Inside Asian Gaming

46 INSIDE ASIAN GAMING | June 2013 REGIONAL BRIEFS Governor Says Tokyo Will Have a Casino Tokyo Governor Naoki Inose said he intends to set up a casino in the Japanese capital’s popular waterfront district. Brushing aside the country’s legal ban on casinos, the governor stated in a policy speech before the metropolitan assembly earlier this month, “I expect the Diet to revise the law as soon as possible.” Prime Minister Shinzo Abe supports casinos as an economic development tool, and advocates in the Diet say they expect to submit a bill by the fall with a view to securing legalization within two years. Given Japan’s per capita wealth, sizable urban population and high propensity to gamble, the viability of casinos in theworld’s third- largest economy has never been in doubt, and global names of the likes of Las Vegas Sands and Genting Group have stated their interest in investing. The country has long hosted thriving racing and lottery industries and a machine gaming sector centered on the pinball-like game pachinko that is estimated to generate some US$200 billion in revenue a year. Investment brokers CLSA Asia-Pacific estimate that a market consisting of one resort-scale casino in Tokyo and one in Osaka or another major city could be worth at least $10 billion a year, easily surpassing the $5.9 billion Singapore’s two resort casinos generated in 2012 and the $6.2 billion booked on the Las Vegas Strip. Mr Inose said a Tokyo casino would serve as a draw for tourists and a suitable center for adult-style entertainment and social interaction, according to a report in national daily The Asahi Shimbun . “To boost the number of foreign visitors to Tokyo, I will consider preparing an integrated resort facility that combines restaurants, theaters and casinos,” he said. Mr Inose’s pro-casino predecessor, Shintaro Ishihara, now a member of the Diet and a lightning rod for controversy for his nationalist views, also had suggested building casinos in Tokyo after he was first elected governor in 1999. Mr Ishihara had singled out the Odaiba district, one of the city’s major commercial, residential and leisure areas, as the most desirable location for gaming. Singapore Toughening Social Safeguards The government of Singapore is studying measures aimed at online and land-based gambling that will likely make its stringent system of societal protections even tougher. Online gambling is not a regulated industry in Singapore, a situation that Second Minister for Home Affairs S Iswaran describes as a problem for the citizens of the city-state, and a governmental study is under way and expected to be concluded by the end of this year that will recommend a concerted effort by public agencies and community groups to bolster education and law enforcement. The city-state is conducting a similar study focused on the land- based industry, the aim being to develop a “psychological profile of local casino gamblers” around which legislation will be introduced targeting problem gambling. Mr Iswaran said also that Singapore’s Casino Regulatory Authority is increasing its physical presence on the gaming floors of Resorts World Sentosa and Marina Bay Sands to enable “more proactive enforcement” of a system of restrictions on domestic gambling that includes entry fees, the excluding of certain classes of low-income citizens and advertising and marketing prohibitions. Venetian Named ‘Best’ Among South Asians The Venetian Macao’s popularity among South Asian visitors got a boost recently with accolades from one of the region’s leading lifestyle magazines. Travel + Leisure India & South Asia named the Cotai megaresort “The Best Luxury Resort in the World” for the second year running as part of its annual “World’s Best Awards,” chosen by readers of the magazine and presented recently in Mumbai. Mark McWhinnie, senior vice president of operations for The Venetian and Sands Cotai Central, said the property was “very pleased”with the recognition. “The entire team works very hard to help distinguish us through service quality and our integrated resort product offering,” he said. Macau received 1.4 million visitors last year from India and South Asia, which have emerged as important tourism markets for Macau and in particular for the five integrated resorts on Cotai: Sands China’s The Venetian and The Plaza Macao and its three-hotel/two-casino complex comprising Sands Cotai Central; Galaxy Entertainment Group’s Galaxy Macau; and City of Dreams, owned and operated by Melco Crown Entertainment. Travel + Leisure has been conducting its “World’s Best Awards” for 12 years and added an “India’s Best Awards” in 2011. The polling for the awards is conducted through the magazine and online. Money Laundering in Spotlight in Philippines Efforts to get anti-money-laundering laws in the Philippines into line with international standards continue, with a senator saying he will be push for a stronger statute that will include casinos on the list of businesses required to adhere to reporting requirements. Senator Teofisto Guingona is drafting the bill in the wake of a recent US State Department report criticizing the country’s efforts to combat money laundering as weak. ThebillalsowillincreasethebudgetoftheAnti-MoneyLaundering Council, said Mr Guingona, who stressed that the Philippines needs to fulfill its commitment to international conventions that mandate Tokyo Governor Naoki Inose