Video lottery terminals are a part of the legal gambling landscape in the Empire State. That isn’t changing anytime soon, as the state of New York has awarded a new video lottery contract.
The state has renewed its deal with Las Vegas-based Everi. The continuity is a plus for both parties in the deal.
Details of New York’s new video lottery contract
The new deal runs through September 2029 and continues to give Everi a percentage of VLT sales. In exchange, Everi will essentially operate the terminals for the state.
According to a news release, Everi operates over 17,000 terminals in nine locations in the state. VLTs in New York have been available for 16 years, and Everi has operated them during that entire time.
The release states that during that time, VLTs have paid out more than $250 billion in prizes. It also says that 150 billion individual transactions have occurred on the terminals.
While this is good news for Everi and the state treasury, not everyone in the state is likely so enthusiastic. The state’s commercial casinos are actually in competition with these terminals.
How VLTs infringe on commercial casinos
It’s a simple matter of supplying the demand for a product in a more convenient fashion. For those who want to gamble and live closer to one of the VLT sites than the upstate casinos, hitting up a VLT can be preferred.
While the VLTs can’t be solely to blame for less-than-desirable revenues at facilities like Resorts World Catskills, they definitely play a part. If they weren’t an option, it’s more likely than not that many of the VLT players would instead patronize those casinos.
It’s common knowledge that New York’s commercial casinos aren’t doing so hot. For example, Resorts World Catskills has recently gone through an ownership change to address its financial situation.
Additionally, del Lago has lobbied the state for additional tax relief. Despite the fact that these facilities currently enjoy a state-protected monopoly on legal sports betting, that hasn’t been able to turn the situation around.
Why legal sports betting hasn’t been a boon for New York’s commercial casinos
The reason why sports betting revenue for New York’s legal sportsbooks continues to diminish is simple. They’re limited to offering brick-and-mortar wagering only.
It also doesn’t help that they are located at least a couple of hours’ drive from New York City. Even if they were closer, however, the lack of online wagering handicaps them.
That ties back into the VLTs. Like with online sports betting, the convenience makes it a more popular option.
Everi hopes to continue to offer New Yorkers that same convenience over the next decade. For the state, it doesn’t really matter where the revenue comes from as long as it comes in. As these terminals have produced income for the state, it was in both parties’ interests to continue.
The continuity means VLT players will probably not even notice that the state has renewed its contract. Because of that, these popular games should continue to enjoy that popularity for years to come.
