Macau Casinos and Gambling News

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Las Vegas Sands Inc, which is duplicating its Venetian Casino Resort in Macau, said in a filing this week with the US Securities and Exchange Commission that the project will cost about US$1.8bil.

Las Vegas Sands chairman Sheldon Adelson said at a briefing in Singapore in July last year that the Macao Venetian Casino Resort would cost US$600mil to US$800mil.

The new estimate is in the company's initial public offering filing.

US securities rules prevented the firm from commenting on the discrepancy before its share sale, Alpha Padilla, a Macau-based spokeswoman for Las Vegas Sands, said.

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Betting on Macau: Las Vegas Sands' IPO gives investors a chance to buy into the hottest market in gambling
By Andrew Bary
6 December 2004
Barron's

In the late 1990s, when Sheldon Adelson decided to put a casino resort on the site of the Sands hotel, the famed haunt of Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin, Sammy Davis Jr. and the rest of the Rat Pack, rival Las Vegas casino operators scoffed at the idea, and Adelson struggled to raise the $1.5 billion to put up what became the Venetian.

Adelson's focus on convention business and retailing was deemed foolish in a city where the emphasis hadalways been on gambling. But he's been vindicated because the Venetian is the second-most profitable casino property in Las Vegas -- behind only MGM Mirage's Bellagio -- and is likely to produce over $300 million in cash flow in 2004. Adelson earlier this year scored a major coup by selling the Venetian's high-end shops for a hefty $766 million to General Growth Properties. Now, an initial public offering of his company, Las Vegas Sands, stands to make him the richest casino operator on the Strip . . . or anywhere else, for that matter.

In part, the deal's roots lie in Adelson's courting of the Chinese government three years ago, after Beijing decided to turn Macau, a former Portuguese colony near Hong Kong with a seedy and violent image, into the Las Vegas of the East. Adelson won one of only three coveted casino-operating licenses, along with Steve Wynn of Wynn Resorts and Stanley Ho, the established casino operator who had enjoyed a decades-long monopoly in Macau, the only place in China with legalized gambling.

While Wynn didn't start his project until Macau had passed a law this summer letting casinos extend credit, Adelson plowed ahead with construction of the $250 million Sands Macau casino. Opened in May, it's already a big success and may generate $300 million in pre-tax cash flow in the next year, a huge return on investment. The low-profile Adelson, 71, has first-mover advantage among Western operators in Macau; Wynn's project probably won't be finished until late 2006.

Las Vegas Sands aims to become a dominant player in Macau, which could boom because of the strong interest in gambling among China's 1.3 billion people. Adelson is building a $1.8 billion version of the Venetian resort in Macau. It's due to open in 2007, and his company has deals with six hotel operators to operate casinos on their properties that might be developed on what the Chinese hope will be a Vegas-type Strip.

Macau is the global gaming industry's hottest story. Adelson will cash in on it through the Las Vegas Sands IPO, expected to arrive around Dec. 14 through underwriters led by Goldman Sachs. The deal should push Adelson's casino wealth ahead of that of Kirk Kerkorian, the controlling shareholder of industry leader MGM Mirage, and Steve Wynn, CEO of Wynn Resorts. Adelson's holding is apt to be worth $6.5 billion, versus Kerkorian's $5 billion stake in MGM Mirage and Wynn's $1.5 billion interest in Wynn Resorts.

"Adelson's story is incredible," says Neil Barsky, head of Alson Capital, a New York investment firm. "You have to remember the skepticism in Vegas that greeted him as an outsider. How could a guy who ran a trade show compete with the likes of MGM, Mandalay or Steve Wynn? This company has a lot of credibility." Adelson made his fortune in 1995 when he sold his controlling stake in Comdex, the computer trade show, to Japan's Softbank, for $800 million.

Las Vegas Sands will offer 23.8 million shares in the IPO, a sliver of its total equity, at $20 to $22 a share. At that range's midpoint, the company would be valued at $7.35 billion, versus $7 billion for Harrah's Entertainment and $9 billion for MGM Mirage. After the sale, Adelson would still control 308 million shares -- 88% -- of the 350 million that would be outstanding.

His holding was boosted by a sweet deal he engineered in July, when he sold the Sands Expo Center, the convention center adjacent to the Venetian, to Las Vegas Sands. He owned the Sands Expo Center and a preferred-stock interest in the Venetian through a company called Interface Holding. Interface was valued at $331 million, net of debt, based on an independent appraisal.

Rather than getting cash for Interface, Adelson was granted additional stock in Las Vegas Sands at a very cheap price. He received equity that will be transformed into 58.6 million shares worth about $1.2 billion -- four times Interface's appraised value. The prospectus for the Las Vegas Sands offering says the deal was approved by the company's independent directors. Such is the benefit of controlling a private company. The Interface deal could never have happened if Las Vegas Sands had been public.

Wall Street is focused on the growth opportunities for Las Vegas Sands in Macau, Las Vegas and elsewhere. The company broke ground this summer on a Vegas casino resort adjacent to the Venetian, called Palazzo. The $1.6 billion project, with a Beverly Hills-Rodeo Drive theme, will be completed in 2007.

Investors will be comparing Las Vegas Sands to Wynn Resorts, which has a $5.5 billion market value despite minimal current revenues. Wynn will open its luxurious Wynn Las Vegas resort in April and its Macau hotel-casino in 2006. Las Vegas Sands will be valued at about 12 times projected 2005 cash flow of $625 million -- $325 million from the Venetian and $300 million from the Sands Macau. These are Barron's estimates; the company isn't talking publicly.

MGM Mirage and Harrah's each trade around nine times estimated 2005 pre-tax cash flow, a common industry valuation benchmark. Las Vegas Sands is apt to command a premium to them because of its stronger growth prospects. Adelson's company could generate `07 cash flow of over $1 billion when the new casino resorts in Macau and Vegas open.

In addition, the company will emerge from the IPO with just $300 million of net debt. By contrast, MGM Mirage initially will have $11 billion of debt after its all-cash acquisition of Mandalay Resort Group in early 2005. Part of the funds to pay for Palazzo's construction will come from the sale of its retail stores to General Growth Properties for at least $250 million and perhaps as much as $700 million.

The risks with Las Vegas Sands come from its current reliance on just two properties. Macau also is no sure thing. While the Chinese are encouraging the development of Western-style casino resorts there, Beijing's attitude could change. Gambling taxes in Macau could rise, new casino licenses could be granted and Chinese-American relations could sour.

Macau casino revenues this year could top $5 billion, rivaling the entire Vegas Strip. It would be ironic if America's most successful export to China isn't cars, appliances or movies, but Vegas-style casino gambling.

The Sands Macau casino has been mobbed since it opened, drawing over 800,000 visitors in October alone. It generated $68 million of pre-tax cash flow and $61 million of net income in the third quarter. Back in June, when Barron's profiled the prospects for Las Vegas Sands' IPO, president William Weidner said it was "like New Year's Eve every night" in Macau, with gamblers packing the tables around the clock on weekends. Chinese gamblers prefer table games, particularly baccarat, over slot machines, which generate the bulk of U.S. casinos' profits.

The Las Vegas Sands combines two of the hottest current investment themes: China and casinos. The IPO clearly will be a boon for Adelson and could prove a winner for new investors if the casino boom in Macau and Las Vegas continues.

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As visitor arrivals to China's Macao Special Administrative Region (SAR) topped 16.67 million in the year 2004, the tourist industry has brought great profits and huge challenges to the city famed for its lucrative gaming industry.

Macao, which will be the host city of the 2005 PATA Annual Conference in April, is enjoying a rising international reputation as a popular tourist city in Asia, and could not allow the gaming business dampen the city's tourist image.

Joao Manuel Costa Antunes, director of the Macao Government Tourist Office (MGTO) said at a press conference here Wednesday that to add to the city's cultural and leisure tourist initiatives,Macao should develop various tourist products such as health and beauty tours, sports and convention tours and ecology tours to lure tourists of different interests.

He said that in 2005, Macao is looking forward to the confirmation of the World Heritage list of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization for its application of "Historical Monuments of Macao," which consist of 12 architectural sites in Macao.

"By promoting the cultural tourism, we will make visitors awareof Macao's unique blend of Chinese and Portuguese cultures," said Antunes

Tourism and gaming industries are two of Macao's economic pillars. The SAR government reaped 14 billion patacas (1.75 billion US dollars) in gaming tax in 2004, after liberalizing the gaming sector in 2002.

However, the tourist official emphasized that a favorable tourist environment and high standards of service are crucial factors to building up Macao's image as a quality destination.

"We will improve tourism facilities and develop brand new attractions while update the relevant bills to cultivate a healthytourism industry," said Antunes.

Under the objective of the SAR government to develop Macao intoa tourism, gaming, MICE (meetings, incentives, conferences and exhibitions) and leisure hub, a series of new tourism and entertainment facilities have started operation or will be completed soon.

Macao hosted a total of 16.67 million visitor arrivals in 2004,representing a surge of 40 percent over 2003, which went close to the saturating point of city's tourist accommodating capacity of 16.79 million a year.

Among the total, 9.5 million were visitors from China's mainland, which increased by an annual growth rate of 66 percent over the previous year. Autunes expected the number of visitors from the source market will continue to rise based on closer cooperation and exchanges between the mainland and Macao.

At present, over 30 percent of the mainland travelers came under the mainland's facilitated individual travel measures on Hong Kong and Macao-bound tours, which was initiated on July 28, 2003.

Macao's present tourist facilities could hardly accommodate therising number of tourists. Currently, there are 43 hotels and 33 guesthouses in Macao offering a total of 10,502 hotel rooms. In the next seven years, another 16,750 hotel rooms will come off stream to meet the tourist demand, according to the tourist authority.

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A senior economic official hinted that "18" to "19" would be the maximum number of casinos for Macao's casino mogul Stanley Ho, according to Friday's Macao Post.

Francis Tam Pak Yuen, secretary for economic and finance of theMacao Special Administrative Region government, who oversees the gaming sector, said the government and the Macao Gaming Co. Ltd (SJM) owned by Stanley Ho were exchanging views on the issue of itsmaximum number of casinos, as well as the possibility of merging several small casinos into medium-sized ones.

Meanwhile, some industry insiders expected that as the government liberalized the gaming sector in 2002, Macao's total number of casinos will reach about two dozens by the end of the decade.

Ho had dominated Macao's gaming sector for 40 years before 2002,and his SJM now operates 14 casinos with two more slated to be opened shortly.

Macao's legislation on gaming business limits the number of casino-operating concessions to three. However, the number of casinos or sub-concessions that each of the three concessionaires may run is not specified by law. Enditem

[SeeMacau]

Watchmaker Medtech Group yesterday announced another acquisition in a hotel -casino complex in Macau, five weeks after the company unveiled its plan to tap the enclave's gambling market.

Medtech had agreed to buy the 88-room Hotel Casa Real for $ 1.25 billion - at $ 750 million in cash and $ 500 million in up to 1.1 billion new shares at 45.45 cents each, the company said.

Chairman Jenkin Cheung said the firm planned to focus its business on hotels with gaming. "Following the acquisition of the Grandview Hotel last year and the recent disposal of Starway, we are taking a step forward to acquire Hotel Casa Real," he said.

Reflecting the diversification, the company will be renamed Golden Resorts Group.

"We are confident that it will enable the company to capture the results from the economic boom in Macau," Mr Cheung said.

On January 10, Medtech sold its 35 per cent stake in Starway Management, a producer of advanced technology energy-saving products in China, for $ 52 million. The company expects to net a profit of $ 2 million from the disposal.

Last month, Medtech said it would acquire the 407-room Grandview Hotel in Taipa and the attached gambling facility from Stanley Ho Hung-sun for $ 500 million, including $ 400 million in cash and an issue of 500 million new shares at 20 cents each.

The company funded the acquisition through a top-up placement last month raising $ 510 million.

The 1.1 billion new shares issued for Hotel Casa Real represent about 9.89 per cent of the enlarged issued share capital and the 45.45-cent price is a discount of about 15.83 per cent to the last closing price of Medtech shares at 54 cents on January 5. Shares in Medtech will resume trading today.

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Macau residents have gained the right to wager on Hong Kong races in a three-year deal approved under the Betting Duty Ordinance in accordance with a Deed for Telecast and Placing of Bets on Horse Races.

The Hong Kong Jockey Club struck the deal with the Macau Horse Racing Co. Macau residents will be able to bet on Hong Kong races at authorized venues on their island with a takeout rate of 6%, which is half the rate of those received in Hong Kong. The Hong Kong Jockey Club will pay the government half the money it receives on wagering from Macau.

The arrangement works only one way and thus Hong Kong residents will not be able to wager on Macau races.

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Bets on Hong Kong horse races will be accepted in Macau, the first overseas betting arrangement approved under the Betting Duty Ordinance since the relevant provisions were enacted.

Effective for three years, the approval is made in accordance with a Deed for Telecast & Placing of Bets on Horse Races relating to a one-way betting arrangement between the Hong Kong Jockey Club and Macau Horse Racing Company.

Bets can be placed on the club's races at the company's authorised venues in Macau. Specifically, only-win bets, place bets, double bets, quinella bets, forecast bets and quinella-place bets will be accepted.

Betting duty on overseas bets will be at half the rate of those received in Hong Kong, which will be set at 6% of the total betting turnover.

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Macau's 16 casinos generated a total gross revenue of about 3.6 billion patacas (US$450 million) in January, an increase of some 20 percent over the same month last year.
Wednesday's Macau Post quoted its source as saying that 14 casinos affiliated to the Macau Gaming Co Ltd owned by tycoon Stanley Ho held 70 percent of the total gross revenue. The remainder was shared between the Las Vegas-invested Sands Casino and the Hong Kong-run Galaxy Waldo Casino.
The casino business yielded a gross revenue of around 40 billion patacas (US$5 billion) last year, representing a year-on-year increase of 40 percent.
As the casinos were contracted to pay 35 percent of their gross revenue to the government's tax coffer, the Macau Special Administrative Region government taxed 14 billion patacas (US$1.75 billion) from the sector last year.
Economists expect the government's casino tax income to exceed 18 billion patacas (US$2.25 billion) this year.
Macau is the only city in China where gambling is legal. The first gaming businesses were licensed in around 1847 in the city.

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American casino giant MGM Mirage is close to securing regulatory approval for its proposed joint venture with gambling heiress Pansy Ho to build a casino in Macau, according to company executives.

``We expect to begin construction in the second quarter of 2005,'' chairman and chief executive Terry Lanni said Wednesday.

Asked by an analyst specifically about the approval process, general counsel Gary Jacobs said: ``We believe we are making satisfactory progress.''

Former gaming regulators had expected MGM to encounter some difficulty in the approval process because of Ho's involvement with Sociedade de Turismo e Diversoes de Macau and Sociedade de Jogos de Macau (SJM), her family's privately held gambling businesses. Ho is a director of both companies, as well as managing director of Shun Tak Holdings, the Hong Kong-listed hotel, shipping and property company also controlled by the family. MGM's 50-50 joint venture with Ho would operate the casino under a subconcession from SJM. (Ho is also a director of The Standard's parent company, Global China Group.)

Regulators in any of the American states in which MGM operates could take action to block the deal, but Jacobs said that only in Mississippi are officials required to formally approve or reject the deal. MGM applied for approval there at least four months ago, but the Mississippi Gaming Commission has yet to take up the request.

Jacobs, however, said the commission has approved involvement by other companies in Macau before. MGM has yet to apply for approval from the Macau government, Gaming Inspection & Coordination Bureau director Manuel Joaquim das Neves said. Nevertheless, Lanni said that MGM and Ho are proceeding with design work on the MGM Grand Macau. MGM originally wanted to open the casino next year, but its target date has slipped to early 2007.

MGM plans to invest US$280 million (HK$2.18 billion) of its own cash in the casino. James Murren, the company's president and chief financial officer, said it expects to seek a big bank loan in April or May for additional funds for the project and that Ho will be putting equity into the MGM Grand Macau as well.

``The proceeds from the operation of that property will likely be able to fund future expansions of not only that property but perhaps a second or a third casino also in Macau,'' he added.

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K Wah Construction Materials Ltd. (0027.HK) said Thursday the Macau government has approved a potential transfer of up to 90% in one of Macau's three gaming license holders to the Hong Kong construction materials provider.

However, K Wah said the approval doesn't commit any shareholder in the license holder, Galaxy Resort & Casino, to dispose of their interest, despite the fact that the family that runs K Wah is the controlling shareholder of Galaxy.

K Wah also reiterated that negotiations relating to the possible transfer haven't yet begun, though it is of "fundamental importance to preliminary conceptual studies."

Trading in K Wah has been suspended since Jan. 21 as requested by the Securities and Futures Commission, less than two hours after it had resumed trading, following a report to the Hong Kong bourse that it was being informed by Galaxy about the possible transfer.

K Wah's shares were suspended from trading after it issued for the first time a disclosure about a potential injection of a Macau gaming license into the firm. But the SFC wasn't satisfied with the conflicting statements it had filed and asked for further clarification.

In its latest stock exchange announcement Thursday, K Wah said its chairman, Lui Chee Woo, is the ultimate controlling shareholder of Galaxy. His elder son Francis Lui is a director for both K Wah and Galaxy.

K Wah said its preliminary talks with the controlling shareholders of Galaxy started in late May 2004, when "it was discussed whether it might be worthwhile to consider investigating the possible injection of Galaxy into K Wah."

However, in a previous announcement on Oct. 14 to clarify media reports related to the injection of the gaming business into K Wah, K Wah stressed that "there have been no developments that should be brought to the attention of the respective shareholders of K Wah and potential investors."

Though both firms are controlled by the same family, they are separately conducting preliminary "conceptual studies" on the asset injection, K Wah said.

K Wah said it has almost completed its own initial studies. It said it will seek from its board in due course a mandate to enter into formal negotiation for acquiring shares in Galaxy.

[SeeMacau]

MACAO - Macao's 16 casinos generated a total gross revenue of about 3.6 billion patacas (US$450 million) in January, an increase of some 20% over the same month last year. Wednesday's Macao Post quoted its source as saying that 14 casinos affiliated to the Macao Gaming Co. Ltd. owned by tycoon Stanley Ho held 70% of the total gross revenue. The remainder was shared between the Las Vegas-invested Sands Casino and the Hong Kong-run Galaxy Waldo Casino. The casino business yielded a gross revenue of around 40 billion patacas (US$5 billion) last year, representing a year-on-year increase of 40%.

[SeeMacau]

THE neon lights in Macau are beckoning and it's set to become the world's playground.

Associate Professor of Economics Winston Koh of Singapore Management University (SMU) argued as much in a paper he presented at an Institute of Policy Studies forum last November.

The border crossing between the Chinese city of Zhuhai and Macau has become one of the busiest in the world, he noted.

The casinos in Macau are pulling in the Chinese tourists.

Last year, Macau's 13 licensed casinos raked in about US$5.1 billion ($8.34b), up 34 per cent from 2003, reported the latest issue of Time .

That's just about equal to Las Vegas Strip's takings for the year.

For now, the money is on Macau to overtake the Strip this year, said Time, quoting Mr Marc Falcone, a gaming analyst at Deutsche Bank in New York. 'Go East' seems to the mantra these days. And with eyes lit, Western gaming bigwigs are putting their money there.

The Vegas moguls are setting up shop - or in some cases, hoping to - in Asia.

Macau has already caught their eye.

Las Vegas casino king Steve Wynn is opening a $700 million ($1.1 billion) resort there.

And just a roll of a dice away, Vegas hotshot Sheldon Adelson is building a US$1.8b ($2.9b) 3,000-room Venetian hotel.

Some 8.7 million Chinese went to Macau in the first 11 months of last year - making up more than half of the total of 15.2 million visitors it had in that time.

The money the Chinese spend in Macau fuels much of its tourism industry and helped the city's GDP soar 47.6 per cent in the second quarter of last year, reported Time.

With a growing middle-class and a ban on gambling in the mainland, you don't need to be a rocket scientist to figure out that casino-crazy Chinese tourists will be a cash cow for the tourism industry anywhere.

And Asian cities are already staking their claim on the Chinese pie. Even the Philippines is looking at ways to to open up its small casino industry to foreign investors.

Macau is well-placed - it has a more than a billion people within a three-hour flight radius.

What's more, in addition to the neon-lit facilities which appeal to high rollers, Macau is quickly positioning itself as a destination for families and business conventions.

Plus, budget airline Air Asia already flies to Macau straight from Bangkok and Kuala Lumpur.

But Macau is not the only one in this region in the gaming game.

SOUTH KOREA - Weekend fun

South Korea is also drawing interest from major gaming companies, noted Assoc Prof Koh. It may not be as impressive as Macau, but it is within a three-hour flight radius for over 400 million people.

Dress up casino facilities with golf courses, theme parks and convention halls, and South Korea may have the potential to draw Chinese and Japanese weekend visitors and businessmen, said Assoc Prof Koh.

With just one of its 17 casinos opened to locals, it is foreign visitors who are bankrolling South Korea's casinos.

They raked in US$917 million in 2003. And it looks like the South Koreans are anxious to play their cards right.

Last October, the South Korean government granted new licences to two new operators - one in the capital Seoul and the other in the southern city of Busan.

The explanation given?

That the country has to make the local casino industry more competitive in the light of big US players entering the casino market in Asia.

A government-linked company has already announced plans to build a US$3 billion casino project on Yeong Giong Island - easily accessibly from Seoul and just an hour's flight away from Beijing and Shanghai.

These developments in the region - with the flurry of activity in Macau and South Korea leading the pack - back the proponents of the Singapore integrated resort.

Assoc Prof Koh wrote: 'In light of plans by Macau and South Korea to liberalise the gaming sector further, there are concerns that Singapore would see further erosion in tourist arrivals and lose out if the integrated resort-casino is not developed.'

CALLS FOR CASINOS CLOSER TO HOME...

MACAU's success has other countries also clamouring for a bigger slice of the Chinese tourism pie.

In Hong Kong, there has been a push to allow for casinos to be built on an island.

In Japan, there are calls for casinos in major cities. The Philippines is looking for foreign investors to open casinos.

[SeeMacau]

Two new casino halls opened for business in Macau yesterday, aimed at the tourists arriving during the Lunar New Year travel spree.
The renovated Fortuna Casino at the former Fortuna Hotel became the 15th casino owned by Macau tycoon Stanley Ho's gaming empire. The casino next to Ho's flagship casino - Hotel Lisboa - is a small-scale casino offering 35 gaming tables.
On the same day, Macau's first Las Vegas-invested casino Sands Macau added the "Pearl Room," a new themed luxury gaming room, hosting 40 gaming tables in addition to 180 slot machines.
Ho's Macau Gaming Co Ltd is experienced in promoting business during holidays.
It opened the Casa Real Casino last year to coincide with the bumper holiday season of China's National Day, and the Greek Myth Casino during the Christmas and New Year season.
Both are renovation projects on the company's former assets.
By updating his casinos, Ho is rising to the challenge from his rivals, the Venetian, which owns the Sands Macau, and the Hong Kong-based Galaxy that runs the Galaxy Waldo Casino.
The gaming city is experiencing its best-ever economic growth period. In January, Macau's 16 casinos generated 3.6 billion patacas (US$450 million) in total gross revenue, an increase of some 20 percent over the same month last year.
A senior economic official hinted that "18" to "19" would be the maximum number of casinos for Ho, who had monopolized Macau's gaming industry for 40 years before 2002.
Francis Tam Pak Yuen, secretary for economic and finance of the Macau Special Administrative Region government, who oversees the gaming sector, said the government was exchanging views on the issue with Ho's company.
Some industry insiders believe that following the gaming sector liberalization, the total number of casinos in Macau will reach about two dozens by the end of the decade.
Macau's legislation on gaming business limits the number of casino-operating concessions to three.
However, the number of casinos or sub-concessions that each of the three concessionaires may run is not specified by law.
Macau is the only city in China where gambling is legal. The first gaming businesses were licensed around 1847.

[SeeMacau]

Zach Coleman in Macau


February 8, 2005



Macau's casino barons rolled out new gambling halls ahead of what is expected to be a bumper holiday season - the first Lunar New Year of competition in the territory.

To have sufficient staff to keep all its tables open around the clock during the holidays, the Sands Macau has suspended training sessions and holiday leave. The casino's 45 VIP suites are all booked for favored high rollers. Minimum table bets, which are sometimes adjusted every hour to calibrate demand, will float higher during the holidays. Both Las Vegas Sands and rival Sociedade de Jogos de Macau (SJM) have scoured for space to set up new tables. Both opened new halls with about 40 new tables each.

SJM found room in the basement and lobby level of the Hotel Fortuna, a 150 million pataca (HK$151.59 million) project, chipping off some restaurant space. The Fortuna is a block away from the Hotel Lisboa.

The Sands opened its new ground-floor ``Pearl Room'' in an area previously earmarked for shops. The hall features 180 electronic gaming machines in addition to tables, adding to the 671 slot machines and 328 tables already open at the Sands.

Director of casino operations Walter Power said he could not provide a figure for the cost of the Pearl Room, but said more table space may be made as the company capitalizes on rising demand.

``We're looking at every square inch of this place,'' he said.

The casino is still finishing work on three presidential suites and three penthouse suites that Niall Sean Murray, senior director for non-gaming operations, estimates will open in several months.

The Sands does not collect revenue for any of the suites. They are offered to gamblers wagering big sums.

Las Vegas Sands is also opening its first private betting salons at its flagship Venetian casino in Las Vegas in time for Lunar New Year.

Power said the company is modeling those salons on the Sands Macau's VIP areas.

Power said that Sands is now working with two junket agents in Macau to bring in high rollers. ``We're issuing credit to select players,'' he said.

But because the government has yet to offer a tax deduction for uncollectible gaming debts, he said, the casino is being more conservative than at the Venetian in Las Vegas.

One change for the New Year is that smoking is banned in the new Pearl Room. Power said the Sands opened with no restriction on smoking, counting on its spacious, well-ventilated layout to disperse fumes, but after some complaints began restricting smoking in some spots.

Power estimated about 10 percent of punters smoke.

China's crackdown on gambling has not affected traffic to the Sands, Power said.

[SeeMacau]

Las Vegas Sands Corp. announced today that the Sands Macao, the first western-operated casino in Asia, has opened the luxurious Pearl Room, a new themed gaming room bedecked with sparkling pearl chandeliers situated adjacent to the main lobby of the Sands Macao.
The new Pearl Room features 17,000 sq. feet of space hosting 40 gaming tables, including baccarat, fan tan, Caribbean stud poker, three card baccarat, blackjack, big and small, and roulette, in addition to 180 slot machines specially designed for the Asian market.

"The Sands Macao continues to up the ante when it comes to elegance and sophistication in Macao," said Mr. Frank McFadden, Sands Macao chief operating officer. "The opening of the Pearl Room gives visitors and locals alike yet one more reason to visit the Sands Macao and experience the height of luxury."

In line with Sands' philosophy of fostering local talent, all the dealers in the Pearl Room are local Macao residents who have undergone Sands' rigorous training course.

The 40 additional tables in the Pearl Room represent a 12.5% increase taking the total number of tables to 360. The total number of slots will now be 848, or a 28% increase.

[SeeMacau]

AFP
Hong Kong, February 9, 2005

There were red faces all round when Macau casino tycoon Stanley Ho turned the air blue with smutty jokes at a gala Chinese New Year ball attended by the city's top dignitaries, a source said on Wednesday.

The billionaire gambling kingpin told a string of off-colour gags at the annual dinner in his showpiece Casino Lisboa.

Referring to the upcoming year of the rooster, Ho made jokes based on the Cantonese slang meaning of the word chicken -- prostitute.

"All you wives must watch your husbands this year," he told some 2,000 guests on Tuesday night. "Because they might be out with prostitutes from the Casino Lisboa."

Macau's casinos are notorious haunts for call girls who prey on the high rollers of the VIP rooms.

The source, who witnessed the display of crude jokes, said the guests -- which included the southern Chinese enclave's Beijing-picked leader Edmund Ho (not relation) -- were visibly unimpressed.

"The jokes did not go down very well. They were very crude and inappropriate," said the source.

[SeeMacau]

MACAU -- As reported by Xinhua: "Two new casino halls opened for business in Macau yesterday, aimed at the tourists arriving during the Lunar New Year travel spree.

i-Newswire, 2005-02-09 - "The renovated Fortuna Casino at the former Fortuna Hotel became the 15th casino owned by Macau tycoon Stanley Ho's gaming empire. The casino next to Ho's flagship casino - Hotel Lisboa - is a small-scale casino offering 35 gaming tables.

"On the same day, Macau's first Las Vegas-invested casino Sands Macau added the 'Pearl Room,' a new themed luxury gaming room, hosting 40 gaming tables in addition to 180 slot machines.

"...By updating his casinos, Ho is rising to the challenge from his rivals, the Venetian, which owns the Sands Macau, and the Hong Kong-based Galaxy that runs the Galaxy Waldo Casino..."

[SeeMacau]

LAS VEGAS, Feb. 17 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- MGM MIRAGE (NYSE: MGG - News) announced today that the Mississippi Gaming Commission has unanimously granted a waiver of approval with respect to the Company's application to engage in gaming activities in Macau S.A.R. The Company intends to develop, construct and operate, through a 50/50 joint venture with Pansy Ho, a resort hotel casino complex in Macau. The venture is subject to further regulatory review. Construction of the MGM Grand Macau is anticipated to commence in the second quarter of 2005, and to be completed for an opening in 2007.

[SeeMacau]

Zach Coleman


February 17, 2005


After teasing shareholders for two months with the possibility of a Macau gambling investment deal, Fortuna International Holdings has at last announced a HK$50 million agreement to take a 30 percent stake in a casino hotel in the territory.

Fortuna unveiled its aims on the Grand Hotel, a vintage property near the city's central square that closed five years ago.

The Hong Kong firm will invest in a venture that began renovating the hotel in December but Fortuna will not contribute to the upgrade costs.

The renovated New Grand Hotel will have 50 guest rooms and include a casino with 14 public gaming tables and six tables in a VIP room.

Fortuna said the price of its stake in the venture represents a 40 percent discount to its independently appraised value to reflect the chance of other hotels and casinos opening in the immediate area and the possibility that Macau might grant more casino operating concessions.

With the news that Macau gambling assets are selling at a discount, shareholders dumped their Fortuna holdings, sending the stock price down 16.7 percent to 3.5 cents.

Trading in the shares had been suspended since January 20. Fortuna's shares traded at a penny a piece shortly before the company first mentioned its interest in Macau. The price peaked at eight cents before the company announced delays in closing the deal last month.

The New Grand venture acquired rights to run the property for six years last April, but Fortuna said New Grand does not yet have an operating license or a deal with a casino operator, though it expects 40 percent of casino profits.

The 30 percent stake in New Grand that Fortuna is acquiring represents half of Lam Po-ying's interest in the project. Fortuna will pay Lam a mix of shares and cash to be determined later, but the deal stands to make her the second-biggest shareholder in Fortuna. Macau legislator Vitor Cheung indirectly holds a 30 percent interest in the project. Ho Yen-bing holds a 10 percent stake and Fortuna said he will serve under contract ``as the manager responsible for the promotion and marketing of the casino in the hotel to local customers and overseas tourists.''

Fortuna said the Grand Hotel is included in the area being redeveloped for the Ponte 16 project, but Marco Lee, executive director of Ponte 16 shareholder Macau Success, said Wednesday he was unaware of the plan to put a casino in the hotel.

Speaking after Macau Success' annual shareholder meeting, Lee said he expects Ponte 16 will open its own casino in summer 2006. The casino will be followed by a shopping area with a historical theme and a 270-room luxury hotel. Casino operator Sociedade de Jogos de Macau holds a 51 percent stake in the HK$1.2 billion project and Macau Success owns 24.5 percent.

Lee said the partners had given American architectural firm Jerde Partnership a six-month commission to design Ponte 16.

Jerde designed the new Langham Place mall in Mong Kok and was involved in the design of the Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre and Cyberport.

[SeeMacau]

16 February 2005

by Howard Stutz

Las Vegas Gaming Wire

RENO, Nevada and MACAU -- Casino gaming is continuing its rapid expansion into the Chinese gaming enclave of Macau, and the industry's leading slot machine manufacturer announced Tuesday it was creating a division to serve the growing market.

Reno-based International Game Technology said the formation of IGT-Asia will serve an area that could be the industry's primary growth vehicle during the later part of this decade.

Las Vegas Sands Corp. now operates the Sands Macau casino, which has 670 slot machines and 328 table games. The company plans to expand the property and also plans to develop the Macau Venetian casino and six hotel properties on the nearby Cotai Strip area that will also include casinos.

Wynn Resorts Ltd. is developing a casino in Macau, and MGM Mirage is also exploring development opportunities in the area.

IGT spokesman Ed Rogich said the new division reflects the emphasis the company is placing on expanding its overseas business. IGT also has a strong presence in Japan and, along with several casino operators, is watching gaming developments in Singapore.

With domestic growth somewhat slowed in 2005, IGT and other slot machine manufacturers are turning to foreign markets to boost sales.

"Asia, and specifically Macau, is rapidly becoming one of the most important gaming markets in the world," IGT international division President Paulus Karskens said in a statement. "It is crucial that IGT have a local sales and support presence in that market."

IGT Managing Director Scott Winzeler, formerly IGT's director of international markets, will oversee the Macau office.

Rogich said that as more Western-style casino developments open in Macau, slot machines and other electronic gaming equipment will become more prevalent. He said the new Macau office gives IGT a starting point as new casinos are developed.