Penn National: Regulated Online Gambling A “Vital Tool” For Pennsylvania’s Land-Based Casinos

One of Pennsylvania’s leading casino companies sees regulated online gambling as critical to protecting the revenue – and taxes – generated by the state’s land-based casinos.

That’s per testimony from Eric Shippers, SVP for Public Affairs and Govt Relations at Penn National, operators of the Hollywood Casino at Penn National Race Course in Grantville.

Schippers made the comments at a May 6 hearing in front of the House Gaming Oversight Committee.

“We firmly believe” that Internet gaming “is another vital tool to enable our industry to continue to evolve and protect what we’ve built here,” Schippers told the committee.

You can view his complete testimony here.

New projections from Penn National for PA online gambling

Schippers also offered a top-level view of revised revenue projections that Penn National has generated for regulated online gambling in Pennsylvania.

• Year 1: $250mm in total revenue.
• Year 2: $300mm in total revenue.
• Year 3: $350mm in total revenue.

Schippers stressed that the projections were “aggressive” and assumed a lack of “restrictor plates” on the industry.

The revised projections are the work of Chris Sheffield, Penn National’s recently-minted Head of Online Gaming.

During a recent earnings call, Sheffield identified four areas of specific focus within online gambling that will underpin Penn National’s approach: social gaming, real-money online gambling, on-property mobile betting and crossover with the racing business.

Penn National yet to partner in PA

While several of Pennsylvania’s land-based casinos have announced partnerships with technology partners in advance of online gambling regulation, Penn National has yet to publicly settle on a potential partner.

Penn National recently inked a broader deal with Scientific Games (who count a real-money online gambling platform among their myriad assets), but neither company has commented on whether or not the relationship will extend into Pennsylvania.

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