“From quarter slot players to ,000-a-hand baccarat players, the level of impatience with transportation delays from home to the gaming position grows exponentially. Anything you can cut from the travel time at length will transform into gaming revenue.”
—Howard Jay Klein, SeekingAlpha.com, on an expected boost in mass market gaming in Macau once the new Pac On ferry terminal opens in May
“There would be no problem for employees to prove their income, but it would be difficult for businessmen and freelancers to do this. Many casino goers are self-employed and wealthy but unwilling to apply for income certificates.”
—Pham Ngoc Nam, Royal International Corp., on a potential roadblock for some Vietnamese gamblers who will be required to show proof of income to gamble when domestic casinos open to locals
“We must seriously investigate and severely punish companies and individuals involved in enticing and organizing Chinese tourists to gamble in overseas casinos. We must severely punish those casino-related illegal labor agents.”
—Guo Shengkun, China’s public security minister, promising anyone who organizes gambling junkets overseas will be prosecuted
“There’s billions of dollars being gambled online now. The question is whether we in Massachusetts want to take it out of the shadows, regulate it, and take a piece of the action.”
—Stephen Crosby, chairman of the Massachusetts Gaming Commission, urging an omnibus online gaming bill
“While New Hampshire has done nothing, surrounding states now have gaming entities. They advertise on our TV stations and we send buses of New Hampshire residents to those other states to gamble. It’s time for New Hampshire to do something. No state that has done this has crumbled.
—Senator Lou D’Allesandro, commenting on his bill that would authorize two casinos in the Granite State
“MGM will do whatever they can to generate whatever shareholder revenue they can, even if it means crippling a celebrated Connecticut industry. They would love to see us give up instead of fighting back. But we’re not going to do that.”
—Rodney Butler, chairman of the Mashantucket Pequot tribe, commenting on efforts by MGM International to stop Connecticut’s gaming tribes from building a third casino
“We are very excited about the inaugural European Championship of Roulette. With the event, we are trying to bring more excitement to one of the most iconic Casino games, Roulette. Roulette tournaments are nothing new and have been around online and offline for a long time. However, with a huge prize pool of €200,000 and a tournament with literally hundreds of players betting on the outcome of one wheel, we hope to create a new kind of experience for Roulette players.”
—Alexis Wicen, managing director of casino brands at Betsson Group on the European Roulette Championship held at the Portomaso Casino and Hilton Malta March 30 to April 2
