Press of Atlantic City – Less than 3 percent of New Jersey gamblers have gambled online since the state launched Internet gambling last year, according to a poll released Thursday. The poll conducted by the Lloyd D. Levenson Institute of Gaming, Hospitality and Tourism at The Richard Stockton College of New Jersey surveyed 690 individuals who gambled in Atlantic City casinos in the past year. Seven percent of those polled said they intend to gamble online in New Jersey in the coming year.
“Interest in online gambling is growing and should continue to grow once marketing efforts and promotions take off,” Levenson Institute Director Israel Posner said. Internet gambling launched with soft play on Nov. 21. Statistics released by state regulators this month show that online gambling brought in $8.4 million in revenue through the end of December. While the industry regarded the results as positive, it is increasingly unlikely the state will hit its online gambling revenue projections for the year.
Stockton’s poll also addressed the possibility of legalized sports betting in the state, a possibility that New Jersey has been fighting in court following a successful 2011 referendum. In November, a federal court denied New Jersey’s petition for an appeals court rehearing, leaving the U.S. Supreme Court as the state’s only recourse. According to the poll, 55 percent of gamblers support legalized sports betting, and more than one in five said they would be likely to bet on sports events if they could do so legally in New Jersey.
The state has until mid February to petition the U.S. Supreme Court to hear the case.
The poll’s margin of error is plus or minus 3.7 percentage points and is larger in sub categories.
