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Codere Wins
The winner in the bid to operate the casino in the Carrasco Hotel (l.) in Montevideo is a consortium of Spain-based operator Codere and international hotel operator Sofitel.
Vol. 7 • No. 3 • January 26, 2009 - Print This Issue
Cover Story
Featured Stories
WEEKLY FEATURE: Asian Business Matters: 7 Steps to More Business
Asian customers are becoming more and more important in casinos around the world. But to effectively cater to this market, operators must dig into the culture and make sure that your employees are treating the customers with respect. Understanding the “High and Low Context Culture” is a fundamental subject to discuss when we talk about the things that you need to know about your Asian patrons.
Fontainebleau secured cash before crash
Sun, Jan 25, 2009
With $4 billion in financing already secured, developers of the $2.9 billion Fontainebleau on the Las Vegas Strip have no concerns about cash.
Packer problems
Sun, Jan 25, 2009
Gaming giant James Packer is suffering huge financial, emotional collapse.
IGT acquires PGIC assets
Sun, Jan 25, 2009
Leading slot and system manufacturer International Game Technology is acquiring “certain operating assets” of rival system company Progressive Gaming International Corporation. The global operations of PGIC will be integrated with IGT's respective offices in Europe, Asia, Australia, Latin America, Canada and the U.S.
Podcast with Ron Sultemeier, Managing Director, Delaware North Gaming & Hospitality
Tue, Jan 27, 2009
This week, the Global Gaming Business Podcast features an interview with Ron Sultemeier, the managing director for Delaware North Gaming & Hospitality on his company’s recent win of the VLT license at Aqueduct Raceway in New York City.
FANTINI'S FINANCE: Bad Closing Act
Mon, Jan 26, 2009
Casino companies will soon report fourth quarter earnings, and they aren’t expected to be pretty.
Columns : ASIAN GAMING
Macau’s Mandarin Oriental purchased by STDM
Sun, Jan 25, 2009
Mandarin Oriental International Ltd and Shun Tak Holdings Ltd have agreed to sell a Macau hotel to Sociedade de Turismo e Diversoes de Macau S. A. (STDM), Stanley Ho's flagship company, in a deal worth HK$1.6 billion (US$206 million).
Columns : EUROPEAN GAMING
Columns : GLOBAL GAMING
Jamaica inches closer to casino gaming
Sun, Jan 25, 2009
Jamaica has taken another step toward the introduction of casino gaming on the island. The new Casino Gaming Act, introduced this month, includes a regulatory framework that would form the basis of a Jamaican gaming commission, and also set taxation standards.
Columns : ONLINE GAMING
Judge: Poker a game of skill
Sun, Jan 25, 2009
Citing the numerous books, including one by poker expert Mike Caro (l.), that outline winning strategies for Texas hold‘em, a judge in Pennsylvania ruled that the game is not gambling because the winner of most hands are determined more by skill than luck.
Kentucky halts domain seizure
Sun, Jan 25, 2009
An appellate court ruled that the state of Kentucky does not have jurisdiction to seize casino domain names because they are not defined as gambling devices by state law.
Columns : UNITED STATES GAMING
Hawaiian officials consider gaming
Sun, Jan 25, 2009
The resorts at Waikiki in Honolulu (l.) may soon have slot machines if another way to fix the state budget is not found.
Maryland bidders emerge
Sun, Jan 25, 2009
With next week’s deadline for bids looming, several developers have come forth with plans for slot casinos to kick off Maryland’s fledgling casino gaming industry. The most prominent of them may be a project that could create the next casino in the Hard Rock chain.
Atlantic City casinos face deadlines
Sun, Jan 25, 2009
As the economy worsens in Atlantic City, several casinos are teetering on the brink of insolvency. A mortgage holder for Resorts, the city's first casino, wants to take over the property after it failed to pay its mortgage for the past three months.
Very Vermont
Sun, Jan 25, 2009
The last attempt to bring casino gaming to Vermont went down to defeat 13 years ago. Now, with a multi-million dollar budget deficit in the Green State, some think it’s time to reconsider gaming as part of an economic rescue plan. The Killington ski area (l.) would be a prime target for casino developers.
Las Vegas monorail operator gets extension
Sun, Jan 25, 2009
Berlin-based Bombardier Transportation has picked up a $58 million, five-year option order from the Las Vegas Monorail Company to continue its operation and maintenance of the monorail.
Boyd unveils Blue Chip hotel expansion
Sun, Jan 25, 2009
Boyd Gaming Corp.’s Blue Chip Casino opened its 22-story hotel January 22 with a weekend-long party to celebrate the resort’s 250 new jobs and its potential to rival nearby Four Winds Casino Resort.
Table game bill on tap in Pennsylvania
Sun, Jan 25, 2009
Faced with increasing competition and a state fiscal crisis, lawmakers in Pennsylvania are preparing to introduce a bill that would legalize table games at the 14 casinos authorized under the 2004 gaming law.
Massachusetts casino supporters file bills
Sun, Jan 25, 2009
Gaming supporters try to jump start casino effort by filing legislation that would legalize gaming.
More layoffs in AC
Sun, Jan 25, 2009
Tropicana Casino and Resort in Atlantic City, on the auction block for more than 12 months, has called for a hiring freeze to save more than $800,000 a year. It may also lay off more than 100 dealers to cut costs.
Columns : TRIBAL GAMING
Slow going in Vegas
Sun, Jan 25, 2009
Analysts believe that after the current round of casino openings in 2009 and 2010, development of new properties on the Strip will slow dramatically.
Buffalo back on
Sun, Jan 25, 2009
The Seneca Indians have won another round in their fight to operate a casino in downtown Buffalo, New York, but casino opponents say the battle isn’t over yet.
Oregon Congressman opposes off-reservation casino
Sun, Jan 25, 2009
U.S. Rep. David Wu (l.) of Oregon plans to lobby incoming officials of U.S. Interior Department to reject an off-reservation tribal casino in the Columbia River Gorge’s Cascade Locks, proposed by the Confederated Tribes of Warm Springs.
Columns : PEOPLE
Multimedia Names Roemer senior VP of sales
Sun, Jan 25, 2009
Class II game and system supplier Multimedia Games announced the appointment of slot industry veteran Mick Roemer as senior vide president of sales, reporting directly to President and CEO Anthony Sanfilippo.
Columns : GOODS & SERVICES
Aruze to acquire True Blue Gaming
Sun, Jan 25, 2009
Aruze Gaming America, the U.S. subsidiary of Japan’s Aruze Corporation, has signed a purchase agreement to acquire True Blue Gaming, the slot content provider headed by former longtime Aristocrat Technologies marketing executive Kent Young.
Columns : WILD CARD
Retire Racing
Sun, Jan 25, 2009
The advent of racinos in the 1990s were supposed to revive the “Sport of Champions.” The theory is that gaming revenues would be used to increase every aspect of the sport—breeding, training, attendance, handle and competitiveness.