Will Trump return to Las Vegas or even the casino business? Don’t bet on it By John L. Smith, CDC Gaming Reports • January 20, 2021 After four tumultuous years, Donald Trump is no longer President of the United States. Impeached twice and the provoker of a failed insurrection, the man who set out to shake up Washington D.C. certainly accomplished the task. It’s not easy to have 400,000 Americans die of a containable coronavirus pandemic and walk away without a simple acknowledgment of the great loss, but Trump managed to do … [Read more...]
Inoculating a casino workforce against COVID-19 could boost a damaged gaming market By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • January 19, 2021 Steps were taken in the past week to help Nevada’s battered casino industry recover from the economic devastation caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. Gov. Steve Sisolak prioritized eligibility of frontline gaming and tourism workers in the state’s current coronavirus vaccine distribution schedule Wynn Resorts converted Encore’s convention space into a COVID-19 vaccine distribution center, … [Read more...]
Tottenham Report: Italy – Taxation on betting collection is nothing more than a display-of-wealth tax on bettors By Valérie Peano • January 19, 2021 During the first COVID-19 emergency period in Italy early in 2020, the Italian government introduced an additional 0.5% tax on sports and horse betting collection, as well as virtual betting and betting exchange, in order for the state to finance a fund dedicated to sports (notably: sports actors, sports amateur clubs and sports-competition organisers) – the so-called "Save Sport Fund". This … [Read more...]
Tottenham Report: Taking Life for Granted – the Development of Probability Theory, Part III By Andrew Tottenham, Managing Director, Tottenham & Co • January 19, 2021 In my last two articles, I discussed the origins of probability theory and how humans took life for granted, believing that the future was not only unknowable, but somehow pre-ordained. In the sixteenth century, through the popularity of games and especially gambling, it appears that we started to ask if we could ordain the future. Could we look at discreet future events and understand the … [Read more...]
Sheldon Adelson changed the Sands, Las Vegas and Macau By Ken Adams, CDC Gaming Reports • January 18, 2021 Sheldon Adelson, the CEO of Las Vegas Sands, has died. Forbes listed him as the 28th wealthiest person in the world with $33.5 billion. Adelson had three claims to fame. First, besides being the Sands CEO, he owned more of the company’s stock than anyone else. It was his Sands stock that put him on the Forbes list. Second, he was the largest individual donor to the Republican Party and the … [Read more...]
After an active 2020, Bally’s is no longer ‘a small regional gaming company’ By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • January 16, 2021 Since 2019, Rhode Island-based Bally’s Corp. has struck deals to acquire or build 11 casino properties in nine states, tripling the regional gaming company’s previous portfolio. Bally’s – formerly known as Twin River Worldwide Holdings – is also creating an omnichannel interactive betting division through its $125 million acquisition of sports betting platform Bet.Works and its partnership with … [Read more...]
‘Sugartime’ revisited: Remembering a Las Vegas hall-of-famer By John L. Smith, CDC Gaming Reports • January 13, 2021 Singer Phyllis McGuire, who died just before New Year’s in Las Vegas at age 89, never ran a casino – but there was a time she turned the gaming industry upside down. As a member of the ‘50s sweethearts The McGuire Sisters and as a solo act, she stopped regularly performing years ago. But I can attest that she never lost her magic whether onstage or over a long-distance line. The McGuire … [Read more...]
Sheldon Adelson: A self-made billionaire whose place in gaming history is assured By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • January 12, 2021 The last time I interviewed Sheldon Adelson, he was more interested in talking about a meal he’d recently been served in Israel than the multimillion-dollar judgment he was contesting in front of the Nevada Supreme Court a few days later. The “wonderful lunch of chicken and falafel” was obviously more satisfying to the billionaire than the $96 million he and Las Vegas Sands ended up having to … [Read more...]
VIP gamblers in China: A bait and switch? By Ken Adams, CDC Gaming Reports • January 11, 2021 China is changing, being changed. President Xi Jinping is engineering a stronger central government and decreasing the importance of a free capitalist economy. Although a semi-capitalistic economy exists, it is coming more and more under the central control of the Communist Party. The changes will be important to any company wishing to do business in China, but none more so than casinos in Macau. … [Read more...]
Not just one bite: Barstool Fund has raised more than $20.9M for small businesses By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • January 9, 2021 Back in October, Dave Portnoy, founder and “El Presidente” of media platform Barstool Sports, decided to help save the historic Reading Terminal Market in downtown Philadelphia, which had been hit hard by COVID-19 lockdowns. With an assist from casino operator Penn National Gaming, which owns 36% of Barstool, more than $250,000 was raised for location. Penn donated $100 for every new Barstool … [Read more...]
Tottenham Report: Affiliates – The secret weapon in the fight for responsible gambling? By Curtis Roach • January 6, 2021 The recent acquisition of safe-gambling-solutions company Mindway AI by Better Collective is not only a prime example of the progress made in the affiliate market, but also a strong indicator of what the future holds for this increasingly influential section of the gaming industry. An affiliate company should no longer be thought of as a ‘one-man-band’ operating out of someone’s bedroom. … [Read more...]
Tottenham Report: Taking Life for Granted – the Development of Probability Theory, Part II By Andrew Tottenham, Managing Director, Tottenham & Co • January 6, 2021 This post is the second of three looking into the development of probability theory, an important concept for the development of our industry. In the first part, I discussed how until the late 15th century, our forebears thought that the future was in the “lap of the gods” and could not be predicted, despite what might have been obvious clues. Late in the 15th century, people started to … [Read more...]
Gaming expansion a 2021 topic as states repair budget holes caused by COVID-19 By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • January 5, 2021 An integrated resort casino in New York City. Las Vegas-style gambling properties in several of Texas’ major metropolitan markets. Legal sports betting in California. These aren’t predictions for 2021. But they could happen. Expansion of legal gaming is on the docket in several state legislatures, as governors and lawmakers deal with billions of dollars in budget shortfalls brought on by … [Read more...]
The gaming industry should tip its hat to the late Nevada State Sen. Joe Neal By John L. Smith, CDC Gaming Reports • January 5, 2021 As a Nevada state senator for more than three decades, Joe Neal rarely agreed with the powerful gaming industry on anything. He was a thorn in the side, a fly in the ointment, a pain in the, well, you get the idea. Neal, who died on New Year’s Eve at age 85, was an unabashed liberal. He was Nevada’s first Black state senator. He supported greater workers’ rights and stood up for the Culinary … [Read more...]
Focus on Asia: Suncity’s Path From Junket Promoter to Integrated Resort Developer By Andrew Klebanow, Principal, Klebanow Consulting • January 5, 2021 As widespread production of Covid-19 vaccines ramps up in early 2021, and as governments implement protocols to assure that inbound travelers are vaccinated, international tourism should begin to recover in the latter half of 2021. Primary beneficiaries will be travel, leisure, and hospitality companies that rely on international visitation for the bulk of their revenue. Suncity Group is one … [Read more...]
Focus on Asia: A Year in Time By Ben Blaschke, Managing Editor, Inside Asian Gaming • January 5, 2021 A year is a long time in our usually fast-moving industry, but there is no doubt that 2020 felt much longer than most. I was pondering this notion over the Christmas and New Year’s break, and found myself looking back to this same time last year. What was it shaping our hopes and dreams as 2019 came to an end? Needless to say, it wasn’t COVID-19! It’s hard to believe that just 12 months ago … [Read more...]
For Las Vegas, 2020 is in the past, but 2021 doesn’t look any different By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • January 2, 2021 Somewhere out in the dark and empty desert around midnight on New Year’s Eve, Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority officials oversaw the spectacular implosion of a 2020 sign. Maybe they were channeling the scene from the 1995 film, “Casino.” Gangster Nicky Santoro described Las Vegas as having “a lot of holes in the desert, and a lot of problems are buried in those holes.” Via a live … [Read more...]
COVID-19 or coronavirus: Whatever you call it, the pandemic overshadowed gaming in 2020 By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • December 31, 2020 A few weeks after Hurricane Katrina slammed into the Gulf Coast in August 2005, wiping away Mississippi’s flourishing casino market, then-American Gaming Association CEO Frank Fahrenkopf Jr. told those gathering for the Global Gaming Expo that the storm was the worst disaster to ever strike the gaming industry. COVID-19 was Katrina on steroids. The pandemic of 2020 tore through every corner … [Read more...]
‘Mayor of Arizona Charlie’s’ one of the notable gaming leaders we lost in 2020 By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • December 29, 2020 It was easily the worst day in the history of Las Vegas locals casino Arizona Charlie’s Decatur. Luckily for the workforce, some who had been employed at the small hotel-casino west of downtown Las Vegas since its opening in 1988, Ron Lurie was there to offer support. Two of the casino’s security officers were senselessly gunned down when they were investigating an incident in one of the … [Read more...]
The Rodent’s Year: 2020 was the Year of the Rat By Ken Adams, CDC Gaming Reports • December 27, 2020 Per the Chinese calendar, 2020 was the Year of the Rat. It has been a rat’s year indeed, an infected, infectious, pustulant, disgusting rat. It crawled out of a hole somewhere in a live market, climbed onto ships much like the rats of bubonic plague infamy, and sailed around the world, visiting every port and infecting every person it touched. It is not the first time in the history of … [Read more...]
Derek Stevens pays homage to Las Vegas ‘founders’ at Circa’s Legacy Club By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • December 26, 2020 Hanging by the maître d’s podium before guests ride the two high-speed elevators to Circa Casino Resort’s 60th-floor rooftop Legacy Club is a black-and-white photo of a Las Vegas poker game. The three players are the late Stuey Ungar, a three-time World Series of Poker champion, the late casino owner Bob Stupak, and longtime poker consultant Eric Drache. Stupak, his face resting on his right … [Read more...]
Are the markets anticipating legal sports betting’s first ‘bad beat’? By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • December 22, 2020 In the last 31 months, we’ve learned that any sports betting news item has the power to send the markets scurrying. In some ways, sports betting is akin to picking a winning stock, although we have yet to see a “bad beat.” In poker, a bad beat occurs when a seemingly unbeatable high-ranking hand loses to a higher-ranking hand. The term is often broadened to include non-poker gambles in which … [Read more...]
Igaming Focus: Scale and brand identity signal success in the U.S. market By Jake Pollard, CDC Gaming Reports • December 21, 2020 Scale is vital in the U.S. igaming market, but having a strong brand identity that is easily recognizable could be just as valuable and, arguably, is even rarer. Scale is often mentioned as one of the key features that online betting and gaming operators must possess if they are to be successful. In the case of the U.S. market, this is even more appropriate. The sheer size and potential for … [Read more...]
The Trojan Horse: sports betting By Ken Adams, CDC Gaming Reports • December 20, 2020 The overall gaming industry is in a period of dramatic expansion. In May 2018, the United States Supreme Court overturned a federal ban on sports betting. The decision did not legalize sports betting per se; it instead said that the federal law was unconstitutional, leaving it, like all other forms of gaming, a matter for states to decide. It concurrently opened the door to the fastest expansion … [Read more...]
California tribes missing out on millions in revenue without mobile sports betting By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • December 19, 2020 California’s tribal gaming industry is about to commit one of gambling’s ultimate sins. The group is leaving money on the table. The tribes submitted a ballot referendum a week ago that would legalize sports betting at Indian casinos and licensed racetracks. After collecting more than 1.4 million signatures, the tribes hope to place the question in front of voters in November 2022. Mobile … [Read more...]
Tottenham Report: Taking Life for Granted – the Development of Probability Theory By Andrew Tottenham, Managing Director, Tottenham & Co • December 16, 2020 In a change of pace, I thought I would write something about events that allowed our industry to be. This is the first part of a series looking at the development of probability theory, the concept that enables our industry to generate revenue. Today, there are so many things we take for granted and I am not talking about the internet, tablets and smartphones. Rather, I’m talking about numbers … [Read more...]
Tottenham Report: Can the Gambling Commission weather forthcoming reforms? By Hannah Gannagé-Stewart, CDC Gaming Reports • December 16, 2020 If you read UK newspapers, it can feel as though the writing is on the wall for the Gambling Commission of Great Britain (GC). Rarely a day goes past without its efforts being condemned by one party or another. But has the GC really run out of steam just 13 years after it was installed as the industry’s regulator via 2005’s Gambling Act? Only last week, a prominent politician stood up in … [Read more...]
‘Get a shot, spin a slot:’ Nevada’s gaming industry grapples with pandemic mitigation issues By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • December 15, 2020 Less than 24 hours after Nevada’s governor said he wasn’t closing the state’s casino industry for the second time this year despite rising COIVD-19 numbers, the initial shipment of the much-anticipated Pfizer-produced vaccine arrived in Las Vegas. Front-line health-care workers and residents at long-term care facilities are first in line to receive the doses, which began being administered on … [Read more...]
Looking for a model while flying blind By Ken Adams, CDC Gaming Reports • December 13, 2020 Depending on where you mark the beginning, December is either the ninth, tenth, or eleventh month since the COVID-19 coronavirus hit both the world economy and the gaming industry. As the experts predicted, we are now enveloped in a second wave of infections. This wave is worse than the first, and there is no immediate end in sight, although given that a pair of vaccines have recently been … [Read more...]
Casino sale by Boyd could foreshadow other pandemic-inspired transactions By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • December 12, 2020 The sale of the Eldorado Casino in Henderson, Nevada, didn’t rattle the financial register for Boyd Gaming Corp. The Las Vegas-based regional gaming company still operates 28 casinos in 10 states. A small, slot-machine-only property – located in Nevada’s second-largest city 20 minutes south of the Strip – wasn’t a material piece of business for Boyd, which has a market capitalization hovering … [Read more...]
The Aftermath By Bernard Kroviak, CDC Gaming Reports • December 10, 2020 The de facto horse racing world championships, the Breeders Cup, were held on November 6th and 7th. The U.S. Presidential Election was held on November 3rd. Leading up to both of these events, the atmosphere was filled with anxiety, tension, and anticipation. Who would win, and what would happen in the aftermath? Ironically – or perhaps not so ironically - the answer to that last question is still … [Read more...]
Troubled Tony Hsieh should be remembered with respect on Fremont Street By John L. Smith, CDC Gaming Reports • December 9, 2020 Think of the history of downtown Las Vegas, and a few names spring to the forefront of any conversation. Cowboy Benny Binion is there, so is Jackie Gaughan. And there’s Sam Boyd and Steve Wynn. And don’t forget Mel Exber and Kell Houssels. I’ve left out plenty, but you get the type. Some of the influences were more lettered than others, but they all brought the ability to put their money down … [Read more...]
Increasing Nevada’s gaming tax during the pandemic is not a good idea By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • December 8, 2020 As legislatures throughout the U.S. return to business in 2021 – albeit under COVID-19 health and safety guidelines – gaming expansion is being considered in several states. Lawmakers and governors view casinos, sports betting, and igaming as providing a new form of tax revenue in an effort to repair massive budget deficits caused by the pandemic. Nevada, however, could be on the wrong … [Read more...]
Keeping Las Vegas Strip casinos open akin to ‘walking on the edge of knife’ By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • December 5, 2020 Nevada’s governor doesn’t want to close casinos or limit visitation to the Las Vegas Strip, even as the state’s current COVID-19 infections show a “wildfire of community spread (that) continues to grow out of control.” More than a week after implementing a “three-week pause” that tightened capacity restrictions on casinos, restaurants, and private gatherings to 25%, Gov. Steve Sisolak said the … [Read more...]
All change – Gambling-related harm and living in lockdown By Paula Murphy, Founder and Managing Director of KnowNow Limited • December 2, 2020 It’s been an interesting year, to say the least. I am sure we have all seen the posts on social media saying things like, “I’m not adding 2020 to my age, because I haven’t used it”. However, if you work in compliance or responsible gambling, so much has been happening. We’ve all been very busy dealing with the disruption caused by COVID and carrying on business as usual in the tireless pursuit … [Read more...]
Integrated Resorts in Europe: Part Two By Andrew Tottenham, Managing Director, Tottenham & Co • December 2, 2020 In my last article, I discussed the economics of integrated resorts (IRs): what they are, why they work and the economic model. In this article, I examine whether Integrated Resorts will be successful in Europe. First a recap of my last article. Integrated resorts are dependent on the gaming element to get a return on investment; the casino cannot be an amenity for the guest, it must be the … [Read more...]
The casino industry once again has its eyes on gaming expansion into Texas By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • December 2, 2020 To the casino industry, Texas is Captain Ahab’s white whale, Sir Galahad’s Holy Grail, and James Hilton’s Shangri-La. It’s the state about which casino operators have long dreamed. “Texas remains the largest untapped market for gaming in the United States. COVID-19 has seemingly made the state reachable,” said Global Market Advisors Director of Government Affairs Brendan Bussmann. “The Lone … [Read more...]
Focus on Asia: NagaCorp’s Cambodia gambit By Andrew Klebanow, Principal, Klebanow Consulting • December 2, 2020 For nearly a decade, government policymakers in Cambodia have worked on developing a comprehensive law to govern the development, licensing, and operation of casinos in the kingdom. The results of those efforts culminated in the recent passage of the Law on the Management of Integrated Resorts and Commercial Gambling (LMCG). The long sought-after goal of using casino development as a tool … [Read more...]
Focus on Asia: Decision time in Yokohama By Ben Blaschke, Managing Editor, Inside Asian Gaming • December 2, 2020 Two years after Japan passed its long-awaited IR Implementation Bill, the future of the nation’s prospective casino industry is looking clouded as ever. Having finally overcome years of red tape to set the wheels in motion, the financial uncertainty proliferated by COVID-19 has planted seeds of doubt in the minds of once single-minded candidates and given rise to newly empowered opposition groups … [Read more...]
Masked up and open for business near Pittsburgh By Ken Adams, CDC Gaming Reports • November 29, 2020 In the midst of COVID-19 and its attendant restrictions and limitations, a new casino opened in Pennsylvania just before Thanksgiving. Live! Casino Pittsburgh welcomed its first customers on November 24th. To be specific, in Pennsylvania terminology, it is not really a casino; Live! is instead a mini-casino, properly and legally defined as a satellite casino. A category unique to Pennsylvania, but … [Read more...]
It’s all about the vaccine: Analyst says remedy would speed Strip’s long COVID recovery By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • November 28, 2020 Progress on the development of an efficient vaccine to thwart the spread of coronavirus sent the stock markets to record levels this week. The news also changed some thoughts toward the gaming industry, notably the length of recovery time facing the Las Vegas Strip as the market seeks to get back to pre-COVID-19 levels. Fitch Ratings Service gaming analyst Alex Bumazhny said the availability … [Read more...]
Could the Bally’s-Sinclair deal bring sports betting to California, Texas and Florida? By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • November 24, 2020 Casino operator and budding sports betting provider Bally’s Corp. views its new partnership with media giant Sinclair Broadcast Group as a customer-acquisition vehicle. The Bally’s name will replace Fox on Sinclair’s 21 regional sports networks while wagering information and content will be provided on the group’s 190 television stations in 88 markets – 70% of all U.S. households. The agreement … [Read more...]
Lem Banker was a sports bettor for all seasons By John L. Smith, CDC Gaming Reports • November 23, 2020 Long before he became famous for picking winners in the Super Bowl, Lem Banker was a tall, talented young basketball player growing up in New York and New Jersey. He was good enough to receive more than one college scholarship offer. He had a gift for numbers, you might say, but he wasn’t interested in an accounting degree. He was interested in betting on sports at a time when the activity was … [Read more...]
Igaming Focus: Numbers make the case for online betting and gaming By Jake Pollard, CDC Gaming Reports • November 23, 2020 Mobile has helped generate most of the headlines for online sports betting in the U.S. But as momentum for regulation continues to build, online casino is also growing strongly. Numbers don’t lie and 2020 has proved the old saying correct in numerous and different ways — from the huge impact the COVID-19 pandemic has had on the online betting and gaming vertical in the U.S. (and around the … [Read more...]
Igaming Focus: How promising is Illinois’ handle in light of the state’s sportsbook revenues? By Hannah Gannagé-Stewart, CDC Gaming Reports • November 23, 2020 After legalising sports betting in March, Illinois has been reporting impressive figures, despite the setbacks associated with the COVID-19 pandemic that coincided with the market’s launch. The latest figures released by the Illinois Gaming Board for September report a sports betting handle of $305.1m. Rush Street Interactive’s Kambi-powered sportsbook at Illinois’ Rivers Casino Des Plaines … [Read more...]
Goodbye, girls, and don’t you cry. We’ll be home soon. By Ken Adams, CDC Gaming Reports • November 23, 2020 This year is a moment of punctuated equilibrium, an era-defining event, like the world wars and Great Depression of the last century. Starting in March, the gaming industry, like most other industries in the country, was on lockdown. The economy literally came to a sudden, shocking halt. Business managers, politicians, Wall Street analysts, and ordinary citizens tried to predict when the economy … [Read more...]
Barstool and Penn National the most scrutinized of all media-sports betting partnerships By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • November 21, 2020 Viewers on Barstool Sports’ various platforms were treated to images of company founder Dave Portnoy and his crew watching in stunned amazement last Sunday as the Arizona Cardinals defeated the Buffalo Bills on a last-second touchdown pass. The game-changing play and outcome cost Barstool’s “El Presidente” $50,000. But the reaction resulted in millions of subsequent views on Barstool’s … [Read more...]
Remembering when Hazel Park Raceway had LV bookmakers ‘steamed’ By John L. Smith, CDC Gaming Reports • November 18, 2020 America was busy celebrating its bicentennial in the summer of 1976, but the racebook bosses of Las Vegas weren’t in a mood for fireworks. For some strange reason, they were getting killed with oddly confident bets on races at a track located in a Detroit suburb called Hazel Park Raceway. It was no secret Hazel Park was operated under the influence of Detroit mob boss Anthony Zerilli, whose … [Read more...]
Rollbacks, closures, curfews: Gaming industry faces down the newest COVID surge By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • November 18, 2020 During the recently concluded third-quarter earnings season, gaming operators speculated on a renewed shutdown of casinos across the U.S. Health experts predicted an increase in COVID-19 infections throughout the country. “You can’t ignore that risk. Certainly, any huge resurgence could be a risk to the business,” Boyd Gaming CEO Keith Smith said when asked about the possibility on Oct. … [Read more...]
Integrated Resorts in Europe: Part One By Andrew Tottenham, Managing Director, Tottenham & Co • November 18, 2020 I recently participated in an online discussion about integrated resorts (IR) in Europe. The theme of the discussion was whether IRs would be successful in Europe, given that there aren’t any. Because this is a topic that requires a more detailed review, this article will be in two parts. This first part discusses what an integrated resort is and its economics. An integrated resort is a resort … [Read more...]
The need to know of customer onboarding By Scott Longley • November 18, 2020 The current consultation on high-value customers throws into stark relief the regulatory pressure is being applied to the gambling operators to provide compliant customer onboarding processes. More than just with VIPs, the need to know about your customer is evolving into a requirement to understand your customer and that is destined to change the nature of customer relationship management within … [Read more...]
Being seen at Bally’s Atlantic City By Ken Adams, CDC Gaming Reports • November 15, 2020 Bally’s in Atlantic City is changing hands. Again. Twin River Worldwide Holdings purchased it last month from the newly minted Caesars, which was forced to offload some of its assets in Atlantic City to received regulatory approval for its merger with Eldorado Resorts. Bally’s should have always been a success; after all, it sits on the second most prestigious address in Monopoly. If you could … [Read more...]
Las Vegas casinos already limiting operations ahead of any shutdown talks By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • November 14, 2020 Nevada’s governor implored the state’s residents on Wednesday to stay home “as much as we possibly can” over the next two weeks in order to control the latest spread of COVID-19, which spiked to record-high levels with more than 1,000 daily cases in nine out of the last 10 days. But what about visitors to the state’s sputtering casino industry? “They certainly should come, because those … [Read more...]
Casino Lit: In times like these, we can all use a vacation at the Sands By John L. Smith, CDC Gaming Reports • November 11, 2020 In a world roiling with a runaway coronavirus pandemic and seemingly endless political controversy, no one can blame you for wanting to take a vacation. I recently decided to spend a few relaxing days at the Sands. Thanks to David G. Schwartz’s remarkable new book, At the Sands: The Casino That Shaped Classic Las Vegas, Brought the Rat Pack Together, and Went Out With a Bang, I didn’t have to … [Read more...]
Caesars-William Hill merger provides a windfall payment for another casino company By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • November 10, 2020 Caesars Entertainment is spending $3.7 billion to acquire sports betting giant William Hill, but another casino operator stands to make up to $75 million on the deal. Las Vegas-based Golden Entertainment is entitled to compensation from William Hill, according to a securities filing in the United Kingdom associated with the merger. The potential payment was confirmed by Golden during the … [Read more...]
Gaming’s ballot box success could help its cause on Capitol Hill By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • November 7, 2020 Gaming’s exceptional night on Tuesday – voters in six states overwhelmingly approved sports betting, new casinos, and expanded gambling options – sent a pretty clear message to the federal government. The states are doing a good job regulating and overseeing gaming within their borders. In other words, back away from any prospective federal oversight. “Through ballot initiatives, voters … [Read more...]
On the precipice of change in America, transition continues in gaming industry By John L. Smith, CDC Gaming Reports • November 4, 2020 The first question spread like a grassland fire through the gaming industry. Was Las Vegas Sands in serious talks to sell its Strip properties? The second question packed even more heat: Was casino industry titan and GOP mega-donor Sheldon Adelson really going to retire? Hard to fathom. Almost impossible, in fact. It doesn’t take much of a factual spark to create a firestorm of … [Read more...]
Italy: The COVID-19 sports tax on betting By Valérie Peano, partner at European Gambling Lawyers & Advisors • November 4, 2020 Last May, a Law Decree was introduced by the Italian government for COVID-19 emergency measures to sustain economic and financial activities. The “Relaunch” by Parliament in July confirmed its entry into force in May. Against all odds, this Law Decree introduced an additional tax to help sustain sports after the two-month closure for the health-emergency lockdown and the subsequent lack of … [Read more...]
Solutions need to solve problems By Andrew Tottenham, Managing Director, Tottenham & Co • November 4, 2020 Three years ago, I wrote an article, “Gambling on the Blockchain,” about blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies. Three years later, most of what I wrote has stood the tests of time. Today, there is still a lot of hype around blockchain and cryptocurrency technology. PayPal recently announced that it will accept cryptocurrencies. But I stand by what I wrote, that blockchain technology has a … [Read more...]
Rollbacks and other disruptions aside, casino industry avoiding mass gaming shutdowns By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • November 3, 2020 Penn National Gaming CEO Jay Snowden was asked last week if he was concerned that the current nationwide spike in COVID-19 cases might subject regional casinos to a rollback in operations or another gaming shutdown. “I would just tell you that it’s very fluid,” Snowden said Thursday on Penn’s third quarter earnings conference call. Penn operates 41 gaming properties in 19 states and only one … [Read more...]
Focus on Asia: Which countries will make it onto China’s travel blacklist? By Andrew Klebanow, Principal, Klebanow Consulting • November 3, 2020 In August of 2020, the Ministry of Tourism of the People’s Republic of China’s (PRC) announced that it had established a blacklist of gaming-centric tourist destinations that targeted its citizens. The announcement was the culmination of a series of statements issued by Chinese authorities over the last eighteen months that expressed rising concern over the proliferation of online gaming … [Read more...]
Focus on Asia: Testing the limits of motherly love By Ben Blaschke, Managing Editor, Inside Asian Gaming • November 3, 2020 A series of recent pronouncements by the Chinese government appear to suggest that China’s willingness to accept Macau as a “special case” in the global gambling landscape has reached its limit. The prevailing wisdom within the industry, and specifically for those operating in the tiny Chinese enclave, is that while China strongly opposes gambling (among other forms), it would rather its … [Read more...]
The post-pandemic response from gaming legislation By Scott Longley, CDC Gaming Reports • November 2, 2020 The shutdown of land-based gaming in the U.S. has pushed the argument about online — particularly mobile betting — even more to the forefront. But the reluctance to roll the dice on online might change, given the industry is now staring down the barrel of not having a Plan B. In his contribution to the debate surrounding the sports-betting referendum in Maryland, Gov. Larry Hogan endorsed the … [Read more...]
Adelson’s October Surprise By Ken Adams, CDC Gaming Reports • November 2, 2020 Sheldon Adelson has always been an outlier in gaming. His background and experience were from other industries, and his decisions and actions during his time in gaming have reflected that background. Consequently, most of the things that he has done have been surprising to traditional gaming people. His latest surprise came on October 26th. After the markets closed that day, a story broke that … [Read more...]
Leaving Las Vegas: Is Sands ready to become a true Asian company? By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • October 31, 2020 Sands China is the Macau-based, Hong Kong Stock Exchange-listed subsidiary of the Las Vegas-based, New York Stock Exchange-listed Las Vegas Sands Corp. The roles might soon be reversed or dramatically altered. Confirmation by Las Vegas Sands that its leadership is having preliminary discussions with an advisor that could lead to a sale of the company’s Las Vegas Strip gaming and convention … [Read more...]
Igaming Focus: Genius Sports latest to go public in what could become a $30bn market by 2030 By Jake Pollard, CDC Gaming Reports • October 29, 2020 The juggernaut of public listings for online betting groups in the United States gathered yet more pace this month as Genius Sports became the latest igaming specialist to announce that it was going public via a merger with the special acquisition company (SPAC) dMY II Technology Group. dMY is the fund set up by Harry You and Nicolo de Masi that merged with Rush Street Interactive through its … [Read more...]
Igaming Focus: Hidden dangers in igaming in proposed revisions of Section 230? By Martin Owens, Attorney At Law, Special to CDC Gaming Reports • October 29, 2020 "When the elephants fight, it's the grass that gets hurt.” African Proverb No doubt about it, the pixels are really hitting the fan now. Social-media titans Twitter and Facebook are being called to account for allegedly arbitrary and partisan abuse of their size and market structure, so much so as to amount to a de facto regime of propaganda and favoritism, even affirmative censorship … [Read more...]
Mask up: Sisolak gives hope for the struggling Las Vegas convention industry By John L. Smith, CDC Gaming Reports • October 28, 2020 For some, and let’s hope their numbers are dwindling, Nevada Gov. Steve Sisolak has moved too slowly to reopen the state’s economy amid a deadly coronavirus pandemic. Let the chips fall where they may, his critics say as they defy mask mandates and grumble about lost freedom. Fortunately, most Nevadans get it. They know Sisolak has a difficult job balancing the safety of residents and visitors … [Read more...]
The odds favor success for Circa and Derek Stevens By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • October 28, 2020 Derek Stevens will never be confused with his corporate gaming competitors. If he could be, there would have been zero chance for his Circa Resort & Casino – downtown Las Vegas’s first all-new gaming property in four decades – to open for customers shortly after midnight this morning. In the face of a global pandemic, with a nationwide casino industry operating under numerous state and … [Read more...]
A new Caesars, made from the old Harrah’s, Caesars, and Eldorado By Ken Adams, CDC Gaming Reports • October 25, 2020 In yet one more shuffle in the gaming world, the former Harrah’s now has a new owner, Eldorado Resorts. In the process, Eldorado acquired a new brand name - Caesars - a list of customers as large as the population of England, and a bundle of casinos. Eldorado is now the proud possessor of 55 casinos, but arguably the most important assets that Eldorado acquired in the mammoth merger were loyal … [Read more...]
Analysts: Full House has the upper hand for Illinois casino project By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • October 24, 2020 A casino project in Waukegan, Illinois – roughly 40 miles north of downtown Chicago and 15 miles south of the Wisconsin state line – could increase the value of Las Vegas-based Full House Resorts by more than four times its current market capitalization. That’s the opinion of gaming analysts at Minneapolis-based investment firm Craig-Hallum Capital Group. Full House’s $375 million American … [Read more...]
The U.S. sports betting industry needs to get smart! By Andrew Tottenham, Managing Director, Tottenham & Co • October 21, 2020 I was listening to an online discussion about the growth of online gambling in the U.S. and various industry figures were talking about what products were popular, which states were likely to legalise online gambling next, which companies might come out ahead and what products would be allowed. All appeared rosy in the garden, except perhaps in potentially the largest market, California, where too … [Read more...]
Old Hilltop and Old Randall Park By Bernard Kroviak, CDC Gaming Reports • October 20, 2020 Growing old has some disadvantages - and a few advantages as well, like gaining new perspectives on things. I don't have much of a clue about how the human brain functions, but it seems patently obvious to me that a younger one would have less in it than, say, a 70-year-old one. Of course, retrieving that stuff gets to be a problem for us older people every once in a while, but nonetheless, I’m … [Read more...]
Keeping an eye on the ball, and tracking the rebounds By Ken Adams, CDC Gaming Reports • October 18, 2020 Legal Sports Report recently reported on a study first published in the Journal of Prediction Markets that looked at NBA scorekeepers and the possibility the some of the data being recorded was subjective. The study suggested that there was pressure to produce some specific types of data. The study focused on rebounds, but other measurables intrinsic to sports might also be subject to the same … [Read more...]
Potential Bally’s branding and name change comprise an operational boost for Twin River By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • October 17, 2020 Twin River Worldwide Holdings is paying Caesars Entertainment $25 million to acquire Bally’s Atlantic City in a deal that was announced in April. We learned this week that Twin River is also purchasing the Bally’s intellectual property from Caesars for $20 million. So which is the better deal? Truist Securities gaming analyst Barry Jonas said taking control of the Bally name and brand, which … [Read more...]
Consensus: Gaming shows cooperative tone over Maryland sports betting referendum By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • October 13, 2020 Maryland’s sports betting ballot referendum has a more united effort and cooperative tone in the gaming industry than the state’s previous gaming expansion referendums. It only took eight years for détente to settle in. Sports betting operators and casino leaders are on the same page when it comes to Maryland’s Question 2. If approved by voters on Nov. 3, sports betting will head to the … [Read more...]
King James Packer will abdicate, and the Crown will survive By Ken Adams, CDC Gaming Reports • October 11, 2020 Media mogul Kerry Packer, the father of Australian casino king James Packer, was a gambler, and, when he died in late 2005, Australia’s richest man. Packer was famous for his gambling junkets. He was a high roller, a whale, willing to win or lose 30, 40, even 50 million dollars at a time. It is said he once offered to flip a coin - winner take all - for $100 million with a Texan who had bragged … [Read more...]
Fahrenkopf, having navigated gaming dustups, is capable of weathering political discourse By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • October 10, 2020 During a nearly two-decade tenure as CEO of the America Gaming Association, Frank Fahrenkopf Jr., navigated the complicated relationships within an industry where the Washington D.C.-based organization’s membership often had competing interests and weren’t always on speaking terms. For example, the AGA board included CEOs of International Game Technology and Bally Technologies, the two largest … [Read more...]
Pandemic-influenced woes continue to tarnish Macau’s gaming market By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • October 6, 2020 Golden Week isn’t so golden, and the reverberations of the depressed Macau gaming market are being felt in Las Vegas by three casino operators. Many analysts expected Golden Week – the second most lucrative holiday on the Chinese calendar – to be the turning point in boosting the gaming enclave that has experienced six straight months of 90% gaming revenue declines. Roth Capital Partners … [Read more...]
Focus on Asia: Junket jitters By Ben Blaschke, Managing Editor, Inside Asian Gaming • October 6, 2020 It’s hard to imagine any more challenging time for Asia’s VIP junket industry than 2020. That seems quite remarkable given the devastating impact China’s anti-graft campaign had on the sector in 2014 – stripping away two-thirds of its gross gaming revenue and forcing a period of consolidation that has seen the number of licensed junket operators in Macau fall by some 60% in the six years … [Read more...]
Focus on Asia: Will the pandemic change how Asian countries regulate smoking in casinos? By Andrew Klebanow, Principal, Klebanow Consulting • October 6, 2020 When COVID-19 first emerged as a global threat in February, Asian nations quickly responded by shutting down cross-border traffic and most commerce. Casinos across the region, along with other industries, were ordered to close. They have now begun to re-open, with a host of health and safety protocols in place to protect customers and employees. Cigarette smoking in casinos, long an accepted … [Read more...]
Despite loosened restrictions and new protocols, Las Vegas’ 2020 events calendar is dead By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • October 3, 2020 The reaction within Nevada’s gaming community last week to the lifting of the state’s 50-person cap on public and private gatherings ranged from mild skepticism to muted optimism. A few hours before Gov. Steve Sisolak announced the changes that expanded the ceiling to 250 people, MGM Resorts International unveiled a comprehensive conference attendee COVID-19 health and safety plan, which … [Read more...]
Confidence in downtown: Tip your hat to indefatigable Circa’s Derek Stevens By John L. Smith, CDC Gaming Reports • September 30, 2020 The history of the casino industry is full of confident characters, people who would have given P.T. Barnum a run for his money in the self-esteem department. In Las Vegas, a generation of men and women sold gambling to the masses as a time the activity was illegal in most of the nation. That alone takes a level of chutzpah not found in most people. For many years they led a parade by … [Read more...]
For Caesars Executive Chairman Gary Carano, gaming is a family business By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • September 29, 2020 The name Eldorado Resorts has been relegated to gaming’s history books. However, the operating culture established by the founding Carano family remains active within Caesars Entertainment, the successor corporation that operates 55 gaming properties in 16 states. Gary Carano, Caesars’ executive chairman who directed Eldorado through five casino company acquisitions in the last six years, … [Read more...]
Determining the value of a gambling business in an uncertain world By Andrew Tottenham, Managing Director, Tottenham & Co • September 29, 2020 UK betting operator William Hill was always a bridesmaid and never a bride — until last week. William Hill is finally in play, with offers from the gambling behemoth, Caesars Entertainment, and private equity firm, Apollo, although Caesars appears to be the frontrunner. The offers are around £2.9 billion (US$3.7 billion), 272p per share, about a 50% markup on the pre-COVID price per share, but … [Read more...]
The game that shows how the game is changing By Ken Adams, CDC Gaming Reports • September 27, 2020 Monday Night Football has been an institution now for fifty years. For football fans, it is almost sacred: few things are more important on Monday night than watching The Game, no matter the matchup. Bars across the country - in pre-pandemic times, at least – schedule all sorts of promotions and specials around MNF: drink specials, meal deals, trivia contests, you name it. For players and teams … [Read more...]
Penn National stock sale ‘a necessary strategic decision’ and reflects company’s value By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • September 26, 2020 Remember when Penn National Gaming stock was trading at $3.75 per share? That’s ancient history, even though it was just six months ago. On Thursday, the regional casino operator sold 14 million shares of the company’s stock for $61 per share on the Nasdaq, raising $854 million – which could jump to $982.1 million if underwriters exercise their 30-day option to acquire another 2.1 million … [Read more...]
Igaming Focus: Wave of U.S. igaming regulation by no means guaranteed By Jake Pollard, CDC Gaming Reports • September 25, 2020 The coronavirus health crisis has shown that a strong consumer appetite for igaming across the U.S. With social-distancing measures likely to be with us for some time and land-based casinos and racetracks coping with either significantly reduced footfall or full closures, the case for regulated interactive gambling seems clear-cut. The past six months have demonstrated that consumers are … [Read more...]
Igaming Focus: Classic slots triumph in burgeoning US igaming markets By Hannah Gannagé-Stewart, CDC Gaming Reports • September 25, 2020 The success of a raft of new online slots, which replicate popular elements of land-based games, indicates that operators don’t have to reinvent the casino to make it work online. Games supplier Everi has seen consistent success with its slots in New Jersey and Pennsylvania, with several ranking in the top ten or even top five of operators’ most popular slots. Everi’s EVP of sales, marketing … [Read more...]
Crown the triple, triple the Crown By Bernard Kroviak, CDC Gaming Reports • September 24, 2020 As I watched the Kentucky Derby on television this past Saturday, September 5th, I was struck by how weird it was that it was being run in September, instead of the traditional first Saturday in May. So much about what was going on was unusual that it was hard for me to grasp that this race was any different from the other big races contested earlier this year. And yet the stark contrast … [Read more...]
In Nevada, the political heavyweights are slugging it out in 2020 election By John L. Smith, CDC Gaming Reports • September 23, 2020 Campaign 2020 has me feeling a little out of breath. It’s not just the coronavirus pandemic blues, or the nation crossing the awful threshold of 200,000 COVID-19-related deaths. It’s the daily slugfest taking place in the presidential race, and the role casino giants and related industry-dependent entities are playing that have me sprinting to keep up. It’s no secret that Nevada is a … [Read more...]
Barstool’s entry increases the sports betting competition By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • September 22, 2020 Pennsylvania has become a microcosm in the growing nationwide competition for the sports gambling consumer. Penn National Gaming launched its highly anticipated sports betting app in partnership with sports media giant Barstool Sports in the state on Friday. By Sunday, according to SensorTower – a mobile-app intelligence service – the Barstool app had roughly 63,000 downloads. Morgan Stanley … [Read more...]
Déjà vu for fun and profit: betting on recycled horse races By Martin Owens, Attorney At Law, Special to CDC Gaming Reports • September 22, 2020 “The racetrack is the only place where the windows clean the people.” Joe E. Lucas Stop me if you’ve heard this one before. Clancy and Shaughnessy went to the movies one weekend. It was an action thriller, and at a crucial point it looks like the hero is about to be ambushed by the villains. So Shaughnessy says, “bet you $10 that the bad guys lose the fight.” Clancy takes him up on it, and … [Read more...]
Doing the impossible: Trying to predict the future of the stock market By Ken Adams, CDC Gaming Reports • September 20, 2020 Trying to understand the ups and downs of the stock market, or any individual stock, is never easy. The explanations that analysts offer to attempt to explain the fluctuations in the market are always after the fact, and although some market soothsayers do attempt to predict the future, no one can successfully and consistently predict what the market will do tomorrow or next year. There are long … [Read more...]
New UNR president brings his gaming experience from the political realm to the academic setting By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • September 19, 2020 As Nevada governor, Brian Sandoval entered the office with more hands-on Nevada gaming experience than any previous chief executive, having served as both chairman of the Nevada Gaming Commission and the state’s Attorney General. That was a decade ago. So it’s safe to say that Sandoval, who left a 15-month-old job as President of Global Gaming Development for MGM Resorts International to … [Read more...]
Gaming issues down on the list but remain relevant for president and vice president candidates By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • September 16, 2020 In the grand scheme of the Nov. 3 presidential election, gaming is far down on the list of issues voters will consider when choosing between President Donald Trump and former Vice President Joe Biden. Coronavirus. The environment. The economy. Social justice. A myriad of headline-grabbing concerns pushes gaming far down the register. In a handful of states, gaming issues will help increase … [Read more...]
It’s long past time for more fresh air inside casinos By John L. Smith, CDC Gaming Reports • September 15, 2020 The Mirage made history when it opened in 1989 and set a new standard for style and design on the Las Vegas Strip. Journalists offered breathless rave reviews. Visitors packed the place to overflowing. Stars and business tycoons surrounded casino impresario Steve Wynn even as financial analysts and a few spoilsport columnists (me included) wondered aloud whether it could pay what looked like … [Read more...]
As the pandemic resurges, will gambling businesses survive local lockdowns? By Andrew Tottenham, Managing Director, Tottenham & Co • September 15, 2020 The Pandemic Resurges Sadly, countries that were doing well in controlling the spread of the virus, such as Czechia, Austria and Slovenia, are now seeing a record number of new cases. Whilst these appear to represent a younger cohort than that seen in March and April, there is concern this is temporary and that younger people may spread the virus to older age groups, where mortality rates are … [Read more...]
Betting on the Bulls in number 23’s house By Ken Adams, CDC Gaming Reports • September 13, 2020 Basketball legend Michael Jordan has been in the news recently, you might have heard. It started in April, with the premiere of the first episode of a documentary on his basketball career, The Last Dance. Jordan played basketball for the Chicago Bulls in the 1980s and 90s and, as any sports fan knows, wore jersey number 23, except for a brief period just after his return in 1995 when he wore 45. … [Read more...]
Lack of enthusiasm from NFL fans? Not according to the sports betting industry By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • September 12, 2020 Don’t tell Bob Scucci there is a lack of enthusiasm among National Football League fans. Scucci, vice president of race and sports operations for Las Vegas-based Boyd Gaming, isn’t expecting a drop-off in wagering at the company’s regional sportsbooks near or in NFL cities. For example, Diamond Jo Worth Casino in Northwood, Iowa – roughly 75 miles south of Minneapolis – is a second home for … [Read more...]
Remembering an attempt to organize a Las Vegas dealers union By John L. Smith, CDC Gaming Reports • September 9, 2020 Mike O’Callaghan had been the Governor of Nevada just a few months in May 1971 when he faced a crisis in his administration. Namely, what to do with New York attorney Wilfred “Bill” Davis. At a time when the presence of the enigmatic Howard Hughes was supposed to have brought the gaming industry out of the long shadow of the mob, a pipedream as it turned out, casino dealers in Las Vegas found … [Read more...]
Labor Day weekend was not a good look for Las Vegas in the COVID-19 era By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • September 8, 2020 Ahead of the Labor Day weekend holiday, Nevada Gaming Control Board Chairwoman Sandra Douglass Morgan had a simple directive for casino operators. It was “imperative,” she said, to “adhere to each aspect” of the agency’s health, safety, cleaning, and social distancing protocols “to mitigate the spread of COVID-19.” I’m not sure everyone heard the message. It’s one thing to require customers … [Read more...]
Michael Jordan, Wrigley Field: It’s all about DraftKings winning Illinois’ competitive market By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • September 5, 2020 After two moves this week, sports betting operator DraftKings has firmly planted its company’s flag in Illinois. In a span of 24 hours, DraftKings brought Chicago Bulls legend Michael Jordan – and his six NBA championship rings – on as a special advisor to the Boston-based company’s board, and then announced an agreement with the Chicago Cubs to develop a sportsbook at Wrigley Field, one of … [Read more...]
A Question of Balance By Andrew Tottenham, Managing Director, Tottenham & Co • September 3, 2020 After I posted a link to my last article on LinkedIn, one of my contacts asked for my thoughts on whether a more relaxed approach to gambling was a good thing. Do the benefits of a liberal regime outweigh the negative consequences? Should governments “encourage” people to gamble or perhaps more accurately, not disincentivise them from doing so? Should they promote investment in gambling … [Read more...]
MGM layoffs a reminder of the scale of the industry – and the pandemic By John L. Smith, CDC Gaming Reports • September 2, 2020 The numbers are overwhelming. MGM Resorts International’s announcement this week that it was laying off 18,000 workers companywide due to the ongoing economic ravages of the coronavirus pandemic sent a chill through the gaming industry. It’s not so much that the layoffs were unexpected. The reeling company furloughed approximately 62,000 employees in March in reaction to a shuttered economy. … [Read more...]
Analyst: It might be 2023 before the Las Vegas Strip is back to pre-COVID-19 figures By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • September 1, 2020 After covering the Las Vegas Strip’s gaming and tourism results for July, I’m reminded of the line uttered by Jack Nicholson’s cranky, bigoted, obsessive-compulsive writer Melvin Udall in the 1997 Oscar-winning film of the same name. “What if this is ‘As Good as it Gets?’” seems to neatly sum up 2020, the year of COVID-19. At least one gaming analyst believes that statement might be the … [Read more...]
Focus on Asia: Japan, we have a problem By Ben Blaschke, Managing Editor, Inside Asian Gaming • September 1, 2020 Two years ago, when Japan’s upper house passed the long-awaited IR Implementation Bill into law, the global gaming industry celebrated a milestone almost 20 years in the making. At that time, it seemed that development of the country’s casino and integrated resort industry was finally certain after so many false starts along the way. Fast forward two years and no longer can we look forward … [Read more...]
Focus on Asia: The emergence of regional market travel bubbles By Andrew Klebanow, Principal, Klebanow Consulting • September 1, 2020 When governments across the globe closed down their borders earlier this year in order to halt the spread of the Covid-19 virus, international tourism came to an abrupt halt. Casinos throughout Asia were forced to close and some only recently began to re-open with new health and safety protocols in place. Those that did re-open are now awaiting the resumption of international travel, … [Read more...]
One step forward, two steps back: Japan’s casino waltz By Ken Adams, CDC Gaming Reports • August 30, 2020 Japan has been the land of possible opportunity for expansion in the casino industry for roughly six years now. The prospect of developing a casino - the nation's first - in the Land of Rising Sun has attracted and excited virtually all of the leading international gaming companies. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has been a driving force in setting the stage for potential casino resorts in Japan; if … [Read more...]
A crashed riverboat casino epitomizes the gaming industry’s year in 2020 By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • August 29, 2020 Hurricane Laura roared across western Louisiana with the strength to knock the Isle of Capri Lake Charles casino off its moorings. The storm sent the three-level riverboat across the lake, crashing into pillars supporting the Interstate 10 overpass. The highway connects the gaming community with Houston, its largest customer base 134 miles to the west. As the boat sat, a chlorine gas fire raged … [Read more...]
Igaming Focus: Wave of U.S. igaming listings set to continue By Jake Pollard, CDC Gaming Reports • August 27, 2020 The trend of igaming companies listing in the U.S. via special-purpose acquisition companies (SPACs) shows that investor appetite is strong as the nascent sports betting industry gets going stateside. DraftKings has transitioned from daily fantasy sports to fixed-odds bookmaking with great success, merging with sports betting solutions provider SBTech and going live on the stock market with a … [Read more...]
Igaming Focus: New trails for Indian gaming? Online considerations for the post-pandemic world. By Martin Owens, Attorney At Law, Special to CDC Gaming Reports • August 27, 2020 “Sovereignty is not given. It is taken.” - Mustafa Kemal Ataturk. Nobody thought it would get this big. In 1988, the Reagan administration backed congressional efforts to allow Indian tribes, nations, and bands to license gambling operations on their Federally designated lands. The aim was not to liberate gambling so much as it was to bolster the status of tribal governments, giving them access … [Read more...]
Sports betting media competition growing, but VSiN enjoys the company By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • August 25, 2020 It’s getting a little crowded in the sports betting media neighborhood. But VSiN CEO Brian Musburger isn’t complaining. The Las Vegas-based sports wagering network, launched in 2017 from a casino floor studio adjacent to the South Point’s sportsbook, is preparing to unveil 16 hours of daily live content next month. On Monday, Musburger announced a new line-up of programming and additions to … [Read more...]
The Vegas thing: Hitman Cullotta was right about old mob in the gaming business By John L. Smith, CDC Gaming Reports • August 24, 2020 Retired Chicago Outfit gangster Frank Cullotta wasn’t a “deeze and dozer,” but I’m not sure anyone would have called him a clever conversationalist. He still managed to utter one of the most prescient lines in the history of the Las Vegas casino industry. “It should have been so sweet,” Cullotta said at the conclusion of Nicholas Pileggi’s Casino: Love and Honor in Las Vegas. “Everything was … [Read more...]
The Great Guessing Game By Ken Adams, CDC Gaming Reports • August 23, 2020 Trying to guess the future is an old game, albeit updated in 2020 with some pandemic twists. It is a great game to play, but very hard to handicap. These days, everyone is playing it in some fashion, trying to figure out what they need to protect them from the next disaster. Some are saving money; some continue to hoard toilet paper. Businesses are cutting expenses to be leaner and more efficient … [Read more...]
Casino operators large and small battle insurance firms over COVID-19 interruption claims By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • August 22, 2020 The San Diego Indian Tribe that operates the small Jamul Casino might want to give billionaire Phil Ruffin a call. The owner of Circus Circus and Treasure Island on the Las Vegas Strip could be a source of information. The Jamul Indian Village is suing a wholly-owned subsidiary of American International Group (AIG) over the denial of coverage for the east San Diego County casino’s losses from … [Read more...]
21 casinos. 9 states. 107 days. This player’s journey of staying COVID-19 free. By Brian Christopher, BC Slots • August 20, 2020 I’d like to take a gamble that I have visited more casinos in the U.S. since they re-opened post COVID-19 than anyone else. Since attending the first major casino re-opening by Coeur D’Alene Casino in Idaho the first week of May, I have visited a total of 21 casinos across nine states. I have done so with the utmost care and precaution, while ensuring to follow all state guidelines. Having been … [Read more...]
Having friends: It will be a long haul By Andrew Tottenham, Managing Director, Tottenham & Co • August 19, 2020 Britain’s casinos have finally been allowed to reopen. The government gave the green light to nearly all the casinos, except those in areas still in lockdown where the incidence of new cases of COVID-19 is considered high. What has changed since the government drastically rescinded its permission at the eleventh hour at the end of July? Not much, really. If anything, the number of new cases of … [Read more...]
Questions surround DraftKings deal with Caesars as William Hill looms large By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • August 18, 2020 The rapidly expanding legal sports wagering landscape has led to some unusual partnerships. For example, how many “official sports betting partners” do the Denver Broncos require? On June 15, the NFL team announced FanDuel as the team’s official sports betting partner. A little more than three weeks later, the Broncos struck a similar deal with BetMGM. The same question could also be … [Read more...]
After spat, Adelson makes it known he’ll shower Trump campaign with gold By John L. Smith, CDC Gaming Reports • August 17, 2020 The tabloid-tinged squabble between President Donald Trump and his biggest donor, Las Vegas Sands Chairman and CEO Sheldon Adelson, didn’t last long. That’s a good thing for a president mired in multiple scandals and flagging in the polls. From the horrendous response to the coronavirus pandemic to the stripping of the United States Postal Service in a campaign year that finds COVID-19-wracked … [Read more...]
That ticking sound is worrying more people than just Captain Hook By Ken Adams, CDC Gaming Reports • August 16, 2020 A modern version of Captain Hook in the crocodile’s belly is currently playing out in Macau. For a variety of reasons, Macau is now back in the news. Business is not better there just yet, but hope lurks, with a bit of luck, somewhere just over the horizon. China has announced a return of the normal visa process for its citizens to visit Macau. Residents of some cities in Guangdong Province … [Read more...]
Enigma of Steve Wynn continues to lurk in Nevada gaming regulatory matters By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • August 15, 2020 The simple transfer of ownership interest in a small Nevada company is often a perfunctory and routine matter for state gaming regulators. Last week, the Gaming Control Board took all of 10 minutes to approve the transfer of longtime casino executive Marc Schorr’s small stake in a tavern operation to his son. But it wasn’t that simple. The matter had been more than a year in the … [Read more...]
Trump call with mega-donor Adelson blows up, now heats up By John L. Smith, CDC Gaming Reports • August 12, 2020 When it comes to politics, Republican mega-donor Sheldon Adelson usually makes news by writing big checks. His millions fueled the rise of Donald Trump and have aided GOP causes for years. Now, the chairman and CEO of Las Vegas Sands is making even bigger news for checks he didn’t write. Politico’s Alex Isenstadt first reported last week that a recent call between Adelson and President Trump … [Read more...]
Relief for Nevada’s restricted gaming operators wasn’t a perfect solution By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • August 11, 2020 Someone visiting a Nevada tavern lately might assume the place had been burglarized. In many locations, bar tops now have gaping holes where slot machines once sat. Last month, Gov. Steve Sisolak announced a directive that shut down standalone bars and bar top areas inside taverns and restaurants as part of the COVID-19 mitigation effort. Positive coronavirus tests had surged, and the … [Read more...]
Is it cheaper to keep some Las Vegas resorts closed during the pandemic? By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • August 8, 2020 Those resorts that haven’t reopened in Las Vegas in the weeks since Nevada lifted the 79-day gaming industry shutdown imposed in response to the coronavirus pandemic attracted some unusual attention from the investment community this week. Maybe it’s the oddity of the situation. Beginning June 4, reopened casino-hotels were subject to protocols covering health, safety, cleaning, and social … [Read more...]
It’s the right thing to do, but casino closures batter the heart of Indian Country By John L. Smith, CDC Gaming Reports • August 5, 2020 GALLUP, N.M. – On a normal weekend, the parking lots of the Firerock Navajo Casino just off Interstate 40 is crammed to capacity with the cars, pickups, and long-haul big rigs of customers seeking a good time. But, of course, these days there are no normal weekends. And so the casino, officially located outside Gallup in Church Rock on old Interstate 66, is shuttered due to the coronavirus … [Read more...]
VICI Properties holds the cards – and 50 acres – in future Las Vegas Strip development By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • August 4, 2020 The real estate investment trust VICI Properties will have a loud voice in the post-pandemic recovery of the Las Vegas Strip. Ahead of the official closing of Eldorado Resorts’ $17.3 billion acquisition of Caesars Entertainment last month, VICI provided the newly combined company – now simply called Caesars – $400 million through a five-year mortgage loan on the Caesars Forum Convention Center. … [Read more...]
Focus on Asia: The industry reopens into its ‘new normal’ By Ben Blaschke, Managing Editor, Inside Asian Gaming • August 4, 2020 We’re barely weeks into the first stages of reopening the global land-based gaming industry and already we are seeing instances of what is inevitably going to be our “new normal” for the foreseeable future. In Australia, it took just three days after The Star Sydney reopened on 1 July to find its name in the media after it was confirmed a patron who later tested positive to COVID-19 had visited … [Read more...]
Focus on Asia: Japan’s other casino industry By Andrew Klebanow, Principal, Klebanow Consulting • August 4, 2020 The process to bring integrated casino resorts to Japan continues to evolve, albeit at a very slow pace. With the government’s introduction of numerous regulations over the last twelve months, several notable casino developers have decided to opt out of the forthcoming bidding process. A 30% tax on gaming revenue, a requirement that casino operators withhold taxes from gambling winnings from … [Read more...]
Operating Casinos in the Czech Republic during COVID-19 By Anna Všetečková • August 4, 2020 Casinos in the Czech Republic are slowly starting to recover after their compulsory shutdown for almost two months due to measures to prevent the spread of COVID-19. The casinos have been fully open since the middle of May; however, some health and safety measures still have to be followed. According to the newest resolutions of the Ministry of Health, a prohibition on events taking place in … [Read more...]
To sell or not to sell? The answer has to be no. By Andrew Tottenham, Managing Director, Tottenham & Co • August 4, 2020 In the last few weeks, I have been approached by owners to find buyers for a casino group and a supplier to the industry. The owners of these businesses, whilst not forced to sell, decided that they no longer want to be in a land-based, public-facing leisure business or one that supplies this type of business. Their motivation to sell was due to the uncertainty that the future holds for these … [Read more...]
The Awful Awful: a horror story in real time By Ken Adams, CDC Gaming Reports • August 2, 2020 Recently, the Reno Gazette-Journal posted a short video clip on Facebook that showed a long line of people waiting to get into the restaurant of the Little Nugget in downtown Reno. They all wanted one thing: an Awful Awful burger. The name is said to stem from the fact that it is awfully big - two patties topped with a plethora of vegetables and a secret sauce, the recipe for which is a closely … [Read more...]
Absence of international visitation will prolong the Las Vegas COVID-19 recovery By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • August 1, 2020 Las Vegas’ McCarran International Airport, the nation’s ninth-busiest travel hub, recorded just 70 total arriving and departing international passengers during June. All of them were coming from, or going to, Las Vegas and Calgary, Alberta, Canada on Calgary-based WestJet Airlines. Granted, compared to April and May - when the total combined number of McCarran’s international passengers was … [Read more...]
Thrills, no thrills, or big thrills? By Bernard Kroviak, CDC Gaming Reports • July 30, 2020 The first Saturday in May has come and gone with no Kentucky Derby, and, thus, no big thrills for racing fans. The Belmont Stakes, usually the last of the Triple Crown races, was run this year in June as the first, and proved to be a decent race, but, again, with no real thrills, probably due to there being no fans in the stands. NBC produced a virtual race for Derby Day, instead, called the … [Read more...]
Igaming Focus: No online betting in California bill leaves a big unregulated hole By Jake Pollard, CDC Gaming Reports • July 30, 2020 As California’s 18-strong coalition of Native American tribes seeks to garner enough signatories to get the California Sports Wagering Regulation and Unlawful Gambling Enforcement Act onto the 2022 ballot, the long and winding road that could see the biggest state economy in the U.S. regulate sports betting might be approaching (something like) its final stages. First announced in November … [Read more...]
Igaming Focus: Keeping the black market at bay By Hannah Gannagé-Stewart, CDC Gaming Reports • July 30, 2020 The struggle between the regulated and unregulated gambling markets is much debated by policymakers and regulators all over the world. How do you balance essential consumer protection with the knowledge that legislating too harshly may push gamblers to unscrupulous offshore providers? The black market is not going to shut down overnight because an alternative legal market has been established, … [Read more...]
Igaming Focus: Not ready for prime time – American igaming needs regulatory progress By Martin Owens, Attorney At Law, Special to CDC Gaming Reports • July 30, 2020 “The best way to predict the future is to create it.” - Peter Drucker The full impact of the COVID plague will not be known for years, but there are some obvious trends. In the world of Internet and interactive gaming, vast opportunities are unfolding. Especially since the main competition, brick-and-mortar operations, are still for the most part literally locked up. Even where land-based … [Read more...]
Eldorado-Caesars merger leads to unusual decision by NJ regulators By Dan Heneghan, Special to CDC Gaming Reports • July 29, 2020 The New Jersey Casino Control Commission, which is supposed to “encourage and preserve competition,” opted instead to further suppress it when it approved the recent merger of Eldorado Resorts and Caesars Entertainment. Let me stress at the outset, it was a good deal that deserved to be approved. But to properly apply the Casino Control Act, the commission should have required the merged … [Read more...]
Governor: ‘Unpredictability hasn’t been easy’ as gaming deals with COVID-19 fallout By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • July 28, 2020 Nevada’s governor had two messages for the state’s gaming industry Monday. He clearly doesn’t want to order casinos to close for the second time this year. He also offered a muted apology to restricted gaming operators, many of which had their slot machines turned off July 10. “I know the past five months have been rough on businesses and residents throughout our country, and Nevada is no … [Read more...]
Is this the time to ban smoking in casinos? By Ken Adams, CDC Gaming Reports • July 27, 2020 Among the many things that the coronavirus has done, it has reopened the old debate on smoking in casinos. The traditional belief held that smokers gamble and gamblers smoke; in that reality, banning smoking in casinos was unthinkable. But in the time of the pandemic, the unthinkable has become thinkable. In the first few years of the 21st century, there was a concentrated, national effort to ban … [Read more...]
Frankness from a top Sands executive: Las Vegas casinos are in a ‘world of hurt’ By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • July 25, 2020 Give Las Vegas Sands President Rob Goldstein credit for his candor is discussing the current operating environment in Las Vegas. Just don’t expect to hear those remarks on the next tourism advertisement promoting the Strip. Goldstein, during the company’s second-quarter earnings conference call, didn’t sugarcoat his assessment of the nation’s largest gaming market, which is trying to rebound … [Read more...]
Stardust Memories: Ex-Strip casino name attached to Boyd Gaming social app By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • July 21, 2020 Boyd Gaming’s new Stardust Social Casino app likely won’t stay a social app for very long. The Las Vegas-based regional casino operator has relaunched the bulk of its operations following some three months of closures due to the coronavirus pandemic. But during the shutdown, the company couldn’t miss the iGaming results coming out of New Jersey and Pennsylvania, where Boyd operates the Valley … [Read more...]
Can the industry speak with one voice about gambling addiction? By Andrew Tottenham, Managing Director, Tottenham & Co • July 21, 2020 The UK has now had three recent reports into reducing the harm from gambling. The recommendations in these reports run from the sensible to the ridiculous and nearly all, if implemented, will have a negative impact on the immediate financial viability of both online and the offline sectors. When faced with a common threat, the industry responded by forming a single industry group, the Betting and … [Read more...]
Casinos are reopening — and we all need to do our part By Andrew Tottenham, Managing Director, Tottenham & Co • July 21, 2020 Casinos in England received approval to reopen their doors from August 1, though most casinos in the rest of Europe have been allowed to reopen for a few weeks now. However, the green light was not before Genting UK, which operate 42 casinos in the UK, announced they were laying off over 1,600 people from the UK group, an average of almost 40 per casino. No one, apart from the UK Government, knows … [Read more...]
Oh, no, not G2E, too? By Ken Adams, CDC Gaming Reports • July 19, 2020 Unless you have been living under a rock or you’ve just arrived on a spaceship from a distant planet (and if you did, you might want to think about hopping back on that spaceship before you get too settled) you know the world is currently in the throes of a pandemic. Likely not since the Spanish Flu pandemic of 1918 has the world seen an event like this – and, as was the case with the Black Death … [Read more...]
Vegas sees a coronavirus spike; could a temporary casino smoking ban be an answer? By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • July 18, 2020 A week ago, I turned down a news radio station's request to come on and discuss rumors of Las Vegas casinos closing once again due to a surge of coronavirus cases in Nevada. A few days later, Gov. Steve Sisolak ordered bars and bar top areas in restaurants and taverns closed in the state’s most populous counties, which eliminated a large portion of Nevada’s slots-only restricted gaming … [Read more...]
One Nevada tavern operator finds a loophole as competition sees slot machines silenced By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • July 14, 2020 Legislating in the midst of a nationwide pandemic can lead to unintended consequences. That might be one explanation why Nevada’s governor did a favor for a gaming company he was at loggerheads with during his time as chairman of the Clark County Commission. A large segment of Nevada’s restricted gaming industry was sidelined last weekend when Gov. Steve Sisolak ordered stand-alone bars and … [Read more...]
G2E will return in 2021, but the gaming industry conference will be reimagined By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • July 11, 2020 The cancellation of the Global Gaming Expo wasn’t a surprise. One could read the signs. Nevada’s cases of COVID-19 surged over the past three weeks, including Friday’s 1,004 new cases that was the second-highest single-day figure since the pandemic began. Las Vegas hotel-casinos are still operating at 50% capacity, have reduced restaurant and dining options, still can’t have more than 50 … [Read more...]
Strip resorts yet to reopen may sit vacant for several more months By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • July 7, 2020 The opening of The Mirage in 1989 – the Las Vegas Strip’s first all-new resort in nearly 15 years – proclaimed the start of an unprecedented building boom that changed the skyline of the city and brought some two dozen new properties to the boulevard over the next several decades. Maybe its eventual reopening will provide Las Vegas with a new beacon of hope. The Mirage closed on March 18 … [Read more...]
Focus on Asia: Macau’s seventh heaven? By Ben Blaschke, Managing Editor, Inside Asian Gaming • July 7, 2020 This commentary appears in the Premier Issue of Focus on Asia, published July 7, 2020. If there is one silver lining to emerge from the COVID-19 pandemic for the new Macau government, it’s the reprieve it has granted them on questions about the re-tendering process for Macau gaming licenses. The reprieve won’t last long. With the licenses of all six concessions and sub-concessions due to expire … [Read more...]
Focus on Asia: The Problem With POGOs By Andrew Klebanow, Principal, Klebanow Consulting • July 7, 2020 This commentary appears in the Premier Issue of Focus on Asia, published July 7, 2020. The worldwide closure of casinos in the first half of 2020 has sparked renewed interest in online gambling. European countries have long offered a variety of online gaming products, primarily computer-generated forms of table games and slot machines. A different type of online wagering, called E-Casinos, … [Read more...]
Opening Up for Business By Andrew Tottenham, Managing Director, Tottenham & Co • July 7, 2020 European countries are emerging from lockdown and gambling businesses are reopening. No one knows what to expect, other than business is likely to be down compared to before the pandemic struck. It appears that every country is allowing casinos to reopen, with the exception of the UK. This may have something to do with the UK government’s late response to the growing threat from the … [Read more...]
Dancing with the Dragon By Ken Adams, CDC Gaming Reports • July 5, 2020 Keeping an eye on China and Macau from seven thousand miles away is never easy, but it can be very entertaining watching foreigners dance with the dragon. Between May 21st and May 27th, the Chinese Communist Party held two meetings: the Chinese People’s Political Consultative Conference (CPPCC) and the National People’s Conference. “Representatives of the Chinese people gather to chart the … [Read more...]
Culinary lawsuit spells bad news for gaming companies trying to put on a happy face By John L. Smith, CDC Gaming Reports • July 1, 2020 You could see it coming for weeks. Like an approaching storm, representatives of UNITE-HERE and its behemoth Las Vegas Local 226 have voiced their concerns about service worker health and safety almost from the outset of the coronavirus pandemic. On Monday, as many organized labor watchers have predicted for weeks, the union made good on its threat to take action if its demands for increased … [Read more...]
FTC dissenting commissioner: Eldorado-Caesars merger ‘risky for everyone involved’ By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • June 30, 2020 Federal Trade Commission member Rohit Chopra went scorched-earth in his dissenting opinion in the Eldorado Resorts-Caesars Entertainment merger. No one was spared. In his four-page opposition, Chopra said there were “no noteworthy benefits to customers, workers, suppliers, or competition” from the $17.3 billion buyout of Caesars by Eldorado. “The transaction is risky for everyone … [Read more...]
Igaming Focus: U.S. and EU sectors hope for sustainable restarts By Jake Pollard, CDC Gaming Reports • June 29, 2020 The return of top-level soccer across most European leagues and the National Basketball Association’s restart scheduled for July are hugely welcome. As suppliers and sportsbooks focus on user experience and adhering to the highest responsibility commitments, they are also hoping the reopenings across the U.S. and Europe can be sustained. All major European soccer leagues, apart from France’s, … [Read more...]
Igaming Focus: Changing sensibilities By Hannah Gannagé-Stewart, CDC Gaming Reports • June 29, 2020 This commentary appears in the Igaming Focus Issue #4, published June 29, 2020. As igaming gains traction in the U.S., the famously liberal UK seems to be adopting an increasingly cautious attitude to online gambling. In a report from the UK’s Gambling Related Harm All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) last week, it was recommended that new controls should be applied to the industry. These … [Read more...]
The Biggest Little City becomes the Best Small City By Ken Adams, CDC Gaming Reports • June 28, 2020 Reno has just experienced an unusual event: its past met its future in the third week of June. The death of Harrah’s Reno has meant that Reno is now the Best Small City in the land. In a moment of extreme sadness for many in Reno, on June 5, Harrah’s Reno officially ceased to exist. The building itself remains, but not the name or the casino, named by its founder after his family. Tired of … [Read more...]
California’s latest effort to legalize sports betting resembles state’s failure at Internet poker By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • June 27, 2020 At this rate, Utah – one of two states still without any form of regulated gaming – will have legal sports betting before California. Two competing efforts to provide voters at least one, if not two, sports betting ballot initiatives in November ended unceremoniously last week. Lawmakers pulled a constitutional change measure from consideration after being faced with the Herculean task of … [Read more...]
Adams Analysis Q2 2020: Influencers and A New Spectator Sport By Ken Adams, CDC Gaming Reports • June 26, 2020 Originally sent out on June 16, 2020 to CDC Premium Subscribers, we have made this quarter's Adams Analysis free to all readers. A new category of influencers has emerged recently: YouTube slot players. The host of a YouTube video goes to a casino and plays slot machines while making a videocast of the action. Followers and subscribers sit at home and watch the action. If they like what they … [Read more...]
New normal acknowledged: In Nevada, Gov. Sisolak directs masks for locals, visitors By John L. Smith, CDC Gaming Reports • June 24, 2020 Las Vegas is the party capital of just about everywhere, but how do you celebrate in the midst of a coronavirus pandemic? Very carefully, my friend, very carefully. But that doesn’t mean hope is lost or business can’t be conducted (if not as usual). The challenge is getting it right, and Nevada’s Gov. Steve Sisolak finds himself frustrated by that calculus as many states in the region loosen … [Read more...]
More than ‘one bite’ at a time when Barstool’s Portnoy defends deal with Penn National By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • June 23, 2020 Here’s what the gaming investment community learned during June: David Portnoy, founder and self-proclaimed “El Presidente” of the Barstool Sports media platform, doesn’t have a filter. He is willing to fiercely defend the stock price of Penn National Gaming, his company’s business partner, via wave after wave of profanity-laced rants on his various social media channels, each of which draw … [Read more...]
News alert: Golden Nugget defeats Borgata in cyberspace By Ken Adams, CDC Gaming Reports • June 21, 2020 Casinos began to open again in May after being closed for half of March and all of April. Even the states that did open, however, will only have revenue for a few days. Louisiana is the only state that has reported so far, gaming revenue from the state’s 14 casinos and 3 racinos was down 69% to $70 million. VLTs on the Bayou reported $23.9 million in win. Casinos in Mississippi, Missouri and South … [Read more...]
The quiet death of Harrah’s Reno; it deserved a better departure By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • June 20, 2020 Sadly, one of the Nevada gaming industry’s historic landmarks won’t have a proper send-off. To be fair, the announcement Wednesday that Harrah’s Reno is now permanently closed was not a surprise. The property had been shuttered since mid-March because of the coronavirus-related shutdown of Nevada’s casino industry. But the days became numbered for Harrah’s Reno back on January 15 - … [Read more...]
In Las Vegas, convention authority board member’s racial controversies heat up By John L. Smith, CDC Gaming Reports • June 17, 2020 At a time Las Vegas has been aching for a little good news as it gradually reopens its doors to visitors, it depends more than ever on its ability to communicate an attractive brand message to a world buffeted by a coronavirus pandemic and massive racial justice demonstrations. That’s why some people are bound to start wondering whether controversial Las Vegas Las Vegas City Councilwoman … [Read more...]
Advice: Make mask wearing inside casinos mandatory for everyone By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • June 16, 2020 Comments Monday from Nevada’s governor and the state’s top gaming regulator stopped short of ordering casino visitors to wear facial masks when they are inside a resort property. For now. Nevada recorded its highest spike in positive tests for COVID-19 on Tuesday – 11 days after the state’s casino industry reopened under reduced capacity guidelines and health and safety protocols. Obviously, … [Read more...]
The Covid-19 pandemic will be over by September 5 By Bernard Kroviak, CDC Gaming Reports • June 15, 2020 That headline, unfortunately, is far from fact; it’s simply the hope of the over 150,000 horse racing fans who had been planning to watch the 2020 Kentucky Derby live and in person. Traditionally scheduled for the first Saturday in May, the Derby is annually America's most lavishly attended horse race of the year. This year, the Run for the Roses has been rescheduled for the first Saturday in … [Read more...]
Sports betting could become a hot ticket item for the stock market players By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • June 13, 2020 With casinos reopening across the U.S. in the COVID-19 environment, legal sports betting is drawing renewed attention as the gaming industry recovers from its nationwide shutdown. The interest, however, comes from a different type of wagering. Gaming analysts and investors are beginning to view the sports betting universe beyond point spreads and future lines. Analysts see sports betting as … [Read more...]
Can visitors resist throwing caution to the wind in Las Vegas? By John L. Smith, CDC Gaming Reports • June 10, 2020 I hit the Las Vegas Strip during Thursday’s reopening at several mega-resort casinos as part of CDC Gaming Reports’ team coverage. It was an intriguing blend of the familiar and the foreign. Most of the visitors I interviewed said they felt similarly – anxious and yet anticipating – but to a person, they all related the same message: They’ve really missed their Vegas. And they said they were … [Read more...]
Nothing nefarious: Actions by Nevada congresswoman helped small gaming businesses nationwide By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • June 9, 2020 It’s not as if Nevada Congresswoman Susie Lee sat through a confidential briefing on the coronavirus outbreak and then profited by selling off millions of dollars from her personal stock portfolio shortly afterward, directly ahead of an epic market collapse that coincided with the spreading pandemic. That would be what Senators Richard Burr of North Carolina and Kelly Loeffler of Georgia … [Read more...]
The gaming industry will soon begin comparisons to the ‘pre-COVID-19’ era By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • June 6, 2020 Olympic marathon champion Frank Shorter said one reason he enjoyed long-distance running was his willingness “to move forward and find out what happens next.” That might be an appropriate description for the nation’s gaming industry as it moves forward in a post-pandemic era. As of Friday, 519 commercial and tribal casinos had reopened in 25 states, according to figures compiled by the … [Read more...]
No amount of plexiglass will keep COVID-19 out of a casino By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • June 2, 2020 My initial thought walking through Bellagio on Monday morning – my first time inside the Strip resort since mid-March, when the spreading coronavirus pandemic shut down gaming across the U.S. – was that right now is a good time to be in the plexiglass business. The use of the clear acrylic material – in an effort by casino operators throughout the county to meet post-COVID-19 social distancing … [Read more...]
Too many eggs in the same basket By Ken Adams, CDC Gaming Reports • May 31, 2020 In the modern world, for better or worse, the economy is all. If the economy fails, society itself is at risk. Now, of course, we are living in a time when the economy did not fail on its own but was closed down by the government. To protect people from the COVID-19 pandemic, all non-essential activities have been restricted by gubernatorial edict. The crisis has led to many conflicts and … [Read more...]
Opinion: Nevada casinos cannot voluntarily go smoke-free, especially now By Jeffrey Compton, CDC Gaming Reports • May 30, 2020 I have never smoked. I don’t allow smoking in my home or my car. As a frequent single diner, I prefer eating a meal at a bar over sitting alone at a table, but I avoid bars that permit smoking. I’ve lost many people close to me to smoking-related illnesses, including my only sibling, Bill Compton, in 2007. I dislike smoking intensely! But I do know that Nevada casinos cannot voluntarily go … [Read more...]
The Strip returns from a 78-day hiatus, but what toll did the pandemic take? By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • May 30, 2020 We know Nevada’s casino industry is reopening shortly after midnight Thursday following an unprecedented 78-day closure in response to the coronavirus pandemic. What shape the market resembles is a tough question to answer. Roughly half of the Strip resorts will remain on the sidelines next week, barring last-minute reopening plans. The resorts that are welcoming back customers face a 50% … [Read more...]
Casinos need to take one more step to protect customers, employees By Mark Gruetze, CDC Gaming Reports • May 28, 2020 Casinos about to reopen have an unprecedented opportunity to improve their safety for customers and employees. Along with the deep cleanings, disinfection procedures, and social distancing standards to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus, this is the perfect time for casinos to add one more element to protect against another significant threat to public health. They should reopen … [Read more...]
Thinking small as Nevada casinos get the green light to reopen By John L. Smith, CDC Gaming Reports • May 27, 2020 With a smile on his face and a calculator between the ears, Jackie Gaughan was proud of his El Cortez whether it came to the craps odds or prime rib special. He loved to walk the floor of his place in a loud sports coat and greeted employees and customers by name. He could be forgiven for noting that his joint netted more profit than flashier operations on Fremont Street and parts of the … [Read more...]
Casinos return, but it will be a slow road back for gaming equipment providers By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • May 27, 2020 The restart of the nation’s casino industry isn’t the automatic elixir that will revive gaming equipment manufacturers after COVID-19 put a financial beat down on the sector over the last two months. For slot machine makers, recovery is going to require additional time. More than a dozen states and tribal governments are allowing casinos – closed since mid-March due to the coronavirus … [Read more...]
Igaming Focus: Sports restart lifts the gloom as igaming shows its value By Jake Pollard, CDC Gaming Reports • May 27, 2020 As sports make a most welcome return, fears that the coronavirus could mark a terminal point for the igaming industry have not materialised. If anything, the online vertical has proved its worth during COVID-19. It is not difficult to imagine the relief that must have swept through the offices of the world’s online sportsbooks when German referees blew their whistles on 16 May to mark the … [Read more...]
Igaming Focus: UK Gambling Commission observes gambling behaviour during lockdown By Hannah Gannagé-Stewart, CDC Gaming Reports • May 27, 2020 Another month, another post-apocalyptic column. Just six months ago, it would have seemed absurd to ponder the effect of a global pandemic on the gambling industry, a most esoteric public-health study, but here we are. It’s tempting to believe, as we all search for silver linings, that something good may come out of the way the industry handled COVID-19. Regulators were quick to strengthen the … [Read more...]
Reevaluating old practices and assumptions By Ken Adams, CDC Gaming Reports • May 25, 2020 The Reopening of 2020 has begun. and with it, a rethinking of previous business models and assumptions is underway. The first commercial jurisdiction to open was South Dakota; casinos in Deadwood began to reopen May 9. Two weeks later, regulators in Louisiana and Mississippi allowed casinos to reopen after two months of closure due to COVID-19. Other states are expected to follow in June and July, … [Read more...]
Recovering from a global pandemic requires gaming to write a whole new playbook By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • May 23, 2020 Biloxi, Mississippi wrote the playbook 15 years ago on how a casino community recovers from a cataclysmic event after Hurricane Katrina nearly wiped out the Gulf Coast gaming market. Granted, there isn’t a script for dealing with the economic and emotional damage the coronavirus pandemic has inflicted on the nation’s entire gaming business over the past two months. No one plans for an entire … [Read more...]
Now is a great time for gaming and culinary union leaders to have a show of solidarity By John L. Smith, CDC Gaming Reports • May 20, 2020 Call me naive, just about everyone does. Say I’m daydreaming if it suits you. But with major casinos in Las Vegas and elsewhere slowly returning to life amid the grave challenges of the coronavirus pandemic, now would be an ideal time for industry leaders and Culinary Union officials to stand together in a genuine show of solidarity for a common goal. You know, their mutual survival. To … [Read more...]
Casino reopenings begin, but some properties will remain permanently closed By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • May 19, 2020 Commercial and tribal casinos in more than a dozen states have slowly begun the process of reopening after being closed for more than two months due to the coronavirus pandemic. There are some casinos, however, that may not ever reopen. In heavily competitive markets, gaming companies may choose to permanently close under-performing casinos, in the hopes that the location can either be sold … [Read more...]
Pent-up demand after the Great Lockdown By Ken Adams, CDC Gaming Reports • May 17, 2020 It has been two months since the Great Lockdown began, taking the casino industry into a dark cave with all the other “non-essential” businesses in the country. By the 16th of March, every casino in the United States was closed. In state after state, the governor declared a crisis due to what we now call COVID-19. Not all states followed the same guidelines, but in general non-essential businesses … [Read more...]
As casinos reopen the business model ‘requires reimagining’ for health and safety By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • May 16, 2020 The limited casino reopenings announced last week by states and tribal governments took place so quickly that gaming operators responded in real-time. For example, during Caesars Entertainment’s quarterly conference call Monday afternoon, CEO Tony Rodio discussed the planned health and safety measures for casinos in Las Vegas, Lake Tahoe, Atlantic City, and Council Bluffs, Iowa. In the … [Read more...]
Siegfried & Roy connected with several eras of Las Vegas entertainment By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • May 13, 2020 Siegfried & Roy were as Vegas old school as dinner shows, coin-in slot machines, and the $1.99 all-you-can-eat buffet. But Siegfried Fischbacher and Roy Uwe Ludwig Horn were also a connection from the aging Strip showrooms of the 1970s to the elaborate multimillion-dollar theaters that make up the modern Las Vegas resort industry. Their career in Las Vegas touched parts of five decades … [Read more...]
Penn National remains positive on Barstool Sports deal in a post-pandemic world By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • May 9, 2020 Even without real sports for the past eight weeks due to the coronavirus pandemic, it’s been a banner two months for media platform Barstool Sports. The company, which is 36% owned by regional casino operator Penn National Gaming, saw blog traffic jump 20% during April while social media views across Twitter, Instagram, TikTok, and other accounts are up 50%. What does that mean for Penn … [Read more...]
Long-serving Black Book member lived in the shadows of notoriety By John L. Smith, CDC Gaming Reports • May 6, 2020 As notorious characters go, Louis Tom Dragna didn’t exactly strike fear in the hearts of the hoodlum element. Throughout much of his long life – he died in 2012 at age 92 -- he appeared to spend much of his time living up to – or was it down to? – his family’s reputation. His uncle Jack Dragna was the violent boss of the Los Angeles mob from the 1930s until he dropped dead of a heart attack in … [Read more...]
Stock investors betting on DraftKings with additional sports wagering expansion coming By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • May 5, 2020 Sports betting and daily fantasy website DraftKings launched as a public company two weeks ago with extraordinarily little to wager on. That is, unless you have intimate knowledge of soccer from Belarus or Russian table tennis. That fact didn’t deter investors. Shares of DraftKings rose more than 10% on the Nasdaq on the first day of trading, and the pace hasn’t slowed. On Tuesday, the … [Read more...]
Are they casinos or hospitals? Gaming leaders increase hygiene and cleaning measures By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • May 2, 2020 We’re starting to get an idea of what casinos will look like once they are allowed to reopen in the era of COVID-19. In some cases, the protocols for hygiene, sanitation, disinfecting, and cleaning on gaming floors are going to rival hospitals. No, a doctor won’t be able to perform open-heart surgery at a blackjack table. But casino operators don’t want their guests worried about contracting … [Read more...]
Most LV gaming, political leaders singing in tune on post-pandemic reopening By John L. Smith, CDC Gaming Reports • April 29, 2020 Las Vegas Boulevard is still quiet and will remain so for now. But a lot is happening in preparation for a slow-rolling reopening at the appropriate time. That runs contrary to the damaging and nonsensical blather of Las Vegas Mayor Carolyn Goodman and the Astroturf reopening protests that have been taking place on the Strip and throughout the country. Goodman has been shouting about throwing … [Read more...]
Igaming Focus: How will the igaming sector counter the critics when all this is over? By Jake Pollard, CDC Gaming Reports • April 29, 2020 This commentary is a part of the April 2020 issue of Igaming Focus. Jake Pollard is an experienced freelance gaming journalist. He is based in London, UK, and covers all business and regulatory topics relevant to online gaming and betting companies. Campaigning by politicians and pressure groups against the igaming sector will continue after COVID-19 is over. Operators must have the data to … [Read more...]
Igaming Focus: Flutter and Stars Group tie the knot in uncertain times By Hannah Gannagé-Stewart, CDC Gaming Reports • April 29, 2020 This commentary is a part of the April 2020 issue of Igaming Focus. Amid the unrelenting COVID-19 news, a mega-merger has been brewing between The Stars Group (TSG) and Flutter Entertainment. The two industry behemoths, probably as of late May, will become the world’s biggest business-to-consumer (B2C) online gambling business. The acquisition of TSG by Flutter was first mooted in October … [Read more...]
No slots, no problem: Social gaming steps in to fill the empty space By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • April 28, 2020 Slot machines around the country are silenced. But slot players are still in the game - albeit trying now to win non-cash awards, rather than life-changing jackpots. With nearly 1,000 casinos closed throughout the U.S., social gaming has filled the void. Research firm Eilers & Krejcik Gaming noted this month that social gaming revenues were roughly $5.7 billion in the last 12 months. In … [Read more...]
Post-virus, Macau creeps back to life By Ken Adams, CDC Gaming Reports • April 26, 2020 Americans are currently debating the proper time and manner by which to end the coronavirus lockdowns and open non-essential businesses, including casinos. As each state makes its plans, there are few precedents to consider. Biloxi, Mississippi is probably the best candidate; its casinos have been closed before by hurricanes, so, while it's far from a perfect parallel, Mississippi's operators are … [Read more...]
Put on a medical facemask if you want to go back to a casino By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • April 25, 2020 A reporter from MSNBC covering the shutdown of the Las Vegas Strip because of the COVID-19 coronavirus pandemic asked me this week about smoking inside casinos once they reopen. Nevada gaming operators have maintained a longstanding opposition to any casino smoking prohibition despite efforts by anti-smoking organizations and health activists, and notwithstanding casino smoking bans in nearly … [Read more...]
Wynn Resorts offers a thoughtful way forward amid pandemic noise By John L. Smith, CDC Gaming Reports • April 22, 2020 These are strange and challenging days for the gaming industry, and not merely because its high-rises, marquees and casinos are dark in the midst of a deadly worldwide coronavirus pandemic. It’s been a little over a month. An unprecedented shutdown has put many thousands out of work and sent stocks plummeting. Some are being kept on salary, but many are not. The heartache at home is … [Read more...]
Willie Davis: A Hall of Famer on the football field and in the MGM board room By Howard Stutz, Executive Editor, CDC Gaming Reports • April 21, 2020 Willie Davis was a giant, both on the football field and in the board room. Davis, who died last week at age 85 of kidney failure, had a well-documented Hall of Fame football career as a defensive lineman with the Green Bay Packers during the era of Vince Lombardi, winning five NFL titles and the first two Super Bowls with the team. His business career following his NFL retirement was equally … [Read more...]
What will the new normal be and what will it mean for the land-based gambling industry? By Andrew Tottenham, Managing Director, Tottenham & Co • April 20, 2020 The question on everybody’s lips is, when will we come out of lockdown? As I have stated before, this is a difficult question to answer. Due to the lockdown, measured infection and death rates are declining, but the novel coronavirus is still in our communities. We still do not know enough about it or the real rate of infection to say with any accuracy what will happen when we do open our doors … [Read more...]
