Monopoly!

“They came. They saw. They were rejected,” wrote Richard Velotta wittily in the Las Vegas Review-Journal‘s report of a spurned takeover attempt by MGM Growth Properties of Vici Properties. Yes, the long-dreaded MGM/Caesars merger effort has finally come to pass. If successful, it would give one company control of 15 Las Vegas Strip hotels (if you count The Rio), a pretty big concentration of ownership for the Federal Trade Commission to swallow, even if nothing is beyond the imagination during an administration as supine to corporate interests as the Trump one. The lion not only mistimed his leap, not waiting for a Vici IPO to mature past the placeholder stage. The mooted deal also underpriced Vici stock, hardly an offer Vici couldn’t refuse. In a somewhat contradictory declaration, MGM said there had been parleys between the two sides but “To date, Vici has elected not to engage in meaningful discussions.”

While MGM’s leadership surpasses Vici’s (where the CEO’s annual salary exceeds the rent paid by all of its casino properties and golf courses) but there’s no question that such a deal, if consummated, could screw the consumer mightily. The free market is the consumer’s best friend and putting most of the Strip in the hands of one company could result in the most egregious sort of price-fixing. But, believe me, we haven’t heard the last of this story. MGM may have gone away empty-handed but it’s sure to be back.

When not striving to be The Company That Ate Las Vegas, MGM is busy moving into its new corporate office in Springfield, Massachusetts. The MassMutual building has welcomed the first 50 of an expected 300 management personnel. COO Michael Mathis told a local paper that “the renovation of the 1929 building on State Street included new mechanicals, electrical, plumbing and other fixtures. But the work included preserving the Classical Revival-style facade and keeping a variety of features in the original lobby.” Although 90% of the total workforce will be derived locally, only 35% is coming from Springfield proper. Given the constipated pace at which Connecticut‘s satellite casino is progressing, MGM Springfield will beat its competition to market with ease.

* Early next week a giant X factor will be thrown into Indiana‘s casino industry when the Pokagon Band of Potawatomi Indians opens Four Winds South Bend Casino. Aside from the competitive impact on nearby private-sector casinos, the latter will have additional reason to cry “foul!” (not that it will avail them) since — by virtue of operating a Class II casino — the Pokagon will not have to pay any taxes to the state. Instead, 1,800 machines worth of electronic bingo will be on offer. That’s bad news for Ameristar East Chicago, Horseshoe Hammond, Blue Chip and the two Majestic Star ships, all of which (except Horseshoe) have been trending slightly downward last year, even without tribal competition in-state. (There’s plenty over the Michigan border.) Being tribal, Four Winds won’t be compelled to share revenue numbers but we’ll get some sense of its impact when this month’s gaming revenues from its competitors are reported and we see how big of a dent appears in their numbers.