Inside Asian Gaming

FEB 2019 INSIDE ASIAN GAMING 19 Gaming stakeholders collectively hope IRs will establish the Seoul-Incheon area as a ma-jor gaming destination. N early everyone agrees integrated resorts are the future of casinos in Korea, but a billion dollar price tag on foreigners-only casinos still gives pause. After opening into the teeth of a Chinese group travel boycott against South Korea nearly two years ago, KRW1.54 trillion (US$1.37 billion) Paradise City remains a work in progress and will have to wait at least another two years for any help from additional Incheon IRs. Morgan Stanley analyst Jay Lee has written that Paradise City faces a “first mover disadvantage,” though she sees majority owner Paradise Group turning a corner. That sentiment is not universal, but gaming stakeholders collectively hope IRs will establish the Seoul-Incheon area as a major gaming destination. “The casino business has to change from pure gambling to more of a family oriented complex. That’s why the IR is here,” Paradise City President and CEO Park Pyung-yong says, recalling a late 1990s trip to Las Vegas with Paradise Chairman Phil-lip Chun that opened their eyes to the IR concept. “We think the casino business should be IRs, more tourist-oriented, not gambling-oriented. It should be more of a family enjoyment place.” Paradise City, a 55-45 joint venture with Japan’s Sega Sammy operated by Paradise, checks those boxes. The self-proclaimed “art-tainment resort” opened in April 2017 with 711 room five-star Paradise Hotel, South Korea’s largest hotel convention space, family lounge Safari Park featuring bowling and video games, indoor and outdoor pools, a spa, plus Japanese, Italian, Chinese and Cantonese restaurants, a cafe and live music lounge. The IR showcases more than two dozen works by renowned artists including Damien Hirst, Anish Kapoor, Yayoi Kusama and Lee Yong-baek. CHEAP SQUEEZE On Paradise City’s main floor, players can squeeze their baccarat cards with wagers as low as KRW10,000 (US$8.88) and bet as little as KRW2,500 on roulette. Other games include blackjack – nearly as popular as baccarat – sic bo and poker games, including Texas Hold’em. Korea’s largest foreigner-only casino covers 15,529 square meters (167,092 square feet), hosting 154 tables, 281 slot machines and 62 ETG terminals. VIP rooms include Sky Casino with a US$20,000 buy-in and three VVIP areas with US$5,000 minimum bets. Leading Macau By Muhammad Cohen Muhammad Cohen is Editor at Large of InsideAsianGaming , a contributor to Forbes Asia and wrote Hong Kong On Air , a novel set during the 1997 handover about TV news, love, betrayal, high finance and cheap lingerie.