New Jersey’s licensed online gambling operators have been given a little more wiggle room by the state’s gaming regulator. When the state’s regulated online gambling market launched in November, the Atlantic City casinos that obtained licenses to offer online gambling were allowed to operate five branded ‘skins’ with the caveat that all these skins operated off the same online gambling platform. The five-skin restriction remains in place but operators can now source these skins from multiple platforms.
New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement (DGE) director David Rebuck confirmed the rule change, telling eGaming Review that the original single-platform limitation was intended to streamline the approval process so that the state could make its mid-November launch target. But after “discussing it with industry,” Rebuck and the DGE decided to ease the constraints. Rebuck hopes the new policy will lead to more resources invested in the state’s fledgling online gambling industry and greater employment for New Jersey residents.
The most obvious benefactor of this ruling would seem to be Resorts Casino Hotel, which has a license to operate online but has yet to launch its offering. Resorts has a year-old online poker deal with industry behemoth PokerStars and recently inked an online casino deal with a joint venture of Sportech PLC and NYX Gaming Group. PokerStars’ new owners, Canada’s Amaya Gaming Group, began talks with the DGE last month regarding obtaining an online license to secure Stars’ eagerly awaited – by players, not rival operators – return to US shores.
