Category Archives: International

Adelson fights for dirty power; Hard Rock on the move

Posted on June 15, 2017 by David McKee

Fossil fuel-loving fossil Sheldon Adelson is putting heavy pressure on Nevada Gov. Brian Sandoval (R) to veto a bill that would increase the production of renewable energy in the Silver State. And when Adelson says “Jump!”, Sandoval asks “How high?” … Continue reading →

Posted in Environment, Florida, Hard Rock International, International, Internet gambling, MGM Mirage, Ohio, Politics, Regulation, Sheldon Adelson, Taxes | Comments Off

Hard Rock ups Atlantic City commitment; Japan inspires casino designers

Posted on May 31, 2017 by David McKee

Compared to Carl Icahn‘s half-a-loaf policies, Hard Rock International CEO Jim Allen is Lady Bountiful, at least as concerns [Trump] Taj Mahal. We put The Donald’s name in brackets because it’s one of the first things to go, to be … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Atlantic City, Carl Icahn, Donald Trump, Election, Glenn Straub, Hard Rock International, Harrah's, Harry Reid, International, Japan, Lawrence Ho, Massachusetts, Melco Crown Entertainment, MGM Mirage, Mohegan Sun, Regulation, Revel, Sahara, SLS Las Vegas, Technology, Unite-Here | 1 Comment

Caesars pages The Hoff; Riviera sign lives again

Posted on May 22, 2017 by David McKee

Enjoy the fountains and shrubbery in front of Caesars Palace while you still can. Caesars Entertainment CEO Mark Frissora plans to celebrate the company’s emergence from bankruptcy by monetizing 90 acres of Las Vegas Strip frontage. To be fair to … Continue reading →

Posted in California, Harrah's, history, International, Japan, Marketing, Problem gambling, Riviera, South Korea, The Strip, Tribal | Comments Off

Packer bows out; Adelson puts moves on Brazil

Posted on May 12, 2017 by David McKee

There’s now 100% less “Crown” in Melco Crown Entertainment. Colorful casino baron James Packer has sold his share in the company for $1.2 billion. Reuters describes the move as “ending a fraught offshore expansion and freeing up cash for new … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Atlantic City, Australia, Boyd Gaming, Harrah's, International, Internet gambling, Iowa, James Packer, Japan, Lawrence Ho, Melco Crown Entertainment, MGM Mirage, Mohegan Sun, Politics, Problem gambling, Regulation, Sheldon Adelson, Sports, Station Casinos, The Crown 18, The Strip, Wall Street | Comments Off

Quote of the Day

Posted on May 9, 2017 by David McKee

“We’re not necessarily in love with the conditions or the three-year test period. We don’t want to spend billions of dollars and find out in three years they’ve changed their mind and they’re not going to allow locals in. So we … Continue reading →

Posted in International, Regulation, Sheldon Adelson, Vietnam | Comments Off

Analysts: Station underperforms; Miami Beach bans casinos

Posted on May 5, 2017 by David McKee

Station Casinos reported revenue yesterday and the Palms is on track for 6% ROI this year. So there’s some work to be done. Management is already off to a good start by closing the world’s largest Hooters, victim of sagging … Continue reading →

Posted in Colony Capital, Columbia Sussex, Dining, Donald Trump, Florida, Genting, George Maloof, Hard Rock International, Harrah's, history, IGT, International, MGM Mirage, PokerStars, Seminole Tribe, Sports, Station Casinos, Wall Street | 1 Comment

Warming trend continues in Macao; Shifty dealings in Maine

Posted on May 2, 2017 by David McKee

Gaming revenues in Macao rose 16% in April, a result that Deutsche Bank analyst Carlo Santarelli deemed “modestly better than expected.” That’s damning with faint praise. JP Morgan analyst Joseph Greff also shrugged off the numbers as “about as expected.” … Continue reading →

Posted in California, Donald Trump, Downtown, Eldorado Resorts, Entertainment, Horseracing, International, Macau, Maine, Maryland, MGM Mirage, New York, PokerStars, Politics, Regulation, Tribal, TV, Wall Street | Comments Off

Nevada is #1; Atlantic Club plans dashed

Posted on May 2, 2017 by David McKee

Congratulate yourself, Nevadans. Your state has been deemed “most fun” by WalletHub. This is despite only mediocre rankings in movie theaters and amusement parks per capita (27th and 28th, respectively). Nevada was tops in casinos — big surprise, I know … Continue reading →

Posted in Atlantic City, California, Donald Trump, Entertainment, Harrah's, International, Internet gambling, Law enforcement, Nevada, Philippines, Sports, Steve Wynn, Technology, Tribal | Comments Off

Saturation in Ohio; Japan: Go big or go home

Posted on April 17, 2017 by David McKee

Ohio Gov. John Kasich (R) leveled the playing field when he allowed third-party racinos to join the juiced-in Penn National Gaming and Caesars Entertainment casinos in the Buckeye State. The question now is how level a playing field is a … Continue reading →

Posted in Detroit, Economy, Genting, GLPI, Hard Rock International, Harrah's, International, Internet gambling, Iowa, Japan, New York, Ohio, Penn National, Pennsylvania, Pinnacle Entertainment, Technology, Wall Street | Comments Off

Exit Trump, enter Hard Rock; Casinos in Cuba again?

Posted on April 10, 2017 by David McKee

Hard Rock International is putting its money where its mouth is, judging from the preview it gave of the Hard Rocked Trump Taj Mahal. The most obvious changes will be on the exterior, where all the tiki-tacky Trump theming will … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Atlantic City, Columbia Sussex, Donald Trump, Economy, Entertainment, Foxwoods, Hard Rock International, International, MGM Mirage, Mohegan Sun, Penn National, Politics, Sports, Taxes, The Strip, Tourism, Trump Entertainment Resorts | 1 Comment

Hard Rock to spend big in Atlantic City; Bad news for slot makers

Posted on April 6, 2017 by David McKee

In the biggest vote of confidence Atlantic City has received in a decade, Hard Rock International has announced that it intends to invest $375 million in the former Trump Taj Mahal. On top of the 1,000 projected construction jobs, Hard … Continue reading →

Posted in Atlantic City, Cordish Co., Economy, Golden Gaming, Hard Rock International, Harrah's, International, Lawrence Ho, Marketing, Maryland, MGM Mirage, New York, Penn National, Pinnacle Entertainment, Station Casinos, Technology, Tribal | 2 Comments

What’s in a name?

Posted on April 3, 2017 by David McKee

Quite a lot, if you happen to be the late Sen. Pat McCarran (D). Not only is Nevada‘s largest airport named after you (not inaptly — the anti-New Deal, pro-fascist McCarran’s signature achievements included splitting off the Air Force as a … Continue reading →

Posted in Cordish Co., Donald Trump, Harry Reid, history, International, Movies, Politics, Sports, Steve Wynn, Transportation | Comments Off

Shawn The Sham; Cal-Neva in limbo

Posted on March 31, 2017 by David McKee

“They got the signatures to put it on the ballot and they are going to be spending millions of dollars on advertising, probably six weeks prior to this Election Day in November, to convince people to vote for it. It … Continue reading →

Posted in Galaxy Entertainment, Harrah's, Horseracing, International, Japan, Maine, Nevada, North Dakota, Penn National, Politics, Regulation, South Korea, Technology | Comments Off

Trump’s Amman Castle?; Wynn goes 0-for-2

Posted on March 30, 2017 by David McKee

Gambling is illegal in Jordan but that doesn’t stop Donald Trump. The new president’s company has renewed the trademark for a Jordanian casino. This won’t play well with religious hawks in the Hashemite kingdom, who went into full cry when … Continue reading →

Posted in Donald Trump, Genting, Glenn Straub, International, Internet gambling, Japan, Macau, Revel, Steve Wynn, The Strip | Comments Off

Slim hope for North Dakota casinos; Russians hack U.S. slot machines

Posted on March 22, 2017 by David McKee

North Dakota lawmakers are still averse to the idea of state-owned casinos (which caused a fair number of birthing pains for Kansas) but they split the baby on casino expansion this week. While the House Judiciary Committee still stamped “do … Continue reading →

Posted in Atlantic City, International, Law enforcement, Missouri, North Dakota, Pennsylvania, PokerStars, Politics, Problem gambling, Sheldon Adelson, Singapore, Tilman Fertitta, Tribal | Comments Off

Palace, soon with 100% less Station; Casinos nixed in North Dakota

Posted on March 21, 2017 by David McKee

Palace Station was the Fertitta Brothers‘ first go at a big locals casino and it is, let’s face it, a little crude in its theming, at least by the standards we have come to expect. That’s OK: The Fertittas got … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, Dining, Dubai, Harrah's, history, International, MGM Mirage, North Dakota, Politics, Station Casinos, The Strip | 1 Comment

Ho taunts Adelson; Turnover at Wynn

Posted on February 23, 2017 by David McKee

Both Sheldon Adelson and Jim Murren have anted up $10 billion for a Japanese megaresort. The fever is catching. Melco Crown International CEO Lawrence Ho went completely off his rocker and vowed to spend any amount whatsoever for a casino … Continue reading →

Posted in Architecture, International, Japan, Law enforcement, Lawrence Ho, Macau, Melco Crown Entertainment, MGM Mirage, Regulation, Scientific Games, Sheldon Adelson, Steve Wynn, The Strip | 1 Comment

Cool breeze in Singapore; Pennsylvania gets on the sports-betting bandwagon

Posted on February 17, 2017 by David McKee

It seems more unlikely than ever that Singapore will issue casino concessions after gaming revenues laid an egg in 1Q-3Q/16. For the full year, tourism to Singapore reached record heights, but receipts for “sightseeing, entertainment and gaming” dropped 16% in the … Continue reading →

Posted in Australia, Dining, Donald Trump, Foxwoods, Idaho, International, James Packer, Law enforcement, Massachusetts, MGM Mirage, Mohegan Sun, Pennsylvania, Politics, Singapore, South Korea, Sports, The Crown 18, Tribal | Comments Off

MGM lands big fish; Black-market casino busted in Georgia

Posted on February 16, 2017 by David McKee

MGM Resorts International took it on the chops from Deutsche Bank analyst Carlo Santarelli, who said of 4Q16 results that they “were undoubtedly surprising, in the wrong direction in this instance as property EBITDA fell well short of forecasts, most … Continue reading →

Posted in Boyd Gaming, California, Donald Trump, Dubai, Georgia, International, Internet gambling, Law enforcement, Macau, Maryland, MGM Mirage, Regulation, The Strip, Tribal, Wall Street | 1 Comment

Station, Culinary at it again; Attack of the Russian slot cheats

Posted on February 14, 2017 by David McKee

After reaching a fragile labor peace with Station Casinos, the Culinary Union is heading for another scrum with the company, publishing a petition to “Stations Casino” [sic!], detailing various and sundry workplace complaints, such as “first aid supplies were not … Continue reading →

Posted in California, Culinary Union, Georgia, International, Law enforcement, MGM Mirage, New York, Penn National, Politics, South Carolina, Station Casinos, Technology, Tribal, Tropicana Entertainment, Wall Street | Comments Off