Featured Articles Archive - Page 136

Inside Gaming: East Fremont development helps downtown casinos boom

Downtown Las Vegas is outshining the Strip.Through September, downtown casinos have seen gaming revenue increase almost 6% compared to 2014. During those same nine months, the Strip is down 1.5%.Boyd Gaming Corp., the only downtown casino operator that publicly reports financial results, said last month its casino-hotels produced three consecutive quarters of revenue growth and five straight quarters of cash flow increases."Each our three downtown properties (Main Street Station Casino Brewery and Hotel, Fremont Hotel & Casino and California Hotel & Casino) generated (cash flow) gains of 20% or more," said Boyd Gaming CEO Keith Smith.Wells Fargo Securities gaming analyst Cameron McKnight told investors downtown Las Vegas "is one of the fastest growing (casino) markets in the U.S...read more

Merger costs send Everi Holdings to quarterly loss

The effects of last year's $1.2 billion buyout of slot machine maker Multimedia Games is still being felt by Everi Holdings.The Las Vegas-based company — formerly known as Global Cash Access — reported a net loss of $6.1 million in the third quarter Tuesday, due primarily to merger costs...read more

Political watchdog group wants Sheldon Adelson investigated

A progressive political watchdog group wants Congress and the Federal Election Commission to investigate alleged ties between Las Vegas Sands Corp. Chairman Sheldon Adelson and reputed Chinese organized crime figures.A spokesman for Las Vegas Sands immediately dismissed the initiative by the Washington D.C.-based Campaign for Accountability as an "obvious political propaganda stunt" aimed at Adelson, who is a prolific financial contributor to Republican candidates and conservative causes.The group asked the chairman of the Senate Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs and the Federal Election Commission to investigate whether foreign money is illegally fueling campaign contributions to American politicians.Anne Weismann, the Campaign for Accountability's executive director, said in a statement that "federal authorities have long been concerned about the reach of the tentacles of Chinese organized crime." The organization pieced together almost 500 pages of documents — including internal Las Vegas Sands documents — court filings and news reports, describing relationships between Las Vegas Sands and junket businesses operated by alleged organized crime members.Much of the information submitted by the group surfaced long ago in the wrongful termination lawsuit filed against Las Vegas Sands by the former head of the company's Macau operations...read more

Station Casinos looking to sell Strip land parcel for $40 million

Station Casinos is trying to sell nearly 57 acres of undeveloped land on the far south end of the Strip for $40 million although one of the sale requirements is that the land not be used for gaming.The casino operator listed the 56.63-acre site with CBRE Las Vegas...read more

Macau gaming revenue dips for the 17th straight month

Macau's casino market saw gaming revenue dip for the 17th straight month during October, despite the opening of a multibillion dollar hotel-casino and the lucrative Golden Week holiday.The good news?The 28.4 percent decline snapped an eight-month winless streak by Macau casino operators of 30 percent or higher gaming revenue decreases, including an all-time record drop of 49 percent in February.For the record, Macau's Gaming Inspection and Coordination Bureau said Monday the region's 36 large and small casinos produced $2.5 billion in gaming revenue in October, which included five days of revenue from Melco-Crown's newly opened $3.2 billion Macau Studio City complex.Through October, Macau gaming revenue is down 35.5 percent for the year, following 2014's 2.6 percent decline, the first annual decrease reported by the market ever since casino gaming was expanded in 2003."October came in slightly weaker than we had anticipated," said Deutsche Bank gaming analyst Carlo Santarelli.Las Vegas Sands Corp., Wynn Resorts Ltd., and MGM Resorts International operate casinos in Macau and are building new resorts.Macau has been in a free-fall since last year, primarily because of the Chinese government's crackdown on corruption that ensnared operators of junket businesses tasked with bringing high-end gamblers to Macau casinos' private gambling salons...read more

ESPN WSOP Main Event coverage: Episodes XV and XVI

After seven days of play and 16 episodes, the World Series of Poker Main Event played down to the final table on Sunday night's coverage on ESPN.The remaining nine players will reconvene this Sunday night in the Penn & Teller Theater at the Rio All-Suite Hotel & Casino...read more

Top 10 tidbits and trends from the November Nine Era

It's been seven years since the World Series of Poker made the contentious decision to delay the Main Event final table, creating the November Nine phenomenon.While poker purists were outraged, ESPN and WSOP officials were steadfast in their defense that the pause was best for the game, creating more of a buzz and allowing the final table to be aired on "semi-live" TV."Our intent is to provide an even bigger stage for our players," said then-WSOP Commissioner Jeffrey Pollack back in May 2008 after the decision was announced...read more

Social gaming revolutionizes the casino floor as revenue continues to grow

A clearer picture of the convergence between social gaming and the casino floor was on full display inside the International Game Technology booth at last month's Global Gaming Expo.IGT utilized the gaming industry's largest trade show to unveil its slot machine themed after the Netflix series "Orange Is the New Black," an acclaimed comedy-drama about life inside a woman's prison.Simultaneously, the company launched "Orange Is the New Black" on its DoubleDown Casino social game platform.IGT spokesman Phil O'Shaughnessy said the action marked the first time the manufacturer released a marquee licensed brand across both social and land-based operations...read more

Nevada gaming revenue increases 1.5% in September

Statewide and Strip gaming revenue ended a three-month slide in September.The Gaming Control Board said Thursday casinos in Nevada collected $916.3 million from gamblers during the month, an increase of 1.5% from a year ago.On the Strip, casino revenue grew 2% to $504.8 million in September.Baccarat play on the Strip returned to more normal levels in September, with revenue from the game increasing 23.2% to $100.5 million while volume grew 16.5% to $751.9 million...read more

MGM Resorts forms REIT with 10 properties

MGM Resorts International said Thursday it will place 10 of its properties — including seven on the Strip — into a real estate investment trust that will be 70% owned by the casino giant, but will also offer the company "strategic and financial benefits."The Las Vegas-based company announced the REIT transaction in conjunction with its third-quarter earnings, which were overshadowed by the much anticipated news.MGM Resorts said in the last quarter it was completing a profit growth initiative to increase annual cash flow some $300 million by 2017...read more