Ominous signs in Massachusetts for online gambling legalisation

Reports from Massachusetts indicate that this once very promising state in terms of online gambling legalisation may be out of reach for supporters this year as politicians worry about cannibalisation of the state’s nascent land casino business and a review of the pros and cons continues, but is unlikely to produce results in time for the legislature to act this year.

These and other disappointing talking points emerged from an interview given to local media by Massachusetts Senate President Stan Rosenberg, who opined that it may be 2018 before real progress will be made.

Rosenberg and his colleague’s apparent conviction that legalised online gambling presents a threat to the state’s land casino industry is particularly depressing, given the extensive independent and land industry empirical experience and information that has been widely published, revealing that online gambling complements rather than cannibalises land revenues and opens up new demographics for land operators.

State Treasurer Deb Goldberg, who has been pushing hard for online games and ticket sales to revitalise the state lottery, will also be frustrated at the prospect of yet another year wasted whilst other states seize the opportunities that online lottery activity present.

Related and similar