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INSIDE GAMING: Adelson's Property Portfolio May Grow

Despite all the talk about the Palazzo, the new resort that developer Sheldon Adelson is planning adjacent to The Venetian, industry sources tell us the local billionaire is still in an acquisition-and-expansion mode. We hear talk behind the scenes involves three hotel-casinos that would be new for Adelson. Supposedly, however, scenarios change daily so there's no reason to expect definitive announcements anytime soon.

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If you believe the betting public, Sen. John Kerry still trails President Bush, but he's catching up. Futures contracts on the Iowa Electronic Markets show Bush's edge has slipped from 10 percent in June to about 2 percent. The University of Iowa's electronic market has correctly called elections three-quarters of the time since it was set up 36 years ago. Experts attribute the success rate to people being more thoughtful when they're putting their money on the table.

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Old-timers at the Adventuredome in Circus Circus expect the indoor amusement extravaganza to stay open, whether or not MGM Mirage wins its bid to take over Mandalay Resort Group for $7.9 billion. Why? Since it opened a decade ago, the park has attracted about 3 million visitors a year. It ranks as No. 11 in visitor volume among theme parks in North America and 19th worldwide.

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The American Civil Liberties Union last week reported that FBI snooping on the gaming industry in Las Vegas proves the government has "gone fishing" with its new anti-terrorism powers. Citing reports in the Review-Journal, the ACLU found the FBI had vacuumed up information on Las Vegas visitors over the holidays. "The FBI thus indiscriminately scrutinized the lawful activities of an estimated 270,000 Americans based on no individualized suspicion of wrongdoing," the ACLU said. (Ironically, the incident came as the city was conducting an advertising campaign based on the slogan 'what happens here, stays here.')

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Government sources shocked local leaders last week with claims that tourism and casinos officials' decision making was affected by concerns about legal liability. But last December, local freelance writer Steve Friess wrote a Boston Globe article about the vulnerability of the gaming industry in Las Vegas and the ire police incurred from local political and tourism leaders for sharing candid assessments. Even then, Mayor Oscar Goodman was described as angry over the criticism.

The Inside Gaming column is compiled by Gaming Wire Editor Rod Smith. You can contact him by phone at (702) 477-3893, fax (702) 387-5243 or e-mail at rsmith@reviewjournal.com.

Copyright GamingWire. All rights reserved.

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