NEWS & NOTES

Virgin Hotels Las Vegas developer J.C. Hospitality has concluded an agreement with entertainment giant AEG Presents to be the exclusive operations and booking partner for live acts at the off-Strip property, currently the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino. J.C.’s $200 million redevelopment and Virgin rebranding is slated for completion in late 2020. ● A new resort under construction in Macau’s Cotai entertainment district launched a recruitment drive this week to fill 1,680 gaming and non-gaming positions ahead of a planned 2020 opening. The HK$5 billion, 141,000-square-meter Lisboeta will feature 820 rooms and suites in three towers and entertainment attractions that include a zip-line ride, indoor skydiving and Macau’s first IMAX and MX4D movie theaters. ● Melco Resorts & Entertainment has been granted trademark protection in Macau for its Melco Club player rewards program and its high-end Qi Long gaming brand. • A predominant maker of the “Pennsylvania Skill” machines, Pace-O-Matic, is suing 3C Amusements, a Johnstown-area coin-operated machine operator, alleging skill machines at the operator’s Lower Yoder Township location are actually illegal gambling devices. The company formally announced the lawsuit at a press conference outside the 3C location last week. “3C Amusements is operating machines that have been ruled illegal gambling devices and is advertising its business as a casino,” a media statement form Pace-O-Matic said. Steve Csehoski, owner of 3C Amusements, previously answered questions concerning his machines in June, asserting they meet the standards set by a court ruling for skill-based machines. • The Stockholm-listed Kindred Group will not pursue its licensing application for the regulated Spanish online gambling market. The company made application last December but declined to meet a deadline to revise its platform provisions in accordance with Spanish compliance requirements. ● Australian gaming operator Tabcorp has been fined $14,000 for offering an illegal gaming inducement to players in New South Wales. According to Liquor and Gaming NSW, Tabcorp issued a promotion on its mobile app last October that offered bonus bets up to $50 if a fighter lost by decision. That is considered an inducement. ● In just over a year since the Melco-backed Cyprus Casinos started operating on the Greek-controlled island republic, they are expecting to welcome their millionth customer. C2 Limassol had 710,000 visits, while recently opened C2 Nicosia accounted for 130,000 visits and C2 Larnaca for 40,000. The three properties opened in 2018. C2 Ayia Napa is to open this month and C2 Paphos will open by the end of the year. City of Dreams Mediterranean, set to be the largest integrated resort in Europe, is scheduled to open in late 2021. ● Greek contractor GEK Terna has teamed up with Mohegan Gaming & Entertainment to bid on a casino inside a planned €8 billion tourist resort in Athens. Backed by Chinese and Gulf funds, Lamda Development plans to turn the disused Hellenikon airport in Greece’s capital into an entertainment and residential complex with a casino. The Greek gaming regulator has set a July 31 deadline for the submission of bids for the casino, which requires a minimum offer of €30 million to operate the casino for 30 years. ● Philippine property developer Megawide Construction Corp. is abandoning its plan to build a casino near the international airport near Cebu. The Manila Standard reported that Megawide and businessman Dennis Uy were negotiating the development of four hectares (10 acres) of land on Mactan, but the talks foundered. ● The Latvian gaming regulator has announced a new in which problem gamblers can get state-funded psychological support. Lotteries and Gambling Supervisory Inspection will offer sessions every weekday with a qualified psychologist. The support is free of charge and serves both compulsive gamblers and their families and friends. ● Online casino workers in the Philippines will soon exceed call-center workers as Manila’s top new office space users. Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators or POGOs employ an estimated 345,000 employees, many of them Chinese workers who cater to Chinese gamblers overseas. ● New Silkroad Culturaltainment Ltd., which operates the MegaLuck casino on Jeju Island in South Korea, says it has no plans to expand its gaming business, citing uncertainty in Chinese-U.S. trade relations. The foreigners-only gaming hall performed well in 2018, reaping $13.3 million in gaming revenues, up 11.9 percent year-on-year. The company said MegaLuck is among the biggest earners of gaming revenue on Jeju. ● The Malaysian government is looking to amend the country’s gaming laws to include online gaming, local media reports. The existing laws were established in the 1960s, said Home Minister Muhyiddin Yassin, who added, “The government is fully aware of the rampant illegal gambling activities in the country, including in Sibu, Sarawak.” There, he said, some syndicates earn up to RM300,000 (US$73,000) a day, operating without a license and with only two to three workers.