Bringing back sexy; They did a bad, bad thing

In search of a novel angle to market Las Vegas, the Las Vegas Convention & Visitors Authority has come up with a new campaign. And. It. Is. Hawt. Because lesbians. Although, if you’re a mushy romantic at heart, this mini-movie is sure to make you blub. It’s got a well-crafted narrative, visuals that show Sin City at its best (proving once again that the Bellagio fountains will never be surpassed as the Las Vegas Strip‘s #1 icon) and the women are gorgeous. Would the LVCVA enact the same scenario with two men? I don’t think we’ve come (out) that far yet. While the girl/girl action will be the most attention-getting spot, the LVCVA has several other arrows in its quiver. According to the Las Vegas Sun, these include “a single mother enjoying a break; a married couple trying to rekindle their romance; and a businessman who pretends to be a high roller to gain the attraction of a woman.” (see below)

Eventually these spots will be boiled down to TV-friendly lengths but currently are viewable only on online platforms. We applaud the ecumenical spirit in which multiple, rival casinos have been featured in the same ad. Well done, LVCVA.

* M1 Gaming, owner of Boomtown Reno, is in very hot water with Nevada regulators? Why? Because Boomtown wanted to offer free-play gaming online, decided it was too expensive to create its own Web site, and linked to 15 other sites, 11 of which offer for-money play. Whoops. Boomtown could find itself writing a big-ass check to the Nevada Gaming Control Board or even facing revocation of its license. Since it has violated the federal Wire Act, its troubles could be just beginning. That’s a lot of grief to to endure for a paltry $1,621 in player-referral commissions. According to the NGCB, Boomtown “failed to inquire into the nature of the links on its websites when it received payment from the websites.” The casino, for its part, is throwing one of its employees under the bus, saying the Web site was the sole responsibility of a graphic designer who “had little, if any, understanding of gaming laws.” We don’t think this matter rises to the level of pulling Boomtown’s license but a very sharp rap across the knuckles is definitely in order.

* Sports betting’s sudden legality has lit a fire under Connecticut Gov. Dannel P. Malloy (D). He’s talking about calling a special session (see video) of the Lege to get the Nutmeg State into the game. But before he does that, he wants to enter into talks with Mohegan Sun and Foxwoods Resort Casino to sort out their position on the issue. The tribal casinos claim an exclusive right to sports betting in the state but Malloy doesn’t sound so sure. In any event, compact renegotiation appears inevitable, given the new reality. Perhaps the tribes can trade off a relaxation of their stance for a quashing of the attempt to build an MGM Resorts International casino in Bridgeport. It’s worth a try.