Vegas firms said to be scouting locales
Mexico’s Interior Ministry has announced it will license new casinos in popular tourist destinations including Acapulco, Baja California, Cancun and the Mayan Riviera.
According to CalvinAyre.com, the federal government is working to keep casinos out of urban areas, where they might attract a local clientele. To that end, legislators have included language in the gaming bill that would reduce license terms, and require current licensees to reapply. In 2013, Mexico reduced the terms from 40 to 25 years and also rescinded the ability of licensees to transfer their licenses to other operators.
Unidentified “Las Vegas-based firms” have already expressed interest in a development in Cancun, according to a representative of the real estate industry in the country.
In January, Carlos Carrion of the Association of Gaming Equipment Manufacturers estimated that 15 percent of the 90,000 electronic gaming machines now online in Mexico are using unlicensed software. Carrion said Mexico needs to beef up regulations to keep operators from buying second-hand machines, which can cost half the prices of new machines. AGEM says Mexico’s EGMs generate annual revenue of $1.6 billion, reported CalvinAyre.com.
