Category Archives: Regulation

Getting serious in Massachusetts; i-Flop in Delaware

Posted on January 27, 2014 by David McKee

A drive to repeal Massachusetts‘ casino-enabling legislation has got Bay State operators-to-be taking it very seriously. They’ve filed with the state Supreme Court to have it stricken from the state ballot. (The state’s attorney general, Martha Coakley, pictured, has already … Continue reading →

Posted in Cannery Casino Resorts, Delaware, Election, Illinois, Internet gambling, Massachusetts, Mohegan Sun, Penn National, Regulation, Slot routes | Comments Off

The importance of being Steve Wynn

Posted on January 23, 2014 by David McKee

How can you pitch a multi-billion-dollar casino in largely extemporaneous fashion, bereft of glossy renderings or a video fly-through. By being Steve Wynn, that’s how. His pitch to the Massachusetts Gaming Commission seems to have been less about touting the … Continue reading →

Posted in Downtown, Foxwoods, Genting, Massachusetts, Mohegan Sun, Regulation, Rhode Island, Steve Wynn | Comments Off

Case Bets: Massachusetts, Biloxi, Betcoin and Cosmo

Posted on January 22, 2014 by David McKee

In a TV interview, Massachusetts Gaming Commission Chairman Stephen Crosby tipped his hand, indicating that approval of MGM Springfield is far more likely than not. However, the MGC might be making some demands of its own, above and beyond what … Continue reading →

Posted in Cirque du Soleil, Cosmopolitan, Derek Stevens, Downtown, Entertainment, Harrah's, Massachusetts, MGM Mirage, Mississippi, New York, Regulation, Taxes, Technology, The Strip | Comments Off

Case Bets: Atlantic City, Wisconsin & Illinois

Posted on January 17, 2014 by David McKee

Transparency in gaming sustained a couple of blows this week. A proposed ‘black book’ to keep felons out of Illinois slot routes was blocked by legislative forces this week. The excuse given was that the Illinois Gaming Board was acting … Continue reading →

Posted in Atlantic City, Cordish Co., Harrah's, Illinois, Politics, Regulation, Tilman Fertitta, Tribal, Tropicana Entertainment, Wisconsin | Comments Off

They burn the Monte Carlo, don’t they?; Cantor gets slammed

Posted on January 14, 2014 by David McKee

Yes, there’s been another fire at the Monte Carlo. This one was confined to the Double Barrel Saloon and there was only one injury, most importantly. That place has some rough luck, doesn’t it? It doesn’t matter what Cantor Gaming … Continue reading →

Posted in Bally Technologies, Cantor Gaming, Current, Horseracing, MGM Mirage, Monte Carlo fire, Regulation, The Strip | Comments Off

Biloxi comes back

Posted on January 13, 2014 by David McKee

Time was when Biloxi was considered one of the three premier casino resorts in America. That, of course, was before Hurricane Katrina literally swept the city’s casino fleet from its moorings. The city has been trying to right the ship … Continue reading →

Posted in Economy, Hard Rock International, Harrah's, history, Iowa, MGM Mirage, Mississippi, Regulation | Comments Off

Rampart Casino: 15 years already?

Posted on January 10, 2014 by David McKee

It’s difficult — and sobering — to realize that it’s been 15 years since Swiss Casinos opened The Resort at Summerlin, a costly fiasco now known as Rampart Casino. Certainly, its hoity-toity original owners would have been dismayed beyond measure … Continue reading →

Posted in Current, G2E, Iowa, Japan, North Las Vegas, Penn National, Regulation | Comments Off

Quote of the Day

Posted on January 8, 2014 by David McKee

“The writing is on the wall: the encroachment of the Internet cannot be stopped and neither can consumer demand. Anyone who doesn’t believe that online gaming is here to stay should ask Blockbuster if streaming movies online was merely a fad.” — … Continue reading →

Posted in Geoff Freeman, Internet gambling, Regulation | Comments Off

Freeman vs. the Evil Empire

Posted on January 7, 2014 by David McKee

Sheldon Adelson. That’s who American Gaming Association President Geoff Freeman is preparing to take on, as the AGA beefs up its lobbying staff. It’s a bipartisan group that includes 2012 Obama campaign guru Jim Messina. Freeman demurs that it isn’t … Continue reading →

Posted in Cantor Gaming, Internet gambling, Marketing, Penn National, Politics, Racinos, Regulation, Sheldon Adelson, West Virginia | 1 Comment

Britney F. Spears & other Case Bets

Posted on January 7, 2014 by David McKee

Strip gyp: What does $25,000 buy you? At Planet Hollywood it will get you one-twentieth of a minute with Britney F. Spears. Either the currency of celebrity has become inflated beyond measure or our 15 minutes of fame have shrunk … Continue reading →

Posted in Dining, Entertainment, Genting, Harrah's, Macau, New York, Planet Hollywood, Racinos, Regulation, Sam Nazarian, The Strip | Comments Off

Caesars turns up heat on Crosby

Posted on January 3, 2014 by David McKee

Perhaps realizing that the previous version of its lawsuit against Massachusetts Gaming Commission Chairman Stephen Crosby was a dog that wouldn’t hunt, Caesars Entertainment has reloaded with an amended complaint. Now it says that Crosby urged Steve Wynn, when the … Continue reading →

Posted in Colony Capital, Cordish Co., Economy, Florida, Harrah's, Massachusetts, Regulation, Steve Wynn | 1 Comment

Test time in Massachusetts; Penn, PokerStars fight over scraps

Posted on January 2, 2014 by David McKee

Move over, Tolstoy: MGM Resorts International has submitted its formal application for a Massachusetts casino … and it’s 7,000 pages long. The Massachusetts Gaming Commission had better clear its calendar. But that’s nothing compared to 16,034-page Mohegan Tribal Gaming Authority … Continue reading →

Posted in Atlantic City, CityCenter, Colony Capital, Hard Rock International, Harrah's, Massachusetts, MGM Mirage, Mohegan Sun, Penn National, Regulation, Steve Wynn, Tropicana Entertainment | Comments Off

Nevada finishing year strong; Christie’s choler

Posted on December 31, 2013 by David McKee

With a little help from one extra weekend day, Nevada gross gaming revenues shot upward 12% statewide in November and 23% on the Strip. Baccarat players lost their shirts, with the house winning 94% more than the previous year. Less … Continue reading →

Posted in Atlantic City, Boulder Strip, Cordish Co., Current, Downtown, Economy, Harrah's, Laughlin, Maryland, Massachusetts, MGM Mirage, North Las Vegas, Penn National, Regulation, Reno, Steve Wynn, The Strip, Tilman Fertitta, Trump Entertainment Resorts | 2 Comments

Overexuberance in New Jersey, generosity in Maryland

Posted on December 27, 2013 by David McKee

New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie (R) is setting himself up for a fall with his blue-sky projections of Internet-gambling revenue. Eilers Research has projected that it will take two or three years for gambling revenue to reach $227 million … … Continue reading →

Posted in Atlantic City, Economy, Goldman Sachs, Harrah's, history, Illinois, Internet gambling, Macau, Maryland, Massachusetts, Regulation, Slot routes, Taxes, The Mob, The Strip, Wall Street | Comments Off

Case Bets: Britney, Bally, Sheldon & O’Shea’s

Posted on December 27, 2013 by David McKee

Tonight’s a big night for Planet Hollywood, as it debuts its new, Britney Spears headliner show. However, judging from public disinterest in Spears’ recent TV special, Caesars Entertainment may be drawing to a weak hand. “Bally Technologies Inc. received some … Continue reading →

Posted in Bally Technologies, Entertainment, Harrah's, Regulation, Sheldon Adelson, The Strip | Comments Off

Mohegan Sun scolded; Atlantic Club’s death throes

Posted on December 24, 2013 by David McKee

City fathers in Palmer, Massachusetts, have had a sudden falling-out with Mohegan Tribal Gaming Authority. They’ve accused Mohegan Sun of deliberately tanking the Nov. 5 election through “a deliberate pattern of delay and mismanagement.” As such, they’ll be joining the … Continue reading →

Posted in Atlantic City, Cordish Co., Hard Rock International, Harrah's, Indiana, Massachusetts, Mohegan Sun, Regulation, Revel, Steve Wynn, Taxes, Tilman Fertitta, Tropicana Entertainment, Trump Entertainment Resorts | Comments Off

And it’s … MGM again

Posted on December 23, 2013 by David McKee

Add Massachusetts to the roster of states where MGM Resorts International has been approved to operate. It received the unanimous assent of the Massachusetts Gaming Commission earlier today. “The Commission … finds that the Applicant has satisfied its burden of … Continue reading →

Posted in Current, Election, Greenwood Racing, Maryland, Massachusetts, MGM Mirage, Penn National, Regulation, Steve Wynn, Uncategorized | Comments Off

Curtains for Atlantic Club; Foxwoods rides again

Posted on December 23, 2013 by David McKee

In a curious bankruptcy-court resolution, the Atlantic Club Hotel was sold to two buyers. Tropicana Entertainment — probably getting the better part of the deal — paid $8.4 million for the gambling equipment and player database. Caesars Entertainment spent $15 … Continue reading →

Posted in Atlantic City, CityCenter, Colony Capital, Foxwoods, Harrah's, Massachusetts, Regulation, Steve Wynn, The Strip, Tribal, Tropicana Entertainment, Wall Street, Wisconsin | Comments Off

And it’s … MGM

Posted on December 20, 2013 by David McKee

This news is so hot off the wires Howard Stutz has only had time to tweet it but Prince George’s County has chosen MGM Resorts International for its new casino license. Pleas by Greenwood Racing for an extension had been … Continue reading →

Posted in Current, Greenwood Racing, Maryland, Massachusetts, MGM Mirage, Penn National, Regulation | 2 Comments

Poster cuts his losses; Showdown in Lansing

Posted on December 19, 2013 by David McKee

Gaming executive Tim Poster has bounced hither and yon, and now he’s asking to be bounced to the outer fringes of the casino industry. His attorneys will not be challenging the Nevada Gaming Control Board‘s finding of unsuitability and will … Continue reading →

Posted in Charity, Internet gambling, Maryland, MGM Mirage, Mohegan Sun, Regulation, Station Casinos, Steve Wynn, Tribal | Comments Off