2020 was definitely a good year for online casinos in Pennsylvania. The state is now the home of 13 online casinos, which are likely to multiply in the near future. These online casinos offer all of your favorite casino games, thereby making up for the closure of physical casinos in the state due to lockdowns.
And in case you missed the memo, Pennsylvania recently allowed its online casinos to hold live dealer games as well. This highly anticipated move would bring the much-needed casino profits and tax revenues, both of which decreased when the state and the country were hit hard by the COVID-19 pandemic. We hope that more states realize the potential of the Penn state’s decision and introduce live dealer games shortly.
If you’re a citizen of Pennsylvania over the age of 21, you can now enjoy live dealers games from the comfort of your home! Don’t get too overexcited though and remember to gamble responsibly!
Introduction of Live Online Dealer Games in Pennsylvania
The news of Pennsylvania allowing live dealer games didn’t surprise us, considering the advantages of this industry expansion in the face of the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic and the economic devastation it’s still causing. Both casino owners and regular players would greatly benefit from this decision as the former would be able to reduce losses, while the latter would be able to play safely in the midst of a pandemic.
The Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board (PGCB), responsible for regulating all casino games in the state, initially gave two online casinos, BetRivers and DraftKings, a temporary license to operate live dealer games on their platforms. These two online casinos were given a two-day long test-period to launch live dealer games on October 21 and 22, 2020. The online operators offered a few types of roulette and blackjack games during this period.
Other online casinos, which have established themselves in states already allowing live dealer games, are also awaiting PGCB approval to launch their live dealer games in the near future. Although these games are regulated in a similar manner to other online casino games, the human element cannot be ignored as the dealers have to be licensed as well, which would take some time. However, Pennsylvania might speed up the process in order to generate additional taxes.
The Growing Popularity of Live Online Dealer Games
PGCB appears to be excited to offer online operators the opportunity to hold live dealer games, and for a good reason. The popularity of live online dealer games has been growing in recent times due to the inability of most gamblers to visit physical casinos. The president of Rush Street Interactive (the company which operates BetRivers online casino) Richard Schwartz comments that many players prefer live dealer games, because they watch the action as it happens. Schwartz rightfully concludes that these games increase the players’ trust in the online casino and its procedures.
Schwartz is also right about the players’ attitude towards live online dealer games. This is the closest they can get to the gambling experience in a physical casino, thus restoring some sense of normalcy during these times. Online casinos around the world jumped on this new trend and some of them even live-stream their games, which attracts many new players. There is a growing number of YouTube channels specifically dedicated to online games of poker, blackjack and baccarat amongst others. Not only gamblers but also regular enthusiasts follow such channels and generate thousands of views every day. Moreover, famous YouTube creators are now playing online dealer games and live streaming their games, which again popularizes the online gambling industry. The big online casinos in the US should they note, if they haven’t already, and seek to expand their business by introducing live dealer games during this time, which offers them many opportunities to do so.
Final Thoughts
Pennsylvania officially joins the club of states such as the gambling-friendly New Jersey by introducing online dealer games to its online platforms. So far, there are only a few online casinos where Pennsylvanians can enjoy their favourite games dealt by real people, but the number is only expected to grow in the near future as other casinos have already sought approval from PGCB.
In the current climate, live online dealer games are extremely popular with everyone from the regular gambler who previously went to physical casinos to the YouTuber streaming his games to his millions of followers. Therefore, online casinos and state regulators have the initiative to speed up the process and introduce live dealer games as soon as possible.