Inside Asian Gaming

INSIDE ASIAN GAMING | January 2008 10 Cover Story Is That Cool? One thing we don’t find particularly cool is harping on about your coolness. Log onto www.mgmgrandmacau.com, and you’ll find “The Player Test”, with such multiple choice questions as: Which makes a good companion? a. The footballer’s wife b. The Maths professor c. The sweet English teacher d. Whoever that pays the bill Perhaps the crafter of the test was too cool for school, or at least grammar class? If the correct answer is indeed the footballer’s wife, and you are not the footballer in question, is that cool? It’s all fun and games until someone gets a boot in the eye. future as a high-end casino operator.“If you’re going to be a signifi- cant player in the high-end business, you better be here in Macau. If a casino company is not here, it’ll be more difficult for them to attract and retain customers overseas, and it won’t be a significant player for a long period of time.”Although the evidence is“anecdotal”, he“really believes”recent reports that Wynn and Venetian in Las Vegas are see- ing a big boost from establishing relationships with players in Macau, who then visit Wynn or the Venetian when visiting the US. Follow-up support Among MGM MIRAGE’s future plans is a second property in Macau. MGM Grand Paradise Ltd has already located a site on the Cotai Strip for the follow-up property, and is currently working with the government on the terms for acquiring it. Mr Lanni describes the future Cotai property as “more boutique” than the other mega resorts set to emerge along Cotai—”I was lost once at The Venetian, and they found me three days later”, he quips. As for his own Cotai project:“You should think very high end, having more of a focus on entertainment, which we think is going to have ever increasing value here, in this marketplace.” Mr Lanni is generally very sanguine about Macau’s prospects.The main potential risk highlighted by analysts when discussing Macau’s prospects is that the Chinese central government may restrict the flow of mainland visitors to Macau. Mr Lanni believes this is highly unlikely, pointing out that ensuring Macau’s prosperity is vital to Bei- jing’s goal of convincing Taiwan back to the fold. “The central gov- ernment needs a stable Macau and Hong Kong to send a message to Taiwan that there can be rapprochement and unification—maybe rapprochement, since China always believes the unification is there anyway, it’s just a breakaway province. “The point is, I think these [Macau and Hong Kong] are the win- dows to the future to Taiwan.”Beijing is aware that Taiwan will closely watch “how it deals with these two particular administrative regions. To date, it [the central government] gets very good grades.”