NEWS & NOTES

Ace Casinos launched its ACE Airport Casino in Calgary last Friday, with more than 600 slot machines, private VIP table game saloons, 26 gaming tables, 12 VLT machines, 12-table poker room, and upscale dining. The facility is 72,000 square feet and cost $20 million to renovate. • The Macau government has set aside $80.82 million to attract tourists from new markets next year. The money will be used on promotions, which “hopefully … can revitalize and support the market.” ● Gaming Innovation Group Inc. (GiG) has signed a five-year deal with Strike Games, enabling Strike to leverage growth with GiG technology, including its player account management and front-end and content management system. ● Wynn Macau has proposed a capital restructuring to increase ready funds for the company’s Macau concessionaire by almost $600 million. The proposed restructuring would satisfy the requirement in Macau’s new gaming law that all concessionaires have MOP$5 billion (US$6.235 million) in share capital on hand. ● Melco Resorts & Entertainment has promised to bring back its water-based show, House of Dancing Water, at City of Dreams Macau. The show would qualify as an additional nongaming attraction, in keeping with the city’s plan to diversify its tourism beyond casinos alone. ● Morongo Casino Resort & Spa in Cabazon, California has topped the Los Angeles Times’ readers-choice list of Best Casinos in the Southland. Survey respondents noted Morongo’s elegant amenities including the highly-rated Oasis Pool, with a lazy river and secluded VIP casitas. Morongo has previously been named as the No. 1 Southern California casino by Yahoo Travel, among other distinctions. ● Cambodia’s Century Entertainment International expects its mass-gaming tables business to resume operation by the end of 2022. The group recorded no revenue for the six months that ended September 30 due to Covid-19, which “imposed lockdown measures and [the] temporary closure of all casinos in Cambodia.” ● The head of Cambodia’s Labor Rights Supported Union of Khmer Employees at NagaWorld, which led protests outside the Phnom Penh resort following Covid-19 layoffs, has been arrested for leaving the country without permission. Chhim Sithar, who was jailed, then released on bail with travel restrictions, was returned to detention after making a 12-day trip to Australia. ● Las Vegas’ Mirage Hotel and Casino, which was recently sold to Hard Rock International, is permanently closing its Siegfried and Roy’s Secret Garden and Dolphin Habitat attraction, according to a letter sent to staff members. The closure was announced by the casino’s interim President Franz Kallao and Joe Lupo, president of Hard Rock Las Vegas. In the letter, Kallao and Lupo said the “health, safety and well-being of the animals is our top priority.” The dolphin habitat had already been closed since late September, following a slew of dolphin deaths since the start of the year. • The State Administrative Office of Saxony-Anhalt, Germany has granted a gaming and poker license to Entain. This mains Entain the first operator licensed to offering online poker in the state. It will offer online gaming through the bwin, Ladbrokes and Sportingbet brands. The company’s Chief Governance Officer, Robert Hoskin stated: “We’re delighted to now have our licenses for gaming and poker services in the regulated German market, enabling us to offer and market them to our customers. “It is an important and welcome step towards achieving the goal of a fully regulated online betting and gaming market in Germany.” • U.K. Gambling Commission (UKGC) has fined Aspire Global (Ag Communications) £237,600 for failing to meet the Commission’s anti-money laundering standards. Aspire Global was unable to demonstration due diligence checks on six third-party businesses it partnered with. The Commission stated earlier this year: “Operators should also give due consideration to the money laundering risks posed by their business-to-business relationships, including any third parties they contract with.” Besides Aspire Global’s penalty, enforcement actions have been taken against Betway, Betfred, Sky Bet and Entain, which was fined £17 million.