Airport Gambling Fails to Take Off

A few airports around the United States have been trialing electronic gambling at their facilities, but these have largely failed - proving that genuine mobile gaming is still a preferred choice for players.

Minneapolis Airport Trial

Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport became one of the first American airports to trial electronic gambling with iPad games in bars and restaurants in January, but figures released this week by local paper The Star Tribune show that passengers spent just $33,586 on the machines in their first six months.

The games were expected to raise $3 million to help fund the new Minnesota Vikings NFL stadium. They were part of the state's original plan to fund its $348 million share of the stadium. Even more disappointing for the state is that 85 percent of the revenues have been returned to players as prizes, and a large portion has gone to rent and taxes.

According to the report, the foundation that installed the games has earned about $1,900 for its airport gaming projects.

Mobile Gambling Preferred

As the egaming experience in largely legalized and regulated Europe has shown, mobile gambling is more popular than fixed terminal mobile games because it allows players to access the games via their own devices. Players love the convenience of taking the games with them where they go, hence the explosion of mobile gaming in recent years.

Some of the most popular mobile gambling operators include William Hill, All Slots Mobile and bet365. Once online and mobile gambling are properly legalized in the US, Minnesota and US states will begin to understand the potential that the industry has to offer.