Gaming up nationally — but Louisiana gets hammered
America‘s casino industry had a winning month in January, up 3.5% to $3.4 billion. Even Illinois, which has never recovered from 
the smoking ban, was in the top four, behind Nevada (naturally), Pennsylvania and Louisiana. The only serious loser was West Virginia, ground between the millstones of Maryland and Ohio, down 15%. Speaking of Louisiana, it did not fare so well in February, down almost 7%. The fact that 2016 had one extra day doesn’t quite cut it as an explanation for some pretty mystifying declines.
With the exception of Golden Nugget (up 7% to $12 million), the normally lucrative Lake Charles market got body-slammed. Pinnacle Entertainment‘s L’Auberge du Lac ($23 million) tumbled 14% while Isle of Capri‘s casino plunged
opinion that the legal risks with the unusual deal “are not insubstantial and cannot be mitigated with confidence.” Let’s face it, Connecticut lawmakers were so panicked by MGM Springfield — and by losing the 25% of slot revenue they get from Mohegan Sun and Foxwoods — that they juiced the tribes into an arrangement of dubious constitutionality. Protecting the slot-revenue arrangement was of a higher priority than conducting an open process. The attorney general’s cautionary letter comes as the allied tribes had finally settled on a site, after much indecision, a defunct cineplex in East Windsor.
at a cost to existing casinos and the state lottery. None of the state’s 12 casinos wants to see slot routes legalized. Complicating matters still further, a rump faction of legislators wants to narrow the state’s options by 
Even Borgata ($58 million) was down a percentage point. Citywide, slot revenue was actually up to $132 million (+1.5%) but casinos took it on the chin from table games. Grossing $52 million, they were down 9%. Borgata was schizoid, down 5.5% in slot revenue despite 3% more coin-in. At the tables, revenue and wagering were both down 12%. The bright spot for the city was sensational Internet-gaming growth, up 27% to $19 million.
would require several weeks of due diligence before being formally announced, Sands and MGM have continue pretending that nothing is going on. However, two sources tell the Allentown Morning Call that the deal is practically done. The news has Wall Street analysts salivating. Some speculate that MGM could step aside and let its REIT handle the transaction. The lion 
down 11%. However, the fact that the declivity isn’t worse shows that MGM is growing the market, as it was intended to do. Despite generating almost $46 million in revenue, National Harbor was still a few decimal points behind Maryland Live. In terms of slot win per day, the two properties are running neck and neck, but when it comes to table win, MGM has a huge edge, with a probable $4,782/table/day against Live’s $2,921. The latter was 14% down from February 2016, while Horseshoe Baltimore ($22 million) ceded 12%.
rumblings emerging from Bethlehem at face value. Deutsche Bank‘s Carlo Santarelli says the casino generates significant ROI for Las Vegas Sands but a sale 
name entered the discussion. You know where the story hasn’t been? Yup. Sheldon Adelson‘s very own Las Vegas Review-Journal. The business desk clearly got a memo from The Boss to ignore the story and have diligently stuck their heads in the Sands. Instead 
Morning Call. 
started by explaining why fourth-quarter numbers had been “coming in well below investor expectations.” Despite that, MGM posted a record amount of convention-related business in 2016, although if you thought MGM had more hotel rooms on the Las Vegas Strip than it could possibly use, think again. Execs said “the [Donald] Trump travel ban resulted in a little glitch in late January, but business is back to normal.” Reading the tea leaves, J.P. Morgan analysts see another round of resort-fee increases, probably toward year’s end. As one analyst put it, room revenues “at core properties are still not at prior peak, but resort fees do help quite a bit.”
already are. But for Sturla it’s at least partly a matter of ratifying the status quo — 40,000 black-market slot machines — and taxing the heck out of it: 33% for the state and another 5%-10% for municipalities. Regulators are going to be kept busy separating the legal wheat from the illicit chaff but Pennsylvania’s budgetary woes are so great that Sturla’s proposal — 
Las Vegas Strip, Caesars will implement two tiers of fees. Better brace yourself for an extra $3 a night at top-line Caesars Palace, The Cromwell, Paris Las Vegas and Planet Hollywood. And pony up an extra buck at second-tier Bally’s, Flamingo Las Vegas, Harrah’s, Linq and The Rio. Among the goodies you’re ostensibly getting are use of the gym and in-room phone calls. Seriously, who uses those land lines anymore?
would represent a total cave-in on Chui’s drive to ban smoking from casino floors. The enclave seems to be working off a script supplied to it by the University of Macao (whose biggest booster is Steve Wynn) and paid for by Macao’s six casino concessionaires. Speaking of concessions, there were a few points on which Macanese officials would not yield. VIP smoking rooms would require special permits and Sociedade de Jogos de Macau CEO Ambrose So‘s pleas for a 12-to-18-month implementation period was dismissed as “too much.” Technical requirements for the lounges will also be made more stringent.
for “sightseeing, entertainment and gaming” 
29% to $19 million. Casinos as a whole grossed $186 million, a 6% increase despite having one fewer weekend than January 2016. Tables carried the day, up 20% to $60 million, while slots ($124 million) were flat. Borgata outperformed the market, rising 16% to $61 million, with tables bringing in $20 million (up 7%) and slots 6% higher than the market as a whole.
than “if.” Lawmakers are warming to Dan Lee‘s proposal to split Rising Sun‘s gaming inventory in half and move 50% to a new facility further upstate. The idea of relocating in Indianapolis 
reconfigured the main casino floor (mass market), adding new slot/poker sections and opening up the promotion area, and accessibility to the premium-mass area has also improved (basically, knocked down the walls from the main casino). From an accessibility standpoint, the property is now part of the Cotai Connect shuttle program (jointly run by other Cotai operators), and a taxi incentive program continues to be utilized.” More restaurants are also on the way. Perhaps emboldened by improving Macao results, Steve Wynn has put Paradise Park back in play, predicting a design revelation this spring, with construction to begin toward the end of the year. No word on whether the giant ape is still part of the plan or not. Finally, there’s a bit of cost creep at Wynn Boston Harbor, up $300 million to $2.3 billion. Isn’t it amazing how companies (and politicians) talk about hundreds of millions of dollars like it’s pocket change?
lottery. However, a study by the Massachusetts Gaming Commission finds that lottery-ticket sales not only failed to decline around Penn National Gaming‘s Plainridge Park, they continued to grow, albeit at a slower rate than other parts of the Bay State. There also has been little incidence of increased crime in the area. The MGC is keeping a watching brief on the issue and plans to monitor similar social phenomena in Springfield and Everett. Reports the American Gaming Association, “One oddity in the report is that while towns surrounding Plainridge had slower growth in lottery sales, Plainville, where the casino is located, had substantial growth.” Do casinos and lotteries coexist better than previously believed?