let's get the facts straight: poker makes money

[pokerswami]

The full story: News-Register

Take a look at where they put the auto-shuffler:
Photo

Seems to be seriously in the way of where most dealers would put the pot and board cards !!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Al_Capone_Junior]

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With more than one table, the minimum break even rake per table goes down pretty quickly. Eventually the curve levels off. For example, a room with 100 tables would see little difference between 75 and 100 tables. Yes, this does indicate that there are limits to the profitability of poker. You simply cannot take a room that makes millions and force it to make billions by raising the rake.
Al

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What are you trying to say here? Are you assuming the 100 table room is operating at a lower percent capacity than the 50 person room. Other wise I see no reason for the curve to ever level off.

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The reason the curve levels off is that it takes a certain minimum number of persons to run each table, no matter how many tables are open.

Suppose you need 6 dealers for every 5 tables, one waitress for every 6 tables, 1 floorperson for every 7 or 8 tables, one chip runner for every 10 tables, and one cashier for every 15 tables (arbitrary numbers, yours may vary). The room won't be running at full efficiency with only two tables open. You still need one cashier, one floor, one cocktails, one chip runner, and three dealers. However, with 30 tables you'd be running at maximum efficiency, that is running the most tables possible for a given set of employees, thus utilizing your labor most efficienty.

Obviously a room with the setup I've described will have slight variations in efficiency with differing amounts of business. This effect pretty much levels off too as the room gets busy.

Ultimately, the minimum break even point (bep) per table will not be much different between 30, 60, 80 or 90 tables. The minimim bep is noticeably higher when the room is running at only 10-20% capacity.

Btw, I figured in comps on a full dollar for dollar basis, but did not figure in the additional costs that are often shifted to the poker room by accountants who want it to look less profitable than it really is. A prime example of this would be charging the poker room's budget high dollar prices for drinks that only really cost the casino pennies and dimes. Gouging yourself is quite silly when all the money goes to the same place. This stupidity would make poker's numbers go way down and f+b's numbers go way up. Such results are obviously quite meaningless. It would be just like charging the poker budget for materials costs when you renovate part of the building.

Al