NEWS & NOTES

Psychologist Stephane Bouchard is one of several therapists using virtual reality technology to take gambling-addicted patients back to the casino. According to a series of studies outlined in the journal Frontiers in Psychology, cognitive behavior therapy using virtual reality environments elicit cravings that are clinically useful, without the danger of triggering a loss of control. “We needed to know that we can use these tools in therapy without triggering our patients so they leave the office and then gamble away their fortune and kill themselves,” said Bouchard, Canada Research Chair in Clinical Cyberpsychology, in an interview with the Vancouver Sun. “With the help of a therapist, we can progressively induce cravings and work with patients as if they were playing in a real-life situation. It’s a perfect opportunity to play out scenarios and practice.”  •  The Integrated Resorts Cyprus Consortium has launched the official website of the City of Dreams Mediterranean casino resort, expected to open in 2021. The casino complex, which reputedly will be the largest integrated resort in Europe. The website, in Greek and English, provides information on the development, Cyprus and jobs. City of Dreams Mediterranean is a project of Melco International Development Limited and the Cyprus Phassouri (Zakaki) Ltd.  ●  Transport officials from Vietnam and Cambodia are looking to build a railway connecting Ho Chi Minh City and Bavet City, linking Vietnamese outbound travelers to the Cambodian casino hub. The governments are now working on a feasibility study.  ●  Starting in April, the Osaka Municipal Subway in Japan will be privatized and continue its operations under the new name Osaka Metro.It’s considered a step towards the development of an IR on Yumeshima Island in the prefecture.  ●  To mark the Chinese Year of the Dog, the Macau organized two Chinese New Year markets, one in Praça do Tap Seac and the other in Iao Hon Garden, sold dog trinkets and other memorabilia. Chinese New Year began last Friday, February 16.  ●  About half of Macau’s five-star casino hotels, most of them in Cotai, were already fully booked in advance of the Chinese New Year that began February 15. The holiday runs through February 21.  ●  The Washoe Tribe of Nevada and California has secured a new federally mandated gaming compact with the state of Nevada allowing the tribe to offer unlimited gaming, including table games, at its Wa She Shu Casino in the town of Gardnerville. The new compact supersedes a 2004 compact with the state that limited the casino to machine games only. The Wa She Shu is operated under a management agreement with Alabama’s Poarch Creek Indian Gaming Authority.   •  Golden Entertainment has opened two new PT’s Gold gaming taverns in the Las Vegas Valley. The venues, the company’s 58th and 59th in Nevada, are located in southwestern Las Vegas and in the Las Vegas suburb of Henderson.  •  The Pascua Yaqui Tribe, which operates the Casino Del Sol in Arizona, has announced “Tribal Succession Program” in which five members of the tribe will work with CEO Kim Van Amburg for two years. At the end of that time one of them will replace her.  •  The Navajo Nation has signed a contract to begin construction of the Dennehotso Convenience Center on U.S. Highway 160.  It will return the Dennehotso community to the days when it had a trading post. It will offer everyday items such as gasoline, produce and milk. Currently school buses drive 25 miles to buy diesel fuel. Funding comes from the $150 million Permanent Trust Fund Income Five Year Expenditure Plan of the Navajo Nation.