It’s No Go Ho for MGM Resorts. Maybe Vietnam will likely be Asia’s first big bust gambling community things are generally not looking cheery for the MGM Ho Tram Strip these days ( only for want of a ‘p’ are the jokes on that name maybe not endless).

According to a recent securities and exchange Commission (SEC) filing, MGM Resorts International exercised its right to end their agreement to manage the house based on a not enough pre-opening milestones having been achieved as of March 1, 2013. The task is partially owned by Las Vegas-based Pinnacle Entertainment.

Bad Bet

The tale began in August of 2011, with Pinnacle buying a $95 million stake in Asian Coast Development, with Harbinger Capital Partners being the majority owner. Pinnacle was a 23 per cent stakeholder; apparently, that was not a harbinger of good things to come.

By 2012, Pinnacle had already written off $25 million on their investment, due to delays. A prominent gaming security analyst, Chad Beynon of Macquarie Securities, told investors he expected that Pinnacle could well simply take even more write-offs on the property that is vietnamese.

‘The fact that MGM Hospitality will no longer be associated using this project will greatly detract from the success for the resort/casino,’ said Beynon in a report that is recent. ‘MGM perhaps not only provided a global brand name, but it had been also a significant part of the design and vision for the first phase. It remains unclear who will actually manage the very first phase of the task now.’

Under Developing

Asian Coast developing, Ltd, the developer of the Ho Tram Strip integrated resort complex in Vietnam, is presently into the first of five planned phases for the property. The plan is for a group that is integrated of to be built on a lot more than 400 acres of land and about 1 1/4 miles of beachfront in Ho Tram, a seaside resort known for over a century as a health sanitorium for treatment of a number of diseases along with its mild environment and ocean water. Along side its sis beach city Ho Coc ( we just report these items, folks), the region is poised to become a major resort location for the region.

The area is also home to a 27-acre rainforest that was designated as a nature book in 1975. Although most of the larger wildlife ended up being either poached, killed or moved (many of the region’s elephants ended up in Thailand), numerous birds that are wild monkeys nevertheless stay into the rainforest.

Can I Get a Witness? Adelson going back once again to Court in Breach Case

Forget all the television shows about what are the results in Vegas casinos; they need to create a show in what continues behind the scenes. The drama is unending; simply take the way it is of one-time Las Vegas Sands Corp. consultant Richard Suen, who’s returning to court in April with Sands chairman and CEO Sheldon Adelson already served to appear since the defense’s lead witness.

Offered with Bodyguards

Adelson, whom perhaps understandably goes every where with bodyguards, was apparently served papers by a process server as he emerged from another deposition on September 6 of last year. Actually, it turns down the subpoena was really handed to his lawyer, who was simply needless to say with him in court; that is the power of having a good attorney.

Breach of Contract Alleged

It all dates back once again to Suen’s allegations that he was responsible for Sands’ now really entr&eacute that is lucrative into the Macau gaming market back 2004. He claims to have arranged meetings with key Chinese government officials that paved just how for the deal (we can just see Illinois Gov. Pat Quinn shaking his head in disgust here). In fact, previous Sands president Bill Weidner brought Suen on in 2001 for a $5 million fee, plus 2% of any casino revenue if their ‘work,’ (i.e., connections) led to securing a gaming license. See, that is what we like about Asian politics: there’s none of the Victorian coyness about political bribes or any of the silly rot.

Looks like the presssing issue is how you determine ‘work;’ Las Vegas Sands later contended that Suen never actually did any. In a trial that is nearly month-long in 2008, Suen had been granted $43.8 million, therefore apparently the jury thought he did some anyway; that amount wound up being an awesome $60 million once interest was tacked on.

However, that verdict had been overturned this year by the Nevada Supreme Court whenever it uncovered supposed mistakes by the trial judge. While some thought a settlement was finally reached, apparently not, as the truth is now heading towards Round Two in that boxing band known as Clark County District Court. The new trial date is set for April 3, following jury selection and allowing for the Sands CEO to keep his scheduled Passover journey to Israel from March 26 through April 2.

China Embracing Capitalism, One Casino at any given Time

It’s always the same story that is old these ex-Communist nations; the minute they get a style for the joys of evil capitalism, all hell breaks loose and the communal fervor is displaced by all types of things that money can find. Gambling is no exception, as proven by the slow and steady creep of casinos onto, gasp, mainland China.

It’s Not Merely Macau Anymore

All of it began, of course, with Chinese Special Administrative District Macau, now the revenue-producing gambling zone that is highest in the entire world (out-earning Vegas annually by double-digit billions); but now the island province of Hainan is joining the fray. The smallest and southernmost province for the individuals Republic of China (PRC), Hainan is now poised to end up being the gambling region that is newest for Asia’s betting-hungry populace.

Even though the first entrant to the Chinese gambling juggernaut, the recently shut-down Mangrove Tree Resorts Sanya Bay, is temporarily closed, it is possible to bet your last yen that that defintely won’t be the case for long. According to iGamiX managing partner Ben Lee, the ‘cashless’ casino (patrons were paid in a few kind of benefits markers) was really a test by Beijing authorities to see if locals would gamble closer to the home front than Macau (which gets its share of Chinese nationals of most income levels). Lee says that nine more of the casinos that are cashless waiting to be unleashed now that the powers that be see this stuff sells better than do-it-yourself furniture at Tarjay.

To Be Slowly Unfurled

Apparently some sort of furor ensued once term leaked out about the Jesters Casino Bar at Mangrove Tree, evoking the speedy shuttering; but we understand they’re just counting 5-4-3-2-1 before they reopen not just Jesters, but a lot more as well. Not only that, but according to Lee, Beijing will ultimately turn these cashless casinos into real-money gambling bones, but he says that will happen in stages so as not to ‘dump the remaining licenses on the market in a short timeframe.’

Lee also says the gaming licenses will be restricted to ‘domestic’ companies, however with Caesars Entertainment and MGM Resorts establishing ( for now) non-gaming presences in Hainan with new luxury resorts, it is possible to bet they are thinking differently. In the end, they’re both in the gambling business, perhaps not just the hotel company. Back in September 2011, Caesars CEO Gary Loveman announced plans to construct a $470-million 1,000 room luxury resort on Hainan called Caesars Palace Longmu Bay; the house is prepared for a 2014 opening that is grand. Meanwhile, the MGM Grand Sanya is already open for business and tourists that are wowing. We’re guessing that, like so casino that is many round the world, Asia will eventually recruit Vegas-based operators to operate their casinos as well, as let’s face it: nobody does it better.

Nevada Gaming Revenues Spiral Down for January

Simply once you think the news for Las Vegas is picking up with Genting’s announcement of a brand new massive Strip project on the old Stardust/Echelon site, bad news hits: an 18.7 % revenue tumble regarding the Strip for January 2013 set alongside the same time frame year that is last. What’s going on??

New figures just released by Nevada’s Gaming Control Board showed a 12.4 percent drop overall in the Silver State for January, with $909.2 million in gaming revenues, which is really a drop that is significant $1.038 billion simply this past year. For the Strip specifically, those numbers were $507 million, versus $623.5 million in January 2012.

Perhaps Not A happy New Year…Yet

One reason for the big drop may have something to do with the moving lunar dates of the very profitable Chinese New 12 months for bringing in a large amount big-money gamblers to Las Vegas. This year, it fell in February whereas January 2012 encompassed the holiday last year. Gambling dollars from high-end baccarat play, constantly a big household benefit game for casinos, thus weren’t since impressive as within the same timeframe in 2012, whenever Nevada had its very first billion-dollar plus month since the economy dropped in the toilet there straight back in September 2008.

Baccarat is Bread and Butter

Less than normal baccarat profits had been responsible for 85 percent associated with downfall in January. Strip casinos pulled in $99.5 million through the game this which was a 50.8 percent downfall from 2012 year. Real amounts wagered at the game were naturally less too, at $794.8 million, which had been 48.9 per cent reduced than this past year. (That does, however, show a pretty nice edge for your house, regardless; no wonder gambling enterprises love this game.) At least the hold levels, meaning just what the casinos surely got to keep versus what customers won back, was pretty steady with 2012; at 12.02 this compared to 12.47 in 2012 year.

Combined Month Revenues Might be Snake Charmed

Before you sob uncontrollably at the sadness of it all, consider these thoughts from Wells Fargo Securities gaming analyst Cameron McKnight, who addressed investors the other day: ‘We believe the January-February combined contrast will offer you a more meaningful look into annual growth,’ McKnight told the gathering.

Another analyst, Chad Beynon of Macquarie Securities, said that ‘management groups from Las Vegas Strip casino operators have actually boasted that the ‘Year regarding the Snake’ was good one. The bad optical outcomes had been significantly affected by the timing of the Chinese brand new Year.’

A valuable thing, that, or some of their raging bull bonuses jobs might have been rattled.