The Macau Health Bureau is reported to have accepted a suggestion from the six casino operators that airport-style smoking rooms be installed on the public gaming floors to replace the current system that requires them to divide those areas into smoking and non-smoking zones.
The request was made last year after several properties failed a second round of air quality tests to monitor their compliance with the zoning rule, which came into force at the start of 2013.
Fourteen mostly older venues, two slot arcades among them, failed the second tests, down from 28 in the first round.
Observers say there are still many details to be worked out before anything changes, and the timing for that is unknown because it will require action by the Legislative Assembly.
VIP rooms are not affected, in any event, they remain 50 percent smoking, and in terms of the bigger picture most analysts don’t expect any fallout for a boom market that topped US$45 billion in gaming revenue last year.
As David Bain of Sterne Agee put it, “Macau is the only legal place to gamble in China, there are not alternative legal gaming venues (much different than casinos in a U.S. jurisdiction going entirely smoke-free, where patrons can£ drive 30 minutes to a smoking casino venue in a different jurisdiction). Also, we believe there will still be plenty of offerings throughout Macau casinos where patrons can smoke. To the extent a patron having to leave a table to smoke slows the velocity of play, we believe the ultimate impact to foreword Macau gross gaming revenue will not be overly significant.”
