“People are voting with their wallets. If (a game) appeals to a segment of players that no other game does, they’ll stick with it. If the novelty wears off, or it’s too complicated, they’ll stop playing.”
—Daniel Sahl, Center for Gaming Innovation, UNLV, on the big gamble undertaken by casino game inventors, most of whom never get a title on the floor
“If they try to take advantage of us and produce a high-handed bid, we will opt not to partner with MGM, and it may be necessary to open the recruitment process once again.”
—Ichiro Matsui, mayor, Osaka, Japan, warning MGM Japan and Orix not to expect too many concessions in their sole bid to be the government’s IR partner
“It is absolutely essential to prove that gaming responsibility tools have an effect and show how they make that effect. Otherwise the gaming companies can continue to market themselves as responsible, even though their tools are poor.”
—Ekaterina Ivanova, Stockholm University, who advocates deposit limits as a way to combat problem gambling
“A rigid set of rules that cannot be changed in the next few years will neither help player protection, nor will it push back the black market that will continue to exist in the future.”
—Mathias Dahms, president, German Sports Betting Association (DSWV), who says restrictions of sports betting will be “proven ineffective for a digital age”
“My reading of the memorandum of understanding suggests that we wouldn’t have to pay the state anymore if you did not honor your piece as to exclusivity. So you if you just legislate that out of existence and say we’re not exclusive anymore, then we wind up in court.”
—George Henningsen, chairman, Mashantucket Pequot Gaming Commission, claiming Connecticut tribes could stop sharing their gaming revenues to the state if they don’t get exclusive sports betting rights
“Let’s see if we can come to a compromise. If the tribes insist on exclusivity, it’s going to be hard to move forward on sports betting. It has to be good for the tribes, but also for the other stakeholders.”
—Rep. Joe Verrengia, Connecticut lawmaker and co-chairman of the committee looking at authorizing sports betting in the state
“We don’t ever want to alienate a segment of the business. We want customers to be able to come in here whether they have a dime, 10 bucks, or 10,000 bucks, and feel like a million bucks.”
—Brian Gullbrants, president, Encore Boston Harbor, on why the resort lowered minimum bets, eliminated paid parking and brought in a food truck for low rollers
“It’s akin to keeping a body alive without the food required to sustain it.”
—Harry Curtis, Nomura gaming analyst, on the reopening of Macau’s casinos while travel to the city from mainland China remains largely shut down
