US Casinos suffering from Higher Slot Hold Percentages on Pokies

Poker machines in the US—or slot machines as Americans they call them—aren’t nearly as affable as they used to be. A recent report indicates that, compared to 10 years ago, the slot hold percentage has increased dramatically in most states where gambling is legal. Despite the reasoning behind the tighter payouts being to generate more revenue, it seems to be having the opposite effect as gamblers aren’t playing the pokies nearly so often.

Slot hold relates to the payout percentage of poker machines, or more precisely, the amount of money a slot holds onto compared to what it pays out. For example, pokies with an 8% slot hold (or conversely, a 92% payout percentage), would (on average) keep $8 out of every $100 wagered by players, paying out the other $92.

The report in question was authored by the Association of Gaming Equipment Manufacturers (AGEM), based on research gathered between 2004 and 2014. The study, entitled ‘Building Better Business – Assessing the impact of hold percentages on overall slot revenue’, delivers a unique insight into the world of gambling that any player of the one-armed bandits ought be aware of.

With the steady deterioration of poker machine revenue across most of the applicable US states, AGEM commissioned the assistance of the Las Vegas-based Allied Analysis to investigate the cause. The study focused on 12 states where regulators publish the payout percentages and generated revenue from slots, using reports dating back to the 1990’s.

Those states include (alphabetically) Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Nevada, New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and South Dakota.

“While statistical correlations on a state-by-state basis vary due to any number of factors, the broader, aggregate trends would suggest a rising hold percentage has not translated into incremental gaming revenue for operators during the post-recession era,” reads the report. “In fact, they very well may be contributing to its decline.”

Takeaways from Slot Hold Report

The main takeaway from the report was the fact that, as slot hold percentages increased, most casinos saw a coinciding decrease in revenue.

Across those 12 states, the overall slot hold has increased 14.5% in the decade spanning 2004-14. In the same period of time, slot revenue increased 1.1%, but that figure does not reflect the greater losses felt by most of the applicable locations. 10 of the 12 states increased their hold on pokies, while 7 of the 12 reported diminishing revenue.

Since 2007, slot machine revenue across the boardsEveryone plays Pokemon Go, yes because it’s a great Android and iOS game but what if you’re getting this message fix gps signal not found pokemon go can this stops has declined 15.4% from $26 billion to $22 billion in 2014. The payout percentages were at their best in 1996, collectively holding 5.96%, while in 2014, they sat at an all-time worst of 7.7%.

The worst US state to play the pokies in was Iowa, which carried the highest slot hold of 9.37% last year. On the other end of the spectrum, (you may be surprised to find that) Nevada had the loosest poker machines, holding just 6.4% in 2014.

Overall, Florida was home to the best adjustments psp games free download in the last decade. The slot hold percentage fell 9.2% overall, from a 9.5% hold in 2006 (when the first slots casino opened) to 6.41% in 2014. Consequently, the state’s poker machine revenue rose 153.85 in the same frame of time, up to $497 million last year.

Tightening up the hold on slot machines may not be the only factor contributing to the notable decline in revenue.

“While economic conditions appear to be a material factor in slot performance trends, there may be other factors impacting the industry’s overall performance, most notably following the conclusion of the most recent recession,” the report reads. “Consumer spending has improved in most major gaming markets throughout the United States in recent years, while gaming volumes continue to contract.”