"Only a delusional optimist would think that the other states will not follow suit with new source market fees and access restrictions. The player is already being squeezed with higher signal fees and increased takeout rates. The opportunity cost of staying engaged as a serious horseplayer keeps on increasing, make the game less and less palatable.
Many serious horseplayers are a lot like horsemen, breeders, and track owners. Our investment in the game is contingent on prevailing and projected business conditions. Although the industry would like to cultivate a generation of entertainment-focused fans willing to pay $80 admissions and wear Todd Pletcher or Bob Baffert jersey's, this type of thinking is pure fantasy. A cursory analysis of nearly every major enthusiast site reveals that nearly all players are after one elusive goal: becoming a long-term winning horseplayer. The 'Zenyatta Ladies' are fickle fans who rally around one or two horses, pay their $10 admittance fees and buy a few drinks, only to fade into oblivion.
Anyway, I am anticipating that within a year or two we will see the rest of the states follow suit, taking their cue from major states like Texas, Illinois, Pennsylvania, New York, and others. They will never succeed in bringing me back to the track, which I left in 1998. I constitute 'a recovered fan' in the sense that I would never have returned to the game if not for the easy access, technological innovation, and rewards (i.e. past performances, rebates, promotions) offered by ADW's. If I am representative of the younger fan (and I think I am in many ways), this game is doomed."
There's some other discussion that sheds quite a bit of light on what customers are up against regarding the new fees in New York, and elsewhere. I'm not sure what racing will run out of first, customers, or nails to nail into the coffin.
[For those who might not understand what hikes in source market fees do to customers, Jeff Platt explains it here (with an analogy) quite well]
1 comment:
I don't disagree with anything that has been said,, but I do think the situation is more complex than has been discussed. Two issues that I think have been ignored are:
Existing source market fees. According to the TVG website, TVG already includes a source market fee in its signal fee structure. I don't know if that's true or the extent to which other ADWs do the same. To the extent that such fees already exist, the marginal impact of the new law may be less than 5% of handle.
The potential for partnership structures. TVG apparently does business in different states through different entities. I remember that their initial foray into NY involved some relationship with Yonkers. It may be that ADW's will attempt to mitigate the impact of the new law by entering into relationships with NY-based bet-takers.
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