NEWS & NOTES

Galaxy Entertainment Group (GEG) is set to expand its GEG Japan-Macau Integrated Resort Management Mentorship Scheme, with a new three-week program that will begin August 26. The program will bring students from Tokyo University, Kyoto Sangyo University, Fukuoka University and Okura Nikko Hotel Management to Macau for training about the IR industry. Subjects covered will include food and beverage management, hotel management, entertainment, retail services, event management, marketing, and corporate social responsibility. Galaxy Vice-Chairman Francis Lui said the program provides “practical opportunities for students from Japan to learn about the integrated resort industry. Supporting local talent development is a key element in the sustainable and responsible development of IR in Japan.” • Crown Resorts has settled a legal dispute with Infrastructure New South Wales and will retain the view of Sydney Harbor from its new VIP property in the city. A court previously ruled in favor of Crown to stop the construction of a development that would have blocked the sightline from its new resort. However, the government in February sought leave to appeal the ruling. As a result of the settlement, INSW will not proceed with the appeal, Crown said. The terms are confidential. •. Makinohara City in Shizuoka Prefecture, Japan has announced it will no longer pursue a bid for one of the country’s first three integrated resort licenses. The city had considered formulating an IR Basic Plan, but according to the Nikkei was unable to achieve consensus among residents and tabled the plan. Bidding for an IR was advocated by a committee comprising members of local business organizations. The city had originally announced its intention to pursue an IR bid in January 2019. •. Also in Japan, Miyagi Governor Yoshihiro Murai said he has yet to decide whether or not to move forward with an IR bid from his prefecture. “I want to determine if it is possible to make an IR based on the small size of the local population,” he said. “I want to make a comprehensive decision that considers the feelings of local residents.” The Miyagi Prefectural Government is currently conducting surveys about the possibility of an IR bid, but these are ongoing and have not yet produced any findings. Local officials have said the revenues from an IR might help to boost the region still recovering from a 2011 tsunami. •. Malta-based Global Gaming has been forced to let go of half its staff in a bid to reduce costs. The move came after the company reported that “the last three months have been the most turbulent and difficult” in its history. Releasing its interim Q2 report early in August, the iGaming operator said it had faced tough regulatory headwinds from its home market of Sweden when regulator Spelinspektionen revoked Global Gaming subsidiary SafeEnt’s operator licenses. The regulator concluded that SafeEnt was in “serious breach” of Swedish gambling’s AML Code and failed to meet customer care-of-duty requirements. The operator group reported a 136 percent drop compared to Q2 2018. • New York State’s Franchise Oversight Board has given its OK to $1.3 billion of planned development at Belmont Park on Long Island that includes a hotel, retail and entertainment facilities and a new 19,000-seat arena for the National Hockey League’s New York Islanders. No date has been reported for when construction will start.