While off-track betting (OTB) has longer been considered a dead industry at best in New York, a rise in interest by government officials may show signs of a possible future and even revival of the sector. On these groups, the OTC Corporation in charge of off-track betting voted recently in a board meeting to delay the closures of many locations, putting off the elimination of roughly 1,000 jobs for employees throughout the city.
Despite grossing roughly $1 billion a year on a regular basis the OTC Company was hit particularly hard by the economic recession throughout the US, forcing the company to file for bankruptcy recently. The prolonged recession was only further fueled by the recent growth of many land-based casino establishments as well as online casino options for players to participate in; drawing away many of the regular customers that helped keep the business in operation.
In order to assist with the effort of keeping OTB in play while maintaining both jobs and positive cash flows for the area an agreement has been made recently between three different government groups – the State Senate, the Assembly and the Executive Chamber – to provide a minimum of an interim package for the New York OTB offices in order to provide at least some relief for the group and help keep them going until they can turn a profit hopefully next year. While this may mean that some locations may still close down a large portion of the established centers will still remain in operation in order to help continue to generate profits.
While the loss of the OTB industry as well as the lack of solvency of the OTC Corporation may come as a blow to the state unless a long-term plan is derived soon or the economy picks up once again to encourage additional activity in the off-track market viability may prove difficult in the future. Thankfully, the economy is showing some positive signs of recovery and it is highly probable that by roughly the same time next year the economy will be better able to support the gambling industry by providing additional disposable income for households to spend at traditional gambling locations such as race tracks. Whether or not this will be enough to keep the OTC Corporation afloat and pave the way to lead them out of bankruptcy, however, is another matter that can only be determined with time.
