Tag: Comment
Michael Pollock: “I do not believe US casinos have anything to fear from inflation”
Casino Review asked Michael Pollock, MD of Spectrum Gaming Group, how rising inflation in the US could impact casino operators.
Wynn warns of iGaming gold rush
Global Betting and Gaming Consultants director Warwick Bartlett cautions departing Wynn Resorts CEO Matt Maddox’s recent comment on the amounts US operators are spending to acquire iGaming customers could be the canary in the coal mine of what is to come.
Deana Scott: The pandemic saw marketing to “go back to basics”
Deana Scott, CEO of Raving - a USbased casino consultancy working with Tribes throughout the US, as well as First Nations in Canada - offers an insight into how Tribal operators have addressed the marketing challenges posed by the coronavirus pandemic.
The economy in 2021: the boom is coming
While a full recovery from the economic impact of the coronavirus pandemic will take time, Warwick Bartlett, director of Global Betting and Gaming Consultants, suggests there is significant pent-up demand for gambling, with casino resorts likely to be among the key beneficiaries as holiday-starved tourists begin travelling again.
Riding out the storm: Tribal casinos find a new clientele during the pandemic
Casino Review caught up with Grant Eve, a partner at Wipfli, to take a look at some of the findings and best practice identified in the 2020 edition of the accounting and consulting firm’s Indian Gaming Cost of Doing Business Report. Following a tumultuous 12 months, we also discussed the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on the tribal sector and what it might mean for this year’s edition of the report.
“Today’s political landscape is unlike any other in modern times”
In an address marking Inauguration Day on 20 January, National Indian Gaming Association chairman Ernie Stevens Jr emphasised that despite “significant challenges”, including the COVID-19 pandemic and a related economic crisis, as the Biden-Harris Administration begins, “significant opportunities” lie ahead
Smoke ‘em if you got ‘em
Amid concerns about the return of smoking in US casinos, Steve Norton, chairman and CEO of Norton Management and a former casino executive holding senior roles at Sands, Gold River Gaming and Argosy Gaming among others, suggests separate smoking areas would be preferable to a total ban.
Online gaming risks cannibalising established landbased sector
As an increasing number of US states look to legalise online gaming and sports betting, Steve Norton, chairman and CEO of Norton Management and a former casino executive holding senior roles at Sands, Gold River Gaming and Argosy Gaming among others, asks if region governments aren’t robbing Peter to pay Paul.
Corona is fast forwarding our industry’s development
Christer Fahlstedt, CEO of Finnish gaming operator Paf, acknowledges national loss limits represent the shape of things to come but contends that rather than taking an adversarial approach to online gambling, European governments must “shoulder the responsibility” of ensuring the sector is properly regulated.
Is money the root of all regulation?
Regulus Partners’ Dan Waugh comments on the recent review of Britain’s Gambling Commission by the National Audit Office, arguing it increases the threat level to the UK industry, before turning to the regulator’s latest statistics which show public perception is moving to dangerous territory.
Viewpoint: Creating an unlevel playing field
Warwick Bartlett, CEO of Global Betting and Gaming Consultants, explains that while a decision to cut the maximum stake for online slots to £2 in the UK would benefit land-based casinos in the short-term, it could well see the Treasury looking to recoup the lost revenue from other sectors of the gambling industry
On the Beach: Goa’s casino policy in irons
Having apparently abandoned what seemed to be its most feasible policy proposal in years, Goa’s government seems rudderless when it comes..
A year in the life of the British regulator: Rising costs, expanding reach and not everything is exactly what it
While the British model is frequently lauded as the way forward for gaming regulation, the UK’s gaming industry takes a more critical view of its regulator, calling out its high-handed treatment of operators and failure to engage in a meaningful dialogue with the sector. In an article originally published in our sister title Coinslot, Ken Scott reads between the...
Africa comment: Tax will make fools of us all
In what for now ends one of the more frustrating will-they-won’t-they scenarios in Africa, the members of the Kenyan parliament have ratified a decision to financially maim its casino market and expect it to keep working.
The powers that be have decided that the best way to support the underperforming sector is to uphold a 35 percent revenue tax and...
CasinoCoin herald dawn of Blockchain at Juegos Miami
‘The most exciting thing we’ve seen since the early days of the Internet’ is how John Caldwell, Director of Advocacy at the CasinoCoin Foundation, describes the ever-expanding world of Blockchain.
Ahead of a dedicated panel on Blockchain technology at this year’s Juegos Miami (May 30 – June 1, Biltmore Hotel, Miami), Caldwell addresses the legalities for the solution in Latin...
Hugo Baungartner explores Brazil ahead of Juegos Miami
60 Second Interview: RCT's COO Hugo Baungartner discusses Brazil’s transformation ahead of Juegos Miami
Hugo Baungartner, COO at Brazilian consultancy RCT Gaming, is one of the many expert authorities taking part in this year’s Juegos Miami (May 30 - June 1, Miami Biltmore Hotel). Ahead of his participation in the Juegos Miami Country Roundtables feature, which provides delegates with an...
Chile’s casino industry at risk of stagnation
Francisco Leiva Vega, former superintendent of the national regulator, the Superintendencia de Casinos de Juego (SCJ), discusses the factors which led to one of the worst years for Chilean casino revenue in recent memory.
International Casino Review: 2017 has been one of Chile’s worst years for casino revenue. What are the factors that have contributed to these results?
Francisco Leiva Vega:...
Interview: Advansys highlights potential of Nexio CMS
International Casino Review caught up with Tina Stolfa, Advansys’ regional sales manager to discuss the features that set the company’s Nexio casino management system apart in a crowded marketplace.
International Casino Review: Advansys is based around a single core product, the Nexio casino management system, could you tell us more about this?
Tina Stolfa: Nexio is Advansys’ next generation casino management...
Atlantic City showing growth across the board
All eyes may be on the Supreme Court as it hosts arguments for why Atlantic City should have sports betting, but back on the boardwalk, land-based casinos have been continuing their rise up from recession.
When workers removed the tarpaulin from a roadside sign some dozen blocks away from the shuttered Trump Taj Mahal there was little in the way...
UK: hanging in the balance post election
After Theresa May’s election gamble spectacularly backfired, businesses in the UK are facing a period of uncertainty, but Warwick Bartlett, CEO and founder of Global Betting & Gaming Consultancy, suggests that a period of political inactivity in the wake of the hung parliament could have a silver lining.
For UK business, the 2017 general election (part 1?) result which produced...
Is Japan on track for a Floating World of integrated resorts?
While on paper, the opening of a market in Japan might seem an inevitability, the process still appears beset by ambiguities suggests Edward Lowton.
Levon Helm captured it best when he sang on the Band’s 1993 song, Move to Japan, “they’re taking all hands in the land of the Risin’ Sun.” But with the next emerging integrated resort market on...
Resorts World back on track as Imperial Pacific set for July opening
The finish line is in sight for Saipan’s Imperial Pacific, Resorts World Manila is allowed to reopen with beefed-up security, while Japan’s famous longevity apparently extends to its gambling industry as the authorities close what appears to be one of the country’s oldest illegal venues.
Saipan casino operator Imperial Pacific International Holdings (IPI) will open its permanent gaming venue this...
Tides turning on Atlantic City fortunes
Gaming in New Jersey is on the rise following a period of poor performances, with investment into Atlantic City properties and a boost in revenues from casinoregulated online gaming reinvigorating the market, reports Tom Rush.
Atlantic City, and all its mansions of glory, has weathered turbulence becoming of its position of coastal exposure, but it now appears the clouds of...
Tribal disparity leading some to pot
The results are in, and American tribal gaming now dwarves its commercial opposition, showing that whilst Vegas may stay the epoch of gambling in the minds of many, the plethora of smaller premises have finally chipped away at the sleeping giant. However, if this is to continue rampant performance disparity must be allayed and a more cohesive, national force...
MGEMA: Keeping a focus on growth, diversity and opportunity
The Macau Gaming Equipment Machine Manufacturers Association represents a membership that arguably delivers the largest gaming revenues anywhere on the planet. Marking its fifth anniversary this summer, the association has made significant progress in its short life-span, but this year has seen a bolder direction on its agenda. With so much change on the Macau horizon, driven through both...
Macau: From fizzling to sizzling to sustainable recovery
Macau’s monthly figures keep outrunning expectations. But as mainland China moves to address soaring corporate debt, inevitably tightening the money supply, the VIP glory days’ light is all but burnt out. Attention turns now to the city’s saving grace.
As Macau reacquaints itself with the spotlight, another truth lurks in shadows that all the city’s stakeholders will be at pains...
G2E 2016: skill games, sports-betting, and cross-sector collaboration
This year’s G2E line-up is sure to tick all the right boxes as before – but that wont stop it from trying to break new ground with respect to product, legislation and tribal/commercial dialogue. Chris Webster reports.
September comes around once more – and with it, another G2E.
Expectations with regards to the scale and organisation of the show are deservedly high: the...
Las Vegas rides high ahead of G2E Expo 2016
The global gaming industry heads to G2E this year as Las Vegas is positioned to break its 2015 visitation record.
July 2016 was the best month on record for Las Vegas visitation, after the destination welcomed more than 3.8 million visitors.
The latest statistics from the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (LVCVA) reinforce the continued strength in Las Vegas as...
Bangkok bettors, Machiavellis of poker and gaming bill with growing Paynes
The Bangkok Post takes a strong line on the European football betting epidemic; Science Daily uncovers the secrets of scheming card players and Online Poker Report scratches its head over John Payne’s online gambling bill.
The prime minister of Bangkok came under political pressure last month as campaigners demanded a crackdown on betting in the country – and some preemptive...
