existing igaming markets, Indiana online casinos still stand to generate massive revenue once they are finally launched.
The report used data collected from New Jersey, Delaware, and Pennsylvania, while West Virginia and Connecticut were excluded for having no operational online poker sites, and Michigan due to the fact the state’s regulator does not separate online poker and casino revenue in its reports.
In the three states whose online poker numbers for the previous three years were considered, online poker managed to account for just 1.7% of the overall gaming revenue generated by igaming operators.
For instance, operators generated $1.8 billion in revenues in New Jersey, $1.7 billion in Pennsylvania, and some $14.2 million in Delaware over the 12 month period that was concluded with September 2023.
Of that number, only $35.1 million came from poker games, while the remaining $3.5 billion in revenues was generated by casino games, demonstrating the dominance of online casino games in the igaming markets across the US.
What Does This Mean for Online Poker in Indiana?
The new Spectrum Gaming Group report built on the numbers collected from three existing igaming markets to create revenue predictions for the potential online poker market in Indiana.
Based on the numbers, it is now projected that online poker in the state, should it become regulated, would generate a total of $35.1 million in revenues over the first three years, compared to the $43.2 million projection made in July 2022.
The decrease of some 20% in projected numbers came about as a result of the percentage of revenue created by online poker in the three states dropping over the last tracked 12-month period, despite the numbers for overall gross gaming revenue showing a growth.
The report will no doubt be used to inform the lawmakers and other interested parties in Indiana when dealing with legalization of iGaming in the future, but all such plans remain on hold for the time being.
In the wake of the bribery scandal, it remains extremely unlikely Indiana online gambling will make any strides in 2024, and it is likely another similar report will be created before igaming legalization is discussed in any official capacity.
