Inside Asian Gaming

INSIDE ASIAN GAMING | June 2009 Briefs International Briefs Gaming Support granted GLI approval for BonusBox Gaming Support announced last month that it has been granted Gaming Laboratories International (GLI) certification covering its BonusBox player bonusing system. GLI is the world’s most widely accredited independent regulatory testing authority, with its certifications honoured by thousands of gaming venues throughout the United States, Canada, Europe, South America, and Asia. “Gaming Support is delighted to announce this critical product approval,” stated Lucien van Linden, Gaming Support’s Chief Executive Officer. “The results from BonusBox field trials have been nothing short of phenomenal and we look forward to rolling-out this exciting new technology to regulated jurisdictions worldwide.” BonusBox is a gaming peripheral which enables operators to award physical bonus prizes to slot players. Offered in stand-alone and linked configurations, BonusBox creates a direct, intimate connection between prize and player, thereby increasing notions of “winability,”excitementandvalue.Initialfieldtrialshavedemonstrated dramatically positive impacts upon machine utilization, duration of play, coin-in, net win and overall customer satisfaction. Meanwhile, Gaming Support USA, Inc. announced last month that it has received approval as a gaming supplier by the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario. Ontario is the largest gamingmarket in Canada, recording both the highest casino and slots revenues of any Canadian province during fiscal 2007-08. “Obtaining this approval for Ontario is an important milestone for our team,”statedDon Baugh, Chief ExecutiveOfficer, Gaming Support USA. “We have worked hard to build a quality customer base across America for our range of revenue-enhancing products. This approval will allow Gaming Support to begin supplying Canadian operators with the world-class solutions we have delivered to the American, Asian and European markets, including our industry-leading digital signage and bonusing technologies.” High hopes for Bethlehem casino The US$743 million Sands Casino Resort Bethlehem opened last month and company executiveshopetheproject will become a model for future development at similar locations. The Las Vegas Gaming Wire reported that the casino and entertainment complex, developed by Las Vegas Sands Corp (LVS), takes up just a small portion of the 124-acre site. LVS was awarded a gaming license to build a casino on the site of the former Bethlehem Steel Mill in Pennsylvania’s Lehigh Valley in December 2006. Las Vegas Sands also preserved 22 buildings from the original site and is committed to building a museum that honors the mill’s history. The first phase of the project will include 3,000 slot machines and four restaurants, including Emeril’s Chop House, which is operated by celebrity chef Emeril Lagasse. Sands Bethlehem hired 1,000 full-time employees, about 90% from the Lehigh Valley area. The failing credit markets and the company’s sagging finances caused LVS to halt construction of a 300- room hotel tower, 200,000 square feet of retail and 46,000 square feet of multipurpose space. No timetable has been set for the second phase, which will provide another 800 jobs. The project is LVS’ first American gaming location outside of Las Vegas, where it operates The Venetian and Palazzo complex, which encompasses 7,000 hotel rooms, 200,000 square feet of gaming, 2.3 million square feet of convention and meeting space and two large retail malls. The company also operates three resorts in Macau and is building the US$5 billion Marina Bay Sands integrated resort in Singapore. Sands Bethlehem was one of a dozen stand-alone casinos and racinos Pennsylvania gaming regulators approved when the state legalized some 61,000 slot machines in 2006. Table games are not allowed in Pennsylvania casinos, which have a 50% gaming tax rate. Sands Bethlehem, which is approved for 5,000 slot machines, will havemore than a dozen electronic dealer-less table games, including blackjack and three card poker, that are classified as slot machines. Ukrainians protest against gambling ban Thousands of employees of gaming halls and casinos have demonstrated in Ukraine’s capital against a surprise move by parliament to ban gambling establishments. Protestors in Kiev chanted slogans such as ‘Don’t deprive us of work!’and‘Shame!’in front of PresidentViktorYushchenko’s residence, as they demanded he veto the law that sets out the ban. Anatoly Nesterenko, president of the Ukrainian Casinos Association, claimed the ban will leave more than 200,000 Ukrainians without work. The ban was approved a week after a fire claimed nine lives at a slot machine hall in the eastern city of Dnipropetrovsk. To become law, it must first be approved by the president. Encore makes ‘It List’ Travel and Leisure Magazine named Steve Wynn’s latest and most expensive creation, Encore Las Vegas, to its “It List: 45 Best New BonusBox Sands Casino Resort Bethlehem 62