Perry Christie (l.), the prime minister of the Bahamas, announced last week that a deal has been reached with China’s state-owned bank and construction company to resume work on the stalled Baha Mar resort. But the former owners of the property as well as opposition politicians objected saying it was a “backroom deal” that promised the world to the Chinese companies with not much in return.
A surge in the popularity of electronic table games in Asian casinos provides the backdrop for a continuation of a long-running dispute between two major suppliers in Macau, as Scientific Games and LT Game square off about patents once again. The disagreement peaked at G2E Asia 2012 when then-SHFL live dealer games were forced to be covered (l.) as a result of an injunction granted to LT Game.
A bill that would legalize online poker in California is moving forward with some language that the author, Rep. Adam Gray (l.), hopes will calm the waters on a disagreement over the “suitability” of some online providers. The bill, AB 2863, has advanced further than any bill so far since lawmakers have been interested in this subject.
Las Vegas Sands and Madison Square Garden say they are partnering to build a 17,500-seat arena with private money located east of the Sands Expo and Convention Center as part of an aggressive plan by Las Vegas Sands to increase its entertainment revenues. It also is proposing building a 65,000-seat domed stadium (with mostly public money) where the closed Riviera Casino now resides. Las Vegas Sands President Rob Goldstein (l.) says the company wants Las Vegas to continue to be the entertainment capital of the world.
The New Jersey legislature has approved a plan to rescue financially critical Atlantic City from bankruptcy and Governor Chris Christie (l.) signed the bill the next day. Under the plan, the city will have about five months to come up with a five-year financial plan to balance the city’s budgets and achieve solvency or the state will take over the city. In the meantime it will receive state loans and other monies to keep it solvent through the remainder of the year. The bill’s passage comes after months of bitter infighting, which many officials feel may have doomed voter...
The Taiwanese island of Penghu may hold another referendum on legal gaming. A petition to move the issue forward reportedly has exceeded the minimum threshold of 4,114 signatures. A 2009 election turned down the addition of casinos to the island, and in 2012 voters in nearby Matsu approved gaming.
Two amendments to an existing gaming expansion bill that would legalize Pennsylvania online gaming were voted down, then revived for more debate. At issue is the expansion of gaming to include electronic game terminals (EGTs) at more racetracks, international airports and possibly bars and restaurants in a bill sponsored by Rep. Mark Mustio (l.).
Six years after opening, Singapore’s two casinos have hit a wall. Marina Bay Sands (l.) and Resorts World Sentosa are feeling the fallout from the Macau crackdowns, a slower regional economy, and more competition.
This week, the GGB Podcast features an interview with former IGT and Scientific Games executive : Jean Venneman, about her new position as senior vice president of land based business for High 5 Games.
Goa’s Bharatiya Janata Party, accused of allowing the offshore casino industry to proliferate to the detriment of the people, says moving offshore casinos from the River Mandovi (l.) would hurt investor confidence.
The Philippines has launched its newest gaming jurisdiction, the Aurora Pacific Economic Zone and Freeport Authority, eight hours from Manila. The 12,500-hectare (30,888-acre) zone will be known as APECO.
In its new forecast for the world’s top gaming jurisdiction, the Macao Government Tourism Office estimates non-gaming revenue could reach MOP112 billion in 2025, and visitors could top 40 million per year.
Hero Poker Chairman David Jung (l.) has taken a hard line against a second locals casino in South Korea. He doesn’t simply oppose the idea. He says it has the potential to destroy the country.
Macau gaming concessionaire SJM Holdings Ltd. is reportedly planning to apply for as many as 500 gaming tables for its Grand Lisboa Palace (l.) on the Cotai Strip. The resort is set to be complete by the end of 2017.
Casino investor Amax International Holdings Ltd. has won regulatory approval for a casino in the South Pacific Ocean nation of Vanuatu. The Macau firm has its eyes on an “international market,” says its chairman, Ng Man Sun (l.).
A plan by the government of Jeju, South Korea that would have doubled the gaming tax on the holiday island has been shot down by the country’s national government.
The Grand Ho Tram Strip in Vietnam has announced it will build a US$75 million expansion of the casino resort complex near Ho Chi Minh City. The company says it will bring its total investment to more than $1 billion.
Macau VIP gaming promoter Gold Moon Group has suspended operations at Wynn Macau (l.) with the closure of its last room there, effective May 21. Reports indicate the move was initiated by the resort, not the junket.
Shun Tak Holdings, a company founded by Stanley Ho, has acquired its first Singapore property. Ho paid S$145 million (US$105 million) for a single home; at more than 25,000 square feet, it’s zoned for hotel use.
In April, Wimbledon Greyhound Stadium (l.) got the news that it would not be replaced by AFC Football. Though the dog races will survive for now, their days still may be numbered.
The UK Competition & Markets Authority has blessed the planned merger of Ladbrokes and Gala Coral if the companies shed 350 to 400 betting shops across the country.
A recent report showed for the year ended March 31, 2015, gambling violations in British Columbia skyrocketed 735 percent compared to the previous year, but no charges were filed. Of 11, 213 incidents, only 75 were referred to Crown counsel. Finance Minster Mike de Jong (l.) could not explain the drastic increase nor lack of action.
Sun International Ltd. must pay 675 million rand (US $42.8 million) to hotel casino operator Peermont Global after a failed attempt to buy the company. In March 2015, Sun agreed to a sale price of 9.4 billion rand.
Despite some public concern, an official of the Great Canadian Gaming official said the new Shorelines Casino in Peterborough, Ontario, Canada, "won't be a socio-economic boogeyman on the town." The city council recently voted 8-3 to rezone a property to accommodate the casino, expected to open in 2017.
For women, at least, being told that certain gambling activities are signs of a psychological condition, can lead to doubling down on the same behavior. That’s the conclusion of a study conducted among 200 volunteers recently in Adelaide, Queensland, Australia.
New York, which has presented the greatest challenge to daily fantasy sports through Attorney General Eric Schneiderman (l.), moved closer to legalizing the games after new legislation regulating DFS was proposed in both houses of its legislature. New DFS legislation has also been proposed in Colorado, Pennsylvania, Indiana and Illinois.
Massachusetts State Lottery Executive Director Michael Sweeney (shown with a recent jackpot winner) is proposing to sell tickets only in order to maintain the level of revenue the lottery provides to the state each year.
The Iowa Tribe of Oklahoma's www.PokerTribe.com website is now available for free play to U.S. residents (except in Oklahoma) and internationally, offering poker, bingo and pull-tab games. The next phase will offer real-money play and the third phase will offer the online casino on international flights and cruises.
The merger of Full Tilt poker into PokerStars has been completed by Amaya Inc. Though some Full Tilt logos remain on the site, game play is essentially done on the PokerStars platform .
Poland’s Deputy Prime Minister Jarosław Gowin (l.) has proposed opening up the country to online poker. The proposal was part of several made to revamp the country’s gaming laws, but are seen as the Minister’s personal proposal and not backed by the country’s ruling party.
Online gaming revenues are rising in Spain with a better than 30 percent increase year to year for the first quarter of 2016. The increase comes after a significant rise in advertising by Spanish operators. Online poker revenue, however, remained stagnant.
In a move tied to its European Union obligations, the Greek government has approved a 35 percent tax on online gambling revenue. The move is part of the country’s requirement by the EU to meet a budget surplus projection and raise an additional 1.5 billion euros in taxes.
With a $5.4 billion budget deficit, Illinois lawmakers are considering raising income taxes, taxing sugary drinks and expanding gambling, said state Senator Donne Trotter (l.). But Illinois Casino Gaming Association Executive Director Tom Swoik said, "We’re totally saturated." He noted with 24,000 video gaming terminals in the state, expanded gambling "is ridiculous."
MGM Resorts International and Wynn Resorts (l.) in Las Vegas each filed necessary paperwork to continue the process of exiting their agreements with Warren Buffet-owed Nevada Power and buy energy from other sources. MGM says it will pay nearly $87 million and Wynn $15.7 million to leave the utility by the end of the year.
Voters in Charge retained former Florida state Senator Dan Gelber (l.) as counsel when the state Supreme Court's reviews of its Voter Control of Gaming in Florida measure, which would require a statewide vote authorizing casino gambling. Meanwhile legislative economists, uncertain if the measure applies to existing or future casino gambling, could not determine its economic impact.
Las Vegas recently slipped to third among the nation’s top convention and meetings destinations, according to global events organizer Cvent’s 16,000 clients, but current and future developments should help Las Vegas to regain Cvent’s top spot. The city’s improved industrial base also should help improve rankings, while diversifying the local economy.
The Nevada Gaming Commission in May unanimously approved Malaysia-based Genting Berhad’s applications for necessary gaming licenses for Resorts World Las Vegas (l.), clearing the final hurdle for the first large-scale resort to be built on the Las Vegas Strip since the Great Recession. Genting plans a 2019 opening of its Chinese-themed resort, which will cater to high-rollers from China.
The legal battles are over for Penn National Gaming’s Belle of Sioux City (l.), following the Iowa Supreme Court's ruling that the Appeals Court acted properly in 2013 when it granted a gambling license to the land-based Hard Rock casino and rejected the application of Belle, owners of the Argosy Sioux City riverboat casino.
Now that the $950 million MGM Springfield (l.) has gotten the approval from the Massachusetts Gaming Commission of its revised plans, the development is starting to generate excitement among Springfield residents and businesses. MGM Springfield President Mike Mathis says he is encountering this enthusiasm as he makes presentations around the city.
Caesars Entertainment creditor Oaktree Capital has warned Congress not to make any deals with Caesars Entertainment that would allow the company to emerge from bankruptcy at little costs. Senator Harry Reid (l.) is suspected of arranging such a provision. Also, union workers from Caesars Entertainment held a national protest to challenge executive bonuses the operator has granted while its largest unit is in bankruptcy.
Wichita, Kansas Councilman Pete Meitzner recently said Kansas Star Casino (l.) is "strip-mining" convention business from the city, when it was supposed to be focusing on equestrian events. But officials at Boyd Gaming, Kansas Star operators, said numerous equestrian events have been held there, and it always was meant to be a multipurpose facility.
The Oxford Casino in Maine, owned by Churchill Downs, has begun a $25 million expansion that will include a 106-room hotel, more gaming floor and more places to eat. The Oxford celebrated its groundbreaking last week.
Gaming revenues at three New England casinos have stopped their free fall of the last year or so and appear to be stabilizing. Plainridge Park Casino (l.) in Massachusetts and Foxwoods and the Mohegan Sun in neighboring Connecticut last month all reported encouraging figures.
The Hard Rock Hotel (l.) in Las Vegas is undergoing a $15 million improvement of its convention and exhibition space. Meanwhile, Golden Gaming-owed PT’s Entertainment Group opened its 50th tavern in Las Vegas and plans to open another dozen over the next two years as it continues an aggressive expansion plan
California’s oldest card room, the Normandie Casino, appears on the verge of closing. The owners have been disqualified from having a casino license and so far no wiling buyer has been found.
Once mostly dependent upon tourist dollars from California visitors, gaming operators in Reno say the city’s more diversified local economy is showing gains in locals play and making the local gaming market more lucrative and profitable. Major developments, like the $5 billion Tesla Motors plant, is making it happen in northern Nevada.
Voters of Antioch, California, will vote June 7 on whether more than one card room can operate in the city. The campaign to limit the number to one is being funded by an area casino outside of the city.
The Finger Lakes Horsemen Benevolent Protective Association is urging state officials to protect its purses, in light of the February 2017 opening of the $440 million del Lago Resort & Casino in Seneca County. The track depends on video lottery terminal revenue, which it said will be eroded by 40 percent after del Lago opens.
The Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians in North Carolina recently passed legislation to pay off $96 million in debts for its new hospital and wastewater treatment plant. The tribe still owes about $600 million its Harrah's Cherokee (l.) and Harrah's Valley River casinos.
The 9th Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled that the Tohono O’odham Nation can continue to operate its Desert Diamond West Casino in the Phoenix Valley. It ruled against opponents of the tribe, who have fought it every step of the way since the Tohonos announced their intention to build the casino in 2009.
The Muscogee (Creek) Nation's $329 million Margaritaville expansion will open August 25 in Tulsa, Oklahoma, with Jimmy Buffett's beach-themed Margaritaville restaurant and bar, a casino and convention center. In December, a 27-story hotel and 2,500-seat theater will open. The expansion has created 800 construction jobs and will over 1,000 permanent jobs.
A federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit by the Snoqualmie Tribe of Washington against the city of Snoqualmie. The tribe claimed that the city discriminated against it when it raised sewer rates and then ended its contract with the tribe when the tribe objected to the rate hike.
Medford, Oregon has sent a letter to the Department of the Interior criticizing a draft environmental impact report issued for the Coquille Tribe’s proposed Cedars at Bear Creek casino near Medford.
Pala Casino Spa & Resort (l.) in San Diego County held a ribbon-cutting last week for its new RV resort which has spaces to serve 100 RVs, and hopes to tap into a growing RV market.
Clark County, Washington, long a bitter opponent of the Cowlitz Tribe’s efforts to build a casino in La Center, has taken a step towards reconciliation. The Clark County council last week voted to reverse a previous policy of not talking to the tribe.
FireKeepers Casino Hotel recently was named Large Business of the Year by the Battle Creek, Michigan Chamber of Commerce. Owned by the Nottawaseppi Huron Band of the Potawatomi Indians, the property was honored for its contributions to the local economy and demonstration of "best practices." In addition, the tribe will renovate an old fire station into a restaurant and community food service center called the Hub (l.).
Now that the Nisichawayasihk Cree Nation's 10.4-acre site in Thompson, Manitoba, Canada has received urban reserve status, the tribe is considering development options. The land can't be used for a casino but the tribe will partner with the Keewatin Tribe for a viability study to determine if Thompson could support a seventh casino.
The Black Oak Casino Resort (l.) in Northern California is adding 5,000 square feet to its footprint, with more gaming space and an enlarged Willow Creek Lounge. The addition will celebrate the 15th anniversary of the casino resort, owned by the Tuolumne Band of Me-Wuk Indians.
Gun Lake Casino’s $76 million expansion is moving forward in Wayland, Michigan, adding 73,000 square feet to the existing 83,000 square foot property. Amenities will include an enlarged casino, new buffet and expanded performance venue. The project has created 400 construction jobs and will add 100 new permanent positions when completed in summer 2017.
A tribe in New York state is meeting this week with United Nations Secretary General Ban Ki-moon (l.) to drum up support in the U.N. for indigenous peoples’ rights, and their cause of reversing environmental degradation.
A Southern California gaming tribe is leveraging its success in gaming and the hospitality industry into developing software to help tribes and hotels manage customer information. The Agua Caliente Band of Cahuilla Indians now operates Fusion Resource Solutions, a software development company that they founded two years ago.
Borgata President Tom Ballance (l.) was named chairman of the advisory board of the gaming, hospitality and tourism school at Stockton University, and regulator Matthew Levinson also joined the board.
Early last month, SkyCity Entertainment Group announced the resignation of its CEO, Nigel Morrison (l.). The terms of Morrison’s exit package has tongues wagging about the reasons for his departure.
Justin Worum, CPA has been promoted from accounting supervisor to manager at Joseph Eve CPAs in Great Falls, Montana. Worum joined the firm as an intern in 2000, and has since served as lead auditor on commercial and tribal gaming clients. He will oversee audits, complex accounting service and Title 31/AML Compliance engagements.
George Wickliffe recently was impeached after having been found guilty of violating the constitution of the United Keetoowah Band of Cherokee Indians. Amid cheers from the audience, the Tribal Council voted 8-3 for three articles of impeachment accusing Wickliffe of numerous financial improprieties. He has until May 31 to appeal.
Atlantic City will host major beach concerts by Jimmy Buffett (l.) & the Coral Reefer Band, Zac Brown Band and Florida Georgia Line. The beach concert series has been a major draw for the resort the last two years.
Ainsworth Game Technology has postponed a June 3 shareholder meeting on a takeover by Novomatic AG, as a securities panel decides whether to block the current chairman’s wife from voting.
The World Series of Poker continues to expand its online component—done through WSOP sites in Nevada and New Jersey—and has added more online events and satellites. The tournament has also increased the percentage of players receiving payouts in events to 15 percent.
Aristocrat Technologies launched Walking Dead II, based on the third season of the popular TV series, in a world-premiere event at California’s Pechanga Resort & Casino.
For those who want to start the weekend early, Golden Nugget Casino in Biloxi, Mississippi offers Adult Swim at H20, the property's resort-style pool area, featuring outdoor blackjack, a swim-up bar, cabanas and dance music. Pool parties also will be offered on Saturdays and Sundays at H20 through Labor Day.
Gaming Partners International and Walker Digital Table Systems are expanding their partnership to develop and distribute RFID-enabled equipment for casinos.
Gary Bitner has announced Bitner Goodman has changed its name to the Bitner Group. The Fort Lauderdale, Florida-based public relations firm represents the Seminole Tribe of Florida and its seven casinos. The firm's award-winning services include publicity, issues management and crisis communications, advertising and digital marketing.
