“Everybody’s still trying to figure out, how do you make this appealing for the consumer and make sense for the business? How do we all profit from this? We certainly experienced a spike in our hospitality offerings—the hotel, food and beverage side of things. We didn’t see as much on the gambling side, which we weren’t terribly surprised by.”
—Kevin Ortzman, Atlantic City regional president for Caesars Entertainment to the Associated Press on the company’s eSports tournament held in Atlantic City in March
“I don’t think we can build a business hoping to attract a couple of these large players every now and then, hoping to win.”
—Matt Bekier, CEO, Star Entertainment, on the Aussie casino company’s reliance on tourists and repeat business from locals rather than big-spending VIPs
“American executives possibly have reasons for disappointment, but at the same time, they knew all along that the Japanese government intended to produce a tightly regulated industry.”
—Andrew Gellatly, Global Research Services, on all the global operators who are shocked, shocked that Japan wants stringent gaming regulations
“We feel we have been misled in this political game of hide-and-deceive. This government has back-flipped in glorious fashion through self-interest. All the government promises of jobs and investment ring hollow.”
—Louis Chien, director, ASF Group, after the Queensland Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk shelved a casino project at Southport Spit. ASF may take legal action
“It’s really a warning sign that the government is not backing down for the casino concessions. Nobody really knows what’s going to happen.”
—Macau casino executive, telling Reuters casino concessionaires are concerned they may not get automatic renewals when their licenses start to expire in 2020
“It’s kind of a terrible game the state played and it was done intentionally to squeeze us exactly into where we are now.”
—Joseph Talachy, governor of Pojoaque Pueblo, commenting on his tribe’s capitulation to New Mexico’s demands that it sign a gaming compact it had resisted
“As one of the key stakeholders in these discussions we want to ensure that if legalized, our members have the opportunity to offer this activity as an additional source of revenue.”
—Ernie Stevens, chairman of National Indian Gaming Association, on the possibility of sports betting being legalized
“We expect this to bring the issue to a close. As we’ve said all along, we’re simply asking that the Pueblo of Pojoaque play by the same rules as other New Mexico gaming tribes.”
—Mike Lonergan, spokesman for New Mexico Governor Susana Martinez, on the decision by the Pueblo of Pojoaque to sign a gaming compact with the state
