Latest reports and statistics concerning the revenues generated through video gambling in Illinois showed satisfactory numbers for the previous year.
The good news came at a critical moment for the Illinois gambling sector and the gambling affairs in the US in general. At the end of 2014, it became clear that the state was going to make attempts towards expanding its gambling segment.
The Illinois Gaming Board announced that the revenues reached the impressive sum of almost $165 million.
Compared to the previous year, there is a substantial growth of $90 million. As a result, the sum municipalities received was doubled and they were given $32.9 million.
As much as 25% of the revenues generated through video gambling are usually set aside for state’s coffers and the rest 5% are intended for supporting cities and counties.
For the time being, there are more than 19,000 video gambling machines, distributed among 4,675 venues within the state.
However, there is another side of the coin. The increased number of video gambling machines is believed to be among the main reasons for the weak revenues Illinois-based brick-and-mortar casinos have been generating recently.
The executive director of the Casino Gaming Association said that a significant number of Illinois residents prefer to go to the nearest venue where slots are available instead of going to a casino.
During 2014 the revenues, generated by the traditional casino venues declined by $86,7 million as compared to the numbers reported during 2013. The downfall was the expected result from the decreased number of players who visit Illinois casinos.
Bearing in mind all facts mentioned above, the executive director of the Illinois Casino Gaming Association concluded that the market is currently oversaturated.
Despite the claims that the local gambling market does not need further expansion, state authorities are likely to give the nod to a few more casinos, located in the vicinity of Chicago, Rockford, Lake County, etc.
Meanwhile, the video gambling sector is thriving and the owners of venues located in Illinois found various methods for making these machines available in their establishments.
Regardless of the success video gambling machines achieve, there is a number of municipalities that are still against the idea of enabling their residents to use video gambling devices.
Yet, 25 of those that used to regard the video gambling activities as illegal have lifted the ban and according to the latest information, a few more municipalities are trying to do the same due to increased players’ demands.
