As the state prepares for online gambling sites, Pennsylvania’s slot machines in the brick-and-mortars are struggling.
The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board said late last week that revenue generated from the play of slot machines at casinos during February 2018 was $189.1 million, a 1.7 percent decrease year-over-year. February 2017 yielded $192.3 million from the machines.
The casinos paid nearly $100 million in state taxes on the slot revenue.
The average number of slot machines operating on a daily basis was 25,800 during February 2018, compared to 26,200 at the casinos in February 2017. The Keystone State has 12 casinos. However, smaller facilities called “mini casinos” are in the pipeline.
The slots generated $177.8 million in January, down 1.4 percent year-over-year.
The casinos retained $2.33 billion from the machines in 2017, down a percentage point compared to 2016. When you factor in table games revenue, the slots accounted for 72 percent of statewide gaming win during the calendar year.
An all-time Pennsylvania high of $890.7 million was won from table games last year.
