NEWS & NOTES

Macau casino operator Sands China recently kicked off a three-day Sands Shopping Carnival that attracted around 500 vendors. The largest shopping event of its kind in Macau, the carnival held at the Sands Cotai Expo went off despite Covid-19 concerns and attracted thousands of members of the public. Sands China President Wilfred Wong said the event was designed “to help stimulate domestic consumption and boost the economy in support of the Macao SAR government Consume for the Economy initiative.” He called Sands a “safe and family-friendly shopping and leisure destination.” • Resorts World Las Vegas has received approval from Clark County commissioners to move forward with constructing a passenger station and tunnel that will connect the new resort to the Las Vegas Convention Center. Passengers will be transported to Resorts World in driverless all-electric Tesla vehicles in under just two minutes. Resorts World Las Vegas is scheduled to open sometime in the summer of 2021. • Laos has reportedly detained and deported hundreds of Mainland Chinese who were heading for the country’s casinos, but entered illegally to avoid mandatory quarantine. Most of the illegal border crossers are tourists bound for casinos in northwestern Bokeo province’s Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone, a gambling and entertainment district that caters mainly to Chinese tourists. •   The Macao Government Tourism Office has awarded a four-star hotel license to the new Lisboeta Hotel in Cotai. The hotel was developed by Macau Theme Park and Resorts Ltd., a company led by Arnaldo Ho, son of Stanley Ho and SJM Holdings Managing Director Angela Leong. The hotel is located next to the under-construction Grand Lisboa Palace. • ParionsSport, the sports betting brand of French gaming operator La Française des Jeux, has extended its partnerships with Ligue 1 football clubs Olympique de Marseille and Olympique Lyonnais for a further two seasons. Lyon and Marseille are both among the most successful French football clubs, with Lyon winning seven Ligue 1 titles and Marseille nine, in addition to a Champions League title in 1993. •   Greek gaming operator OPAP Group has confirmed that it has finalized the acquisition of a 51 percent stake in Stoiximan Group’s Greek and Cypriot business. The deal, which was initially announced 18 months ago, was valued at €90.2 million in addition to net cash of €3.0 million. • The estate of MGM Resorts International founder Kirk Kerkorian donated $2 million to help employees hurt by the coronavirus pandemic. The MGM Resorts Foundation’s Employee Emergency Grant Fund has donated more than $11 million to employees and immediate families with short-term assistance and relief. • The new Las Vegas Convention Center exhibition hall will be complete by December 14, even though the building’s first tenant, CES, has cancelled its Las Vegas trade show set for January. The $980.3 million West Hall expansion will be followed by the $52.5 million Boring Company underground people-mover project, on track for a mid-December completion. In related news, the LVCVA is nearing a deal to acquire the Las Vegas Monorail Co. • The American Lung Association says a public opinion poll in Indiana found nearly two-thirds of Hoosiers support a casino smoking ban. An online survey of 600 voters showed 65 percent favor a prohibition on smoking and vaping inside casinos. The Indiana Gaming Commission recently directed casinos to limit smoking areas to prevent the potential spread of Covid-19. • Caesars’ ‘Glory of Rome’ riverboat casino has been relocated from Southern Indiana to its new home in Orange Beach, Alabama. The largest riverboat in the U.S. operated from 1998 until 2019. It closed to make way for Caesars Southern Indiana, a $90 million, 110,000-square-foot land-based casino that opened in December. The boat was purchased by Caribe Ventures. • Caesars Entertainment Corp. has switched accountants as part of its acquisition by Eldorado Resorts Inc. In a Securities and Exchange Commission filing, the company disclosed that it has hired the New York-based office of Deloitte & Touche LLP, replacing Ernst and Young LLP, New York. • Two , the Orleans and the South Point have become the latest in the area to expand to eight-handed play. The rooms have installed Plexiglas dividers that allow for eight-handed play. The Venetian and three Station Casinos poker rooms, at Boulder Station, Red Rock Resort and Santa Fe Station, also host eight-handed games. • McCarran International Airport in Las Vegas is no longer using WeChat, one of the apps President Donald Trump believes could pose a national security risk. Trump issued executive orders banning WeChat and TikTok, claiming they could serve as surveillance tools of the Chinese government. The ruling that will take effect in 45 days. • Malta-based software developer Betby has expanded its licensing requirements after been approved as a sportsbook software supplier by the Malta Gaming Authority. This will also allow Betby to expand its sportsbook solutions to other European states. A partnership with Advabet announced in July helped Betby.Games to offer sportsbook along with its i-gaming solutions.