Inside Asian Gaming

INSIDE ASIAN GAMING FEB 2019 16 BREAKFAST BRIEFS GENTING REJECTS WYNN LAWSUIT OVER RESORTS WORLD LAS VEGAS DESIGN SOUTH KOREAN FIRM TO BUILD US$30 MILLION GOLF RESORT IN PRIMORYE GAMBLING ZONE MALAYSIAN -listed casino operator Genting Berhad has described a lawsuit filed by Wynn Resorts Holdings claiming Resorts World Las Vegas LLC’s under- construction Las Vegas integrated resort copies Wynn’s design as failing to provide any evidence or “coherent or credible explanation” supporting its assertion. Genting’s local subsidiary, which is due to open the US$4 billion Resorts World Las Vegas in late 2020, filed its opposition to an application by Wynn that seeks to halt construction of the property, located directly opposite at the northern end of the Las Vegas Strip. Wynn’s original lawsuit, filed on 21 December 2018, had cited “a substantially similar architectural design and trade dress.” However, Genting’s opposition vehemently denies that Resorts World Las Vegas will look similar to its nearest neighbor, stating Wynn’s application “is predicated on speculative extrapolation regarding the appearance of the Defendant’s unfinished resort and casino, which is still in an early stage of construction with nearly two years left to go before opening. “When open for business in late 2020, [Resorts World Las Vegas] will look dramatically different from the Plaintiff’s properties. A pictorial representation of the completed Resorts World Las Vegas resort and casino was included in the Opposition to dispel any suggestion that a reasonable consumer could confuse the Defendant’s and the Plaintiff’s resort and casino for each other.” Genting also rejected an assertion by Wynn that the alleged similarity in design would cause the company “imminent and irreparable harm”. “The Defendant maintains that the Plaintiff did not produce any evidence or provide any coherent or credible explanation of how a construction site that is not providing or marketing any service whatsoever could have such detrimental effect on the Plaintiff’s reputation and goodwill, nor satisfy the requisite showing that such an effect is both likely and imminent.” Genting said that construction of its Las Vegas IR continues unabated while the company prepares its defense to Wynn’s main lawsuit. SOUTH Korean company Dongnam Industry Co., Ltd has signed an agreement of intent with the Primorsky Krai Development Corporation to invest more than US$30 million into construction of a world-class golf course within the Primorye gambling zone. The development, set to cover around 80 hectares of land, will include 18 holes, a club house with associated facilities and a 4-star hotel with 100 rooms. Dongnam Chairman Kim Ying-Tae said the golf course would play a key role in boosting tourism to the region. “In the future, Primorye will be able to attract a large number of tourists due to transport accessibility and the growing interest in the Far East from residents of the Asia-Pacific countries,” he said. “Creating entertainment facilities of the elite level will help attract relevant tourists to the gambling zone. For our project, the main target audience is foreign players from Korea and Japan, where golf is a very popular sport and entertainment.”