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The Newark Star Ledger’s Ryan Hutchins reports on what Gambling911.com noticed the last time we were in New York City during the launch of New Jersey’s real money online gambling sector in late November: online casino ads are everywhere.
Hutchins writes:
The TV commercials and radio spots are blasting into households all over New Jersey and neighboring states. Banner ads are plastered on news websites. Billboards line major highways. Marketing crews are in shopping malls and ferry terminals proclaiming the news:
Online gambling is legal in New Jersey and you should give it a try.
With more than a half dozen casinos vying for the Garden State’s gamblers, market penetration is essential. Two casinos in particular, the Borgata and Trump Taj Mahal, got off to an earlier start than their competitors, and it definitely shows. Borgata utilizes the software of PartyPoker while Trump Taj Mahal uses Station Casinos Ultimate Gaming platform.
New Jersey itself encompasses a population just shy of 9000 people, however, the surrounding area has upwards of three times that amount. Gamblers can play online with any of the state’s licensed casinos provided they are physically located within NJ. Lovers of poker, for example, can take a quick bus or train ride across the river to any park or office location.
The marketing blitz, according to Hutchins, is a sign of how big a deal Internet betting is for the state. It represents the most significant expansion of gambling since the first casino opened in 1978, he noted.
"They are using every angle — every traditional media angle they can," said Donald Hoover, an expert on the casino industry and a professor at Fairleigh Dickinson University. "They are spending a lot of money advertising."
Much of New Jersey’s media market comes from television stations located in either New York City or Philadelphia.
Websites like Gambling911.com and CardPlayer.com are also able to now geotarget specific states. Gambling911.com is considered to have the most state-specific gambling news on the Web but has decided to cap off such ad space to no more than two casinos/online poker rooms in the New Jersey region in 2014, thus maximizing exposure.
New Jersey Governor Chris Christie is anticipating online gambling will produce about $1 billion in casino revenue by July, however, most experts believe that number is grossly overestimated. So far more than 91,000 accounts have been created since late November.
- Aaron Goldstein, Gambling911.com
