MGM Launches Its First Branded, Real-Money Online Gambling Site In NJ
The banner on playMGM says it all: “Vegas is here. Real Vegas gambling. Online in Jersey.”
Last week, MGM Resorts International launched its first branded online gambling site in New Jersey. It marks a significant moment in the company’s history, said MGM Chief Operating Officer Corey Sanders in a press release.
“We are thrilled to be entering the online gaming landscape in New Jersey with the expansion of our playMGM.com platform to include both casino and poker games,” Sanders said. “The ability to effectively bring Las Vegas to New Jersey via an online experience is an exciting undertaking.”
New NJ online gambling site features slots and table games
At the time of this writing, MGM’s New Jersey online gambling site featured 202 slot games and 22 table games.
There were nine forms of poker, four types of blackjack (including single-deck), as well as two versions of roulette, craps, Jacks or Better, and Mega Ball Action.
The site also featured 11 new games, including Wheel of Fortune on Tour, Loot’EnKhamun, and Ghostbusters Triple Slime.
Industry observers also expect MGM to run an online poker room, which will be included in the existing Borgata/PartyPoker NJ network.
MGM wants to be at forefront of Atlantic City’s rebirth
The launch of this site is anything but a passive move.
Borgata Hotel Casino & Spa, Atlantic City’s flagship casino and MGM’s crown jewel on the East Coast, was once the leader in New Jersey online gambling revenue. In the last few years, however, Golden Nugget has surged ahead to become the undisputed king of online gambling in the state.
Many see playMGM as an overt expansion of MGM’s territory and a push for more influence in a quickly expanding casino market.
Sanders was very clear on this fact in his press release:
“The ability to effectively bring Las Vegas to New Jersey via an online experience is an exciting undertaking, especially as we continue to develop our presence on the East Coast with the recent acquisition of Borgata, the opening of MGM National Harbor and the pending 2018 opening of MGM Springfield in Massachusetts.”
Exactly how much this new online gambling site will affect the New Jersey online casino market remains to be seen. The assumption is that MGM will garner a decent portion of the gambling crowd because it’s new and pushing a Las Vegas theme.
That said, online gambling can be a fickle proposition; MGM is hoping it’s found the formula for success.
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