SLOTS LOSING OUT TO TABLES

12/12/08 11:01AM EST
The following charts detail the decline in slot handle versus table drop on the Las Vegas Strip and Atlantic City, the two largest gaming markets in the US. Slot play peaked in 2003 in both markets. Possible explanations for the declining percentage of slot volume are:

• Younger generations don’t play slots as much, the older generation is dying off
• Higher international visitation to Las Vegas
• The popularity of poker extended to other table games
• The opening of Borgata attracted a younger customer profile

Revenue share from slots is down as well but not as much. As we wrote about in our 7/21/08 post, “I’LL HAVE A SLOT MACHINE, HOLD THE WINNINGS” slot hold percentage has climbed steadily over the past 15 years. In other words, consumers are getting less and less paid back to them in winnings for every dollar wagered.

So pricing to the consumer is up, slot pricing to the operator is up, yet demand does not appear to be keeping up. It will be interesting to see how both levels of pricing hold up in this environment.

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