The Delaware Lottery released its revenue numbers for the month of November and the results show a massive 42% increase over the previous month.
Delaware Park, Dover Downs, and Harrington Raceway took in a collective $184,898, which ranks as the fourth-best month out of 13 since The First State launched its online gaming regime in November, 2013. The latest totals bettered last month’s $130,268.
The November figures can be viewed as wonderful news considering that the regulated online poker and gambling industry in the U.S. has not been without its problems, many of which center around failed expectations and decreasing revenue. And that’s not just Delaware, but New Jersey and Nevada as well.
Delaware saw igaming revenue reach its peak in April when the three sites pulled in $240,762. Its low point occurred during the first month online — November 2013 — when only $111,387 was earned. However, that month started with a soft launch when one week in November had already passed, so it’s not entirely fair to count or compare the numbers posted for less than a full month of operation.
The Delaware site with the largest share of the market continues to be Delaware Park, recording two-thirds of The First State’s action at $122,894. Dover Downs took in $31,421 for the month, a market share of 17%. Harrington Raceway was less than a grand behind Dover Downs, netting $30,582.
Online Poker Revenue Increases as Well
Action on the online poker tables also saw a rise over the previous month, 15% more than October’s $28,465. The three sites combined saw a profit of $32,814 from poker rake and fees. Delaware Park’s dominance over the other two sites also comes into play on the virtual poker felt, albeit at a slightly lesser market share than igaming of 59%.
The best month for ipoker throughout the state’s 13-month history was December, 2013. Rake tallied $106,922 in that month one year ago, which is a whopping 69% more than the month just gone by.
Those figures point to the obvious, that Internet poker players among Delaware’s teeny population of under one million came out in strong numbers following the regulated launch. But most have vanished, likely due to a lack of liquidity and action.
Online poker players are typically attracted to a wide variety of choices available, stake levels and game types included. With a ring-fenced intrastate market drawing from a populace of only 900,000 or so, those choices are severely limited.
Delaware hopes that more online poker players log on when the Multi State Internet Gaming Agreement (MSIGA) with Nevada takes hold. A number of Delaware residents (and Nevada too) have been sitting on the rail, waiting for that launch to come into play. The governors of both states signed the MSIGA in February, but the intricacies involved in such an endeavor are still being worked out.
While online poker and igaming revenue was up for November in Delaware, new signups were down. Only 308 players created an account at the three options available, which is the lowest total for any month — ever. The best month for new accounts was the first, when 2,654 online gamblers signed up. That just about doubled the next-best month of December 2013 that saw 1,336 players register.