Inside Asian Gaming

In Focus of which a significant proportion will be purchased locally or regionally, depending on the conditions prevailing in the regional economy. Supply chain benefits and clustering effects can be substantial in creating new business and employment opportunities within a region. Perhaps the most significant economic impact from the development of an Integrated Resort is visitor impact.An IR located in a capital city such as Singapore or Melbourne, or even those close to population centres such as Foxwood’s or Mohegan Sun,can generate significant visitor numbers sometimes exceeding ten million per annum (implying an average of upwards of 30,000 visitors per day.) Depending on location and the actual type and range of facilities offered, this may well result in millions of additional tourists visiting the region, resulting in incremental spend in the local communities as these visitors take tours, eat in local restaurants and stay at local accommodations (outside the IR) and spend time and money outside the Integrated Resort. At Genting Highlands in Malaysia, for example, it is estimated that approximately three million people visit the country annually specifically to visit the Resort. This represents around fifteen percent of total international visitors to Malaysia. Singapore,when it decided to establish two Integrated Resorts in the City-State, did so on the basis of the potential visitor impacts and the positive effects they would have on Singapore’s economy as well as its image. Singapore’s goal was to triple its tourist numbers over a period of twelve years and tomore than triple the resulting economic impact by attracting higher spending and thus higher value visitors to that country.When they open in 2010 or 2011, the two IRs will be critical in achieving that objective and will likely contribute more than fifty percent to Singapore’s long term goal by 2015. Another benefit of such developments is the regenerative power successful large scale Integrated Resorts can have on their particular locales. Such effects might include transportation infrastructure upgrades to the venue to cater to the visitors expected to be drawn to the area, as well as improvements in general facilities and amenities for guests as well as locals. A gravity effect of sorts also occurs with complementary leisure and entertainment facilities that might be developed nearby,as well as newhotel and apartment developments at different price points. Urbanisation in general leads to many mixed-use developments in and around cities, but this can be accentuated around Integrated Resorts due to the extent and range of leisure options that can be afforded under one roof. A multi-billion dollar IR can stimulate billions of dollars of additional developments within the local region as businesses and accommodation options cluster around the site. An excellent example of this can be found around the Crown Entertainment Complex on the Southbank of the Yarra River in Melbourne. In 1993, prior to development of the A$1.7 billion Crown Complex, the neighbourhood was largely a derelict and abandoned industrial area. Within a decade after the opening of Crown, the Southbank had become one of the most attractive commercial, “Singapore, when it decided to establish two Integrated Resorts in the City-State, did so on the basis of the potential visitor impacts and the positive effects they would have on Singapore’s economy as well as its image. Singapore’s goal was to triple its tourist numbers over a period of twelve years and to more than triple the resulting economic impact by attracting higher spending and thus higher value visitors to that country. When they open in 2010 or 2011, the two IRs will be critical in achieving that objective and will likely contribute more than fifty percent to Singapore’s long term goal by 2015.” November 2008 | INSIDE ASIAN GAMING 41