AGA Report Reveals Gaming Industry Economic Activity Is Set to Decrease

Despite the record momentum of the gaming industry, gaming executives are increasingly cautious about the industry’s future prospects, according to a report by the American Gaming Association (AGA) compiled in partnership with Fitch Ratings. 

Gaming Industry Executives Predict Flat Growth Ahead Despite Record Momentum

Two-thirds of respondents expect conditions to remain the same. The report found that gaming-related economic activity expanded at an annualized rate of 8.4% in the last three quarters, while the US economy grew by 2.9% over the last two quarters of 2022.

The data in the report suggested that annualized industry economic activity will decrease moderately over the next six months. The results showed that more executives expect a decrease in the pace of hiring new employees, revenue growth, and customer activity over the next three to six months than an increase. 

However, there was a brighter outlook for certain segments of their businesses, with more operators expecting capital investment and gaming units in operation to increase rather than decrease over the same period.

Gaming equipment manufacturers expressed significant optimism, with most expecting sales of gaming units for replacement use to increase and almost all expecting sales of units for new or expansion use to increase. 

Economic Uncertainty and Geopolitical Risk Among Top Concerns for Gaming Industry Executives

Among the top concerns for industry executives were interest rates and inflation, cited by 69% of respondents, and economic uncertainty, cited by 38%. Meanwhile, supply chain delays, which had been a top-five concern in the previous report, fell out of favor, with geopolitical risk taking their place.

Retention of talent remained a challenge for the industry, with competition for current employees cited as an area of concern.

AGA President and CEO Bill Miller said that gaming was well-positioned to weather any potential economic headwinds, but projections of slowing growth across the broader US economy had muted expectations for gaming in the medium term. 

The report, prepared biannually by Oxford Economics, provides a timely measure of recent industry growth and future expectations.

A total of 26 executives responded to the Q1 2023 survey, including those at the major international and domestic gaming companies, tribal gaming operators, single-unit casino operators, major gaming equipment suppliers, and major iGaming and sports betting operators. Another recent report by AGA highlighted that the US gaming industry is more diverse than the larger hospitality sector and the US workforce. The study revealed that 62% of gaming industry employees are minorities, with Asian employees representing a significant presence with 14%, double the national workforce.