Inside Asian Gaming

INSIDE ASIAN GAMING | July 2010 12 Marina Bay Sands A t the June 23rd grand opening ceremony of the US$5.7 billionMarina Bay Sands (MBS), ever-brash Las Vegas Sands Corp (LVS) Chairman Sheldon Adelson declared his integrated resort (IR) would “forever change” Singapore’s image and give the country’s tourism industry a major boost. Though MBS is now officially open, the property is still experiencing teething troubles. VIP guests checking into the newly opened third hotel tower for the big opening bash complained of long waits to check in, and when they got up to their rooms, they were faced with the challenge of getting ready for the gala dinner without hot water. Still, the VIP dinner itself went off without a hitch, featuring the requisite Chairman speech and performances by the cast of Las Vegas musical phenomenon Jersey Boys and LVS stalwart Diana Ross, who also performed at the Venetian Macao opening in August 2007. Grammy-award winning singer and former member of Destiny’s Child, Kelly Rowland, performed an outdoor concert for the general public. Climbing relay teams also scaled the façade of one of the hotel towers to entertain the crowds outside. Throughout MBS, there are tell-tale signs of the rush to complete the mammoth property to schedule, including blotchy paint jobs and unpolished finishes. These are stray details, however, and the kinks will be ironed out over the coming weeks. Judging by the happy faces bopping along to Ms Ross’s closing performance, MBS has cultivated sufficient appeal to counteract the inevitable opening glitches of such a project. Continental shift On the eve of the MBS grand opening ceremony, Mr Adelson said he expected 90% of LVS revenue to come from Asia by 2020. The company’s Macau operations already accounted for 73% of its revenue at the end of last year. Although the finishing touches are still being put on MBS, Mr Adelson is already talking of his desire to open a casino in South Korea, and said hewas looking at developing a Las Vegas-style strip complete with luxury hotels and spas in either Italy, Greece or Spain. This follows comments in December that his company is “actively looking” at projects in Japan, Taiwan and India. A Bloomberg poll of 13 analysts resulted Game Changer With Marina Bay Sands—the world’s most expensive casino resort—now officially open, expect a shift in Singapore’s nascent gaming landscape Dr Miriam and Sheldon G. Adelson at the Marina Bay Sands Opening Celebration Gala Dinner