Pa. slot machine revenue up slightly in April

PHILADELPHIA (AP) — Slot machine revenue was up slightly last month from April 2011 at Pennsylvania’s casinos, but there were signs of a possible slowdown in the industry’s rapid growth as the state saw just its third such decline ever for current casinos.

The state’s 11 casinos brought in $214.1 million in gross revenue last month, up 1.3 percent from the same period the year before, according to Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board figures released today.

Those figures, however, include the first full month of revenue from Valley Forge Casino Resort, which opened March 31. Without that revenue, the money generated by existing casinos actually fell 0.6 percent from the same period the year before.

The only other times that has happened were in October 2011 (down 0.1 percent) and January 2011 (down 3.7 percent), with the latter decline blamed on weather.