Rhode Island Casino Industry To Face Ups And Downs

The competition in the casino industry between the states of Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Connecticut is extremely fierce as gambling establishments and state regulators are pushing to protect their respective markets from out-of-state competition and ensure that there is no drop in gambling revenue and casino jobs.

MGM Springfield recently decided to cut down on its initial proposal and build a smaller casino after Connecticut announced that it would issue a third license to build a casino near the state border with an objective of preventing Connecticut gamblers from going over to the MGM Springfield facility. MGM Resorts has now filed a case against the state of Connecticut stating the state gaming fair laws were not followed in issuing that the third license.

Rhode Island has also taken measures to prevent its gambling revenue from declining to the threat posed by the Connecticut and Massachusetts gaming industry. Moody’s Investors Service recently conducted an a detailed study of the Rhode Island casino market and then predicted that the casino market would experience both ups and downs in the near future.

The report stated that GTECH, which is now known as International Game Technology (IGT) is expected to make a lot of revenue in the coming months. The company which has its headquarters in Providence manufactures gaming machines. IGT is expected to get as many as 20,000 new orders for slot machines within the next three years as a number of new casinos are expected to open before 2018.

The not so good news is the fact that Rhode Island’s Twin River casino is expected to lose a significant amount of revenue from the competition generated by these new casinos. The casino industry in Rhode Island brings in the third highest revenue for the state and is also responsible for creating thousands of jobs. Twin River has already facing pressure from the Plainridge Park Casino located in Plainville, Massachusetts. This was the first casino to open in Massachusetts and the MGM Springfield and Wynn Everett casinos are expected to open before the end of 2018.

The Moody report stated

So far, the opening of Plainridge Park has not materially impacted results for its closest competitor Twin River. For the first three full months Plainridge Park has been open, Twin River’s gaming revenue has declined 6% – a modest amount compared to other casinos that have experienced new supply in their primary market.