Inside Asian Gaming

March 2009 | INSIDE ASIAN GAMING Briefs company had more options at its disposal to navigate through this economic downturn versus its peers,” Stifel Nicolaus Capital Markets gaming analyst Steven Wieczynski said in a note to investors. “Concerns as to what it will do in order to ease liquidity continue.” MGM Mirage spokesman Alan Feldman said the company would “pursue options that are far better than Deutsche Bank presented” in obtaining financing for CityCenter, which it owns in a 50-50 joint venture partnership with Dubai World, the investment arm of the Persian Gulf state. Deutsche Bank reportedlywantedMGMMirage tooperate or take an ownership stake in the unfinished US$3.9 billion Cosmopolitan project, which is being built on an 8.5-acre site between CityCenter and Bellagio. Deutsche Bank, which acquired the Cosmopolitan for US$1 billion at a foreclosure sale, has been seeking an operator for the project. MGM Mirage said a default on its credit line could lead to a default on its entire US$13.5 billion debt load. Some analysts believe the company could be forced into bankruptcy to restructure its debt. Others believe the company has many options to pursue. MGM Mirage owns 10 Strip casinos but is selling Treasure Island for US$775 million. The deal is expected to close at the end of the month. The company is reportedly shopping other Strip assets, including hotel-casinos in Detroit and Mississippi. One analyst, who asked not to be named, said the company could resolve about US$2.1 billion in debt issues that come due in 2009 and 2010. CityCenter remains the largest matter on the horizon; resolving the last piece of financing would alleviate concerns about MGM Mirage. The 76-acre project, which includes the 4,004-room Aria hotel- casino, multiple nongaming hotels, high-rise residences, and a large entertainment, retail and dining complex, is expected to begin opening in October. Time to Reassess The newly elected leaders of the Mashpee Wampanoag tribe in Massachusetts plan to commission a study to determine if they should scale back plans for a casino in Middleboro, according to the Cape Cod Times. From the outset, the Middleboro project was billed as a US$1 billion resort that would rival Mohegan Sun in Connecticut, but chairman Cedric Cromwell and vice chairman Aaron Tobey said they need to know if the location can generate enough revenue to continue on that scale. In 2008, the tribe unveiled plans for a 600,000 sq. ft casino on two levels with 4,000 slot machines and 200 table games. The proposal included a 1,000-room hotel, restaurants, shops and an entertainment venue. “The economy has changed since then,” Tobey said. Mohegan Sun and neighbouring Foxwoods have both reported drops in gaming revenue in the past year and Twin River, a racino in Rhode Island owned by the same investors working with the Mashpee tribe, is teetering on the brink of bankruptcy and a state takeover. Moscow Casinos to Transform The Moscow Times reports that with a ban on casinos in Moscow coming into effect on July 1st, many of the city’s casinos are preparing to reorganize as poker clubs. Fromthe start of July, 90%of gaming venues in the Russian capital plan to continue operating, becoming restaurants, entertainment centres and concert halls, according to Deputy Mayor Sergei Baidakov. There are currently 549 gambling establishments in the city, including 32 casinos, he said. The entire Russian gambling industry was supposed to relocate to four special zones by this summer. The government has already signed orders creating three of the zones: Azov-City, on the border of the Rostov and Krasnodar regions; Sibirskaya Moneta in Altai; and Yantarnaya in the Kaliningrad region. An order to create a zone in the far eastern Primorye region has not been signed, and none of the zones is sure to start operating by July 1. Approximately one-third of Moscow’s casinos will start holding competitive poker tournaments after the July deadline, said an executive at the Gaming Business Association. Card Counting on the iPhone The Las Vegas Gaming Wire reports that California gaming authorities tipped off their Nevada counterparts to a blackjack card- counting program that can be used on either the Apple iPhone or the Apple iPod Touch portable music player. The program calculates the true count and does it significantly more accurately, according to a Gaming Control Board memorandum sent to casino operators last month, warning of the electronic device. Card counting is not illegal in Nevada casinos. However, using a device to aid in the counting of cards is considered a felony under Nevada laws governing cheating, control board member Randy Sayre said. Gamblers using the iPhone card-counting program can be detained by casino operators and arrested by state gaming agents. There have not been any reports of the device being used in Nevada yet. Operators of a Northern California Indian casino discovered customers using the program and alerted the California Bureau of Gambling Control. The program uses four different strategies for card counting. It also operates in the “stealth mode,” in which the phone’s screen is shut off. The program can be run effortlessly without detection as long as the user knows where the keys are. After iPhones came on the market in 2007, Harrah’s Entertainment halted their use at the World Series of Poker. Cell phones are banned at the tournament, although iPods and other MP3 players are allowed. The iPhone card counting application