Monthly Archives: February 2015

Kerzner International to Develop Two New One&Only Resorts on the Pacific Coast of Mexico

Kerzner International Holdings Limited has entered into an agreement with BK Partners, a private equity fund focused on tourism and land development, to develop and operate two new One&Only resorts on the Pacific Coast of Mexico. Kerzner International Holdings Limited has entered into an agreement with BK Partners, a private equity fund focused on tourism and land development, to develop and operate two new One&Only resorts on the Pacific Coast of Mexico.

Atlantic City aims to be tourism centered and less dependent on gambling

The Atlantic City council has approved non-gambling redevelopments on Wednesday, aiming to make the city a tourism centered and less dependent on gambling.

Three developments that got an approval were the expansion of Steel Pier to make way for the 205 ft. tall Ferris wheel with enclosed, climate-controlled cars and a zip line ride, as well as new eateries, entertainment and recreational facilities in Northeast Inlet, and an elevated walkway in Boardwalk to bring new business to the area.

“It’s a reinforcement of the importance of adding these other amenities,” said the Casino Reinvestment Development Authority (CRDA) Executive Director John Palmieri. “It’s a good step forward in the ongoing effort to reinforce those non-gambling sectors.”

CRDA will be contributing $8.1 million to the approximately $14 million-worth Ferris wheel project through a loan, which will be repaid from a portion of ride ticket revenue.

The plan has been in talks since 2007, the first year Atlantic City casinos posted declining revenues due to opening of casinos in Pennsylvania. This year, three of the eight Atlantic City casinos that survived 2014′s closings are in bankruptcy, which triggers the city to give people something fun to do in Atlantic City that does not involve gambling.

“We’ve been talking about doing this for 25 years,” said Anthony Catanoso, one of the owner of the family-owned business Steel Pier. “It’s one more example of an amenity we can provide that doesn’t depend on gambling. Observation wheels around the country are very successful, and they’ve become destinations in their own right. This will be the second- or third-tallest in the country, and no one has the view we have with the beachfront, the ocean and the skyline. It’s going to be phenomenal.”

Steel Pier is the home of the famous Diving Horse—an attraction that entertains people in Atlantic City even before the casino industry arrived.

bwin.party appoints two non-executives directors, Gala Coral hires new bingo head

Online gaming operator bwin.party has appointed Barry Gibson and Liz Catchpole as independent non-executive directors with effect from March 1.

Catchpole and Gibson will succeed Rod Perry Chairman of Remuneration and Helmut Kern Chairman of Audit & Risk Committee, who are both retiring from the board after the conclusion of the firm’s 2015 General Meeting.

Gibson, who currently serves as chairman of HomeServe and Harding Retail Group, worked as the senior independent director and chairman of the remuneration committee at William Hill and Playtech, as well as HomeServe and National Express Group and Catchpole is a chartered certified accountant with executive experience primarily across the insurance, business services and property sectors.

bwin.party confirmed that it is in the search for independent directors, following its May 2014 announcement that the firm would restructure its board of directors in order to gain expertise in information technology, market trends and technology delivery in consumer-facing digital businesses.

“I am very pleased to welcome Liz and Barry to bwin.party. Their backgrounds will complement the portfolio of skills and experience of the other directors, whilst also filling the gaps left by Rod and Helmut when they retire later this year,” said bwin.party Chairman Philip Yea.

Gibson will take the role of chairman of the remuneration committee and senior independent director, with Catchpole being appointed as chairman of the audit and risk committee.

Meanwhile, Gala Coral appointed its marketing specialist Victoria Reed as head of the Playtech-powered Gala Bingo brand, directly reporting to Gala brand director Alison Digges.

First ever fantasy sports combine to be held at Wynn Las Vegas

The fantasy sports industry is growing at such a rapid pace that there doesn’t appear to be any ceiling on how big it can get this year. We already know about the massive gains attributed to FanDuel and DraftKings, two of the biggest daily fantasy sports sites in the business today. The former has even announced that it would be hosting the 2015 World Fantasy Basketball Championship in Miami, Florida from April 9 to 11, 2015.

Now, another “first in the business” has been announced and it’s called the Fantasy Sports Combine. The name pretty much explains what you can expect from the three-day event scheduled from July 17 to 19, 2015 at the Wynn Las Vegas and Encore. The use of the word “combine” is of course attributed to the NFL Scouting Combine, a place where college football players showcase their skills and talents in front of scouts, coaches, and front office personnel of NFL teams.

The concept is pretty much the same with the Fantasy Sports Combine even if the purpose is different. Instead of trying to impress team officials, the Fantasy Sports Combine is being prepared to become the go- to place for fantasy sports enthusiasts who are looking for “game-changing insights and strategies on how to win daily, weekly and season long leagues.”

The driving force behind the Fantasy Sports Combine is Drew “Bo” Brownstein, a former hedge fund manager who served a four-month prison term for insider trading. Having already left that part of his life behind him, Bronwstein came up with the idea of the convention last year, just as the popularity of the daily fantasy sports market began gaining serious steam.

“Fantasy sports touches everyone from the head trader at Goldman Sachs to a guy working 60 hours a week at the post office,” Brownstein told Bloomberg. “And it touches both men and women. Its popularity is booming and only getting bigger.”

To his credit, Brownstein is doing his part to make the Fantasy Sports Combine a legitimate event that fantasy sports players from all over North America, maybe even the world, can go to.

He has already assembled a slew of sports personalities who will be part of the three-day event. From proclaimed “fantasy gurus” like Yahoo Sports’ Brad Evans and DirecTV’s John Hansen to legendary coaches like Mike Shanahan and Mike Ditka, the Fantasy Sports Combine is shaping up to be a true spectacle for the industry.

British Poker Awards Welcomes Special Guest Jorryt van Hoof

World Series of Poker third-place finisher to play in special pro-am tournament at London ceremony

19 February 2015, London, UK (Press Release) — Organisers of the British Poker Awards, taking place in London on 23 February 2015, are proud to announce a special guest at this year’s ceremony at London’s Hippodrome Casino: World Series of Poker third-place finisher Jorryt van Hoof.

Van Hoof, one of Europe’s most respected players with more than $4m in live poker earnings, will have a bounty on his head at a specially-arranged pro-am tournament after the ceremony, organised by poker magazine Bluff Europe and sponsored by leading poker site Unibet.

Unibet will be giving away a range of special prizes, both for the winner of the tournament and for anyone who knocks out any of the five bounties. Poker fans can guarantee themselves a seat in the tournament by buying a ticket from www.hippodrome.com.

All guests will be able to enjoy a glitzy drinks reception courtesy of RankingHero.com, the world’s fastest-growing social poker platform. Some of the stars of the UK poker scene, including Liv Boeree, Neil Channing and Victoria Coren Mitchell, have already confirmed their attendance.

“With the awards just a few days away, we’re hugely excited to welcome one of the standout poker players of 2014 for our fifth anniversary. Whoever knocks out Jorryt van Hoof from our pro-am tournament is set for a fantastic prize, so you won’t want to miss out!” said Michael Caselli, Bluff Europe Editor-in-Chief.

Tickets for the British Poker Awards are available to the public from www.hippodromecasino.com.

Iconic Vegas casino could be destroyed to make way for convention center

Liberace played the opening act in 1955. Frank Sinatra once famously lived in one of its suites when he was a regular headline act in the 1990s. For all of Las Vegas’ iconic casinos, none stood taller than the Riviera Hotel & Casino. At least that was the sentiment in the past.

Despite its iconic status in Las Vegas, the Riviera is not immune to the changing times and if the board of directors for the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (LVCVA) decide to buy the casino, the Riviera could very well be on its last days.

According to multiple reports, the LVCVA is in the final stages on deciding whether to buy the casino for the specific purpose of destroying it to make way for its $2.3 billion expansion plan for the Las Vegas Convention Center. Should the board give the green light on the sale, it is expected to pay $182.5 million to purchase the property from current owner the Riviera Holdings Corporation. As soon as that transaction is completed, the LVCVA will also spend an additional $8.5 million to pay for costs to close it down, or to be more specific, to raze it to the ground to make way for its expansion plans for the new convention center.

The Riviera currently sits on a 26-acre property, so the LVCVA will have plenty of space to follow through on building a host of amenities on the property, including 750,000 square feet of exhibition space. Before any of the newer and more modern operators began building their casinos in Las Vegas, the Riviera stood as one of the best in the city. It was considered as the first high-rise casino on the Strip, boasting around 2,000 hotel rooms and as much as 100,000 square feet of gambling space. It was the place to be in Las Vegas back then, having earned the reputation as a playground for some of the biggest celebrities in the world.

Now, all it has are memories of the halcyon days of Vegas gambling, a time when it stood tallest among the tall and biggest among the big. It has since been overshadowed – literally and figuratively – by more opulent resorts on the Strip and with it came an erosion in popularity among tourists.

So if the LVCVA votes in favor of purchasing the Riviera, we could be seeing a true end of an era for a casino that was one of the first to uphold Las Vegas’ reputation as a tourist and gambler’s paradise.

Adelson Gets His Wish: RAWA Hearing Scheduled for March 5th

According to Michelle Minton, there will be a hearing on the Restoration of America’s Wire Act (RAWA), the online gambling ban proposed by Sheldon Adelson and introduced into the House of Representatives by Jason Chaffetz (R-UT), on March 5th in the House Subcommittee on Crime, Terrorism, Homeland Security, and Investigations. Chaffetz is a member of the committee.

Chaffetz, along with Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC), first introduced RAWA last March, but neither the House or Senate version was brought up in committee in 2014. There was a late push to try to get the bill included in the trillion-dollar CRomnibus spending bill that passed in the Lame Duck session of 2014, but these efforts came up short.

What to expect on March 5th

How the hearing will go depends entirely on who is called to testify. Adelson’s allies have proven they’re not ready for prime time in previous hearings, often stumbling over their own talking points and unable to adequately answer questions on the inherent hypocrisy of a casino mogul opposing online gambling.

MGM to renovate MGM Macau; receives waiver to demolish old Zanetti school in Springfield

Few hours after MGM China Holdings Ltd. posted its Q4 and fiscal year revenue results for 2014, the company announced its plan to invest $100m this year to renovate its MGM Macau Hotel and casino.

MGM Chief Executive Grant Bowie said that the investment for the refurbishment of its hotel-casino is a way to remain competitive.

“Our future capital projects for MGM Macau include a redesigned main floor layout to improve traffic flow and operating efficiencies; as well we will be introducing a range of non-gaming products in the form of over 15 new retail outlets and re-conceptualized food and beverage offerings to add capacity and diversity,” Bowie added.

The company expects minimum impact to operations from the main floor revamp and finish the renovation by 3Q of this year.

The MGM Macau renovation plans started last year, which the company spent $45 million. The overall changes will include a total of 27 separate projects, which will be carried out over the period of three years.

MGM’s second Macau property, MGM Cotai, is due to open in in the second half of 2016 and was estimated at US$2.9 billion.

“Construction of the hotel towers have now reached the 16th floor and progress is moving quickly,” Bowie said.

Resorts AC to Launch Real Money iGaming by Month's End

The Resorts Casino in Atlantic City has received approval to offer iGaming in New Jersey, but not with PokerStars. The company announced on Wednesday that they have received a transactional waiver to offer online gaming services through Sportech NYX Gaming LLC, which is a joint venture between Sportech PLC and NYX Gaming Group LTD.

Games will be offered through ResortsCasino.com and will feature primarily slot and table games. Online poker will not be spread at this time as Amaya is still trying to gain approval for PokerStars in the state.

Resorts is the oldest casino in Atlantic City and by far the smallest. Last year, the company only took in a combined $139.3 million in revenue. While this was a solid 6.6% gain year-over-year, it still trailed far behind every other property by year’s end. Borgata was the city’s top-earning casino in 2014, taking in $687 million.

When the site launches later this month, it will offer over 120 slot and table games. At least 40 of these games will be new offerings for the New Jersey iGaming community. Currently, the site offers free money slots only.