New York City Residents in Favor of Up-state Casinos

A poll has found that residents of New York City are in favor of building up to 7 new casinos in up-state New York. The gambling news is tempered, though, by the suggestion that the majority would not visit them, nor want them in the city itself.

With American gambling laws changing rapidly, New York may be looking to cash in on the potential rise in online and mobile gambling. As online casinos are limited to operators from within the state in which the casino operates, New York would need land based casinos if it wished to cash in on a rapidly expanding market.

With Governor Andrew Cuomo pushing hard for New York casinos, it could be more bad news for Atlantic City and the continued downturn in revenue on the strip. New Jersey is still in pole position to launch the first online casinos in America come November 26th, and will be hoping to bring in extra revenue that way.

Cutting off the revenue made from visitors from New York would make a massive difference, however, and not a positive one for a state mired in financial trouble. With mobile casinos gaining more and more market share in Europe – and especially in the UK – US operators will be hoping to ape the success.

Indeed, the key argument put forward by the pro-casino lobby has been the extra income the state would gain from the casinos. While gambling is allowed on Indian land in New York state, most residents still travel to Atlantic City to experience the casinos. With up-state casinos, they would be able to stay within New York itself.

With the ballot set to take place on November 5th, New York will know if there will be new casinos in the state shortly, and Atlantic City will likely be chewing off what’s left of their nails.