Many believe that Pennsylvania will be the next state to legalize online gambling within its borders. Up until earlier this year, it looked as if this might have happened before the end of 2016. However, with HB 2150 passing the House but failing to gain much momentum in the Senate, supporters of the iGaming idea may have to wait a little (or not so little longer) before seeing it materialize.
Until then, Rush Street Gaming, a major operator in the Pennsylvania casino market, has decided to extend one of its brands’ reach by launching a gambling website in neighboring New Jersey.
The PlaySugarHouse online casino went live on Thursday. The website is a product of Rush Street Gaming’s collaboration with Atlantic City’s Golden Nugget casino. It offers more than 200 slot titles, table games, as well as video poker and video bingo options. Owners have pointed out that the website will not be featuring poker for now. Gambling customers will also be able to play on mobile via iOS and Android apps developed and released for the purpose.
Rush Street Gaming’s choice to enter the New Jersey iGaming market is not solely based on the two states’ close proximity. Although the New Jersey land-based casino market is facing serious shrinkage risks, iGaming in the state has been growing at a quick pace over the past several years, particularly after PokerStars went live there earlier this year.
Commenting on the recent launch of the PlaySugarHouse online casino, Rush Street Gaming CEO Greg Carlin said that the website comes as a great extension of the SugarHouse brand and that they feel extremely excited to introduce their services to players from a different market and to give them access to more gambling options and a different perspective in the way they perceive casino gaming experience.
The launch of the SugarHouse-branded online casino may serve as a driver for Pennsylvania legislators to pay more special attention to the iGaming bill awaiting consideration in the Senate. Although chances for the proposed legislation to be turned into law by the end of 2016 are very slim, lawmakers will likely keep an eye on how Rush Street Gaming’s website performs in New Jersey so as to be able to determine whether such an endeavor would work in Pennsylvania.
