Inside Asian Gaming

inside asian gaming October 2017 20 because there have been programs brought to the market to help address gaming addiction. In Japan I think bringing in integrated resorts will go a long way to trying to address an issue that has always existed but never been actually addressed, never been adequately treated. [Point] three is the strength of the brand. The government’s objective is to drive tourism and Caesars is still the legacy brand of the gaming industry, certainly in Las Vegas and throughout the US. If the government’s intent is to drive incremental tourism, having the opportunity to create a world class Caesars branded resort would be one of the most effective drivers of that tourism. The fact that we are not in Macau gives us a strategic advantage in terms of tourism inducement because Chinese tourists today cannot come to Caesars projects in this part of the world. Finally, Caesars has more experience partnering in our developments, whether it’s partnering with fellow investors or operating partners for third party owners such as the tribal casinos in the US. About one in five of our properties is managed in partnership, and that sort of DNA for collaboration is obvious when you deal with the Caesars organization. We embrace collaboration – that’s not true with several of our big competitors – and I think in Japan that collaboration is going to be the key to success. The Japanese people appreciate that perspective, that we aren’t looking to necessarily control this development. We bring a strong expertize in operations, but we also recognize that the Japanese companies that are interested in this industry have a tremendous amount to share and to bring into this partnership and to benefit the partnership. MC: Is Caesars focusing on a particular area in Japan? ST: At this point it’s early in the process. The regulatory act hasn’t yet been passed, so we don’t yet know all the specific details such as tax rates, procedures around junkets, credit facilities and that sort of thing. The industry in general is waiting to see how these all shake out. We clearly have an interest in both large urban destinations and regional markets. Given our broad portfolio of properties that we currently manage – we have nearly 50 of them around the world – we have experience with the large scale integrated resorts like Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, which are multibillion dollar investments and drive a significant tourist market. But we also have experience in regional markets. I think it’s too early to focus in on one at this point, just as I think Japanese investors aren’t focusing on one single operator for their consortium. It’s like a dating game where we are all out there trying to inform the Japanese market of who we are, what our expertize is and where our strength lies. Ultimately it will be the investors, the consortium, who will select their operator and have the greatest leverage on the bid. INSIGHTS Caesars is building a US$700 million integrated resort in Incheon, Korea “Collaboration is going to be the key to success. The Japanese people appreciate that perspective, that we aren’t looking to necessarily control this development.”