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JAPAN SETS UP CASINO TASK FORCE
Japanese government signals its intent by setting up a task force to advise on the future direction of the domestic industry
Japan - Government
Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe’s government is setting up a task force to advise on the future development of casinos should legislators approve the introduction of integrated casino resorts.
TAIWAN – NEW CAMPUS ADVANTAGES ADVANTECH The Advantech-Innocore team in Taiwan was one of the first business units in the fast growing Advantech Corporation to occupy the new purpose-built campus in Linkou just outside of Taipei. Advantech Linkou Campus began operating in 2014. It is near to Linkou Chang Gung Memorial Hospital and the downtown area, and it’s also close to the highway, Taoyuan International Airport, and the soon-to-be-complet- ed airport MRT. Linkou campus includes a total land area of 34,470 square meters (8.5 acres), and consists of an R&D center and offices, while second and third phases will contin- ue to expand the office area and will add a state of the art manufacturing facility and warehouse and distribution cen- ter. The Linkou campus will provide a very efficient vertically integrated workplace, from design and development to sam- pling and manufacturing on one campus.
Advantech-Innocore Managing Director Edward Price com- mented: “The new facilities at Linkou give our growing team in Taiwan more space and fantastic resources under one roof. The new campus will allow for more efficient use of time with easy access to R&D and production facilities. We expect to see the benefits of this new engine for growth immediately.”
AUSTRALIA – CHRISTMAS ISLAND CASINO TO REOPEN A parliamentary committee has suggested that the casino on Christmas Island, a small Australian territory in the Indian Ocean, 1,600km north-west of the Australian mainland, should be reopened to boost the island’s economy. The Christmas Island casino and resort was a popular gambling destination for Indonesia’s wealthy elite in the mid 90s before closing in 1998. The report stated: “The committee recommends that the Australian Government commit to facilitating the approval process to enable the reopening of the Christmas Island casino. Neither mining nor immigra- tion-related activities will sustain the island’s economy indefinitely, and the casino has the potential to play a major role in transitioning the Christmas Island economy.”
MACAU - MGS UNVEILS SPECIAL SHOW PROMOTION Organizers of the upcoming Macao Gaming Show, taking place across 18-20 November at the Venetian Macao, have announced a special booth package promotion, which will give exhibitors buying 50 booths an extra 50 booths free of charge. Ross Zhang, Event Operation Manager at MGS, said that at the cost of HK$1m, operators would be able to take a stand space of 100 booths, adding that it would also be offering 45-booth spaces for the value of 30 (HK$621,000) as part of the special promotion.
“While reviewing our ongoing efforts to provide maximum possible value for exhibitors and visitors, MGS has decided to pull out all the stops and ensure companies at the show are able to get the biggest space they are physically able to,” Mr. Zhang explained. “We are on track to make the Macao Gaming Show the most influential gaming event in the region, produced by domestic firms.”
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The move is a clear sign that a positive outcome is likely for the casino concept indeed the govern- ment is keen for Integrated Resorts to be opera- tional by the 2020 Olympic Summer Games in Tokyo.
Toru Mihara, a professor at Osaka University of Commerce who is consulting with legislators, said:
“Given the likelihood that the government will not submit other important legislation which would be given discussion priority, it’s highly likely that the casino bill will be passed by November.”
Mr. Mihara added it would be ‘entirely out of the question’ that the casinos would be limited to for- eigners.
“I would estimate that about 80 percent of all visi- tors will be Japanese. The remainder will be for- eigners,” he said.
A1.7 per cent second quarter decline in Japan’s GDP has concerned politicians with the task force seen as a way of keeping casino companies inter-
ested following the casino bills failure to emerge from June’s Diet session. It is though up for debate in the Diet’s special session expected to begin within the next two months.
The affect casinos will have on Japan’s pachinko sector, which generated revenue of $36bn in 2013, is also up for debate.
Global Market Advisors Partner Andrew Klebanow believes Japan will follow a similar model as Las Vegas where locals use neighbour- hood slot halls rather than the large resort casinos.
“Las Vegas has dozens of resort casinos with over 150,000 hotel rooms and over 70,000 slot machines, yet there are 100s of taverns, slot par- lours and other locations that offer a few machines each.”
Analysts at Morgan Stanley believe that 20 per cent of Tokyo’s pachinko players will prefer to play casinos, yielding slot revenue of $1.2bn.
They believe Japan’s casino GGR could be less than expected, pitching it at $22bn, half the amount that other analysts have suggested.
Vietnam Analyst in Vietnam believe that large foreign investors are waiting to hear the final decision from the government on Vietnamese admission to casinos, which is expected to bring multi-billion dollars to Vietnam. It is thought that the new regulations could contribute to casinos comprising up to five per cent of the country’s GDP in the near future. Meanwhile, the State would be able to collect tax from casinos, estimated at nearly $1bn a year. Currently, Vietnam loses $800m in tax from the Vietnamese who travel to Cambodia.
Roxy Casino in Cambodia struggles to gain its foothold
CAMBODIA Roxy Casino, a newly renovated casino in Bavet town owned by publicly listed Australian firm Cell Aquaculture (CAQ), held its official grand opening last month after a two-month trial period, which returned mediocre results for the firm.
In a filing to the Australian Stock Exchange (ASX) dated August 8, CAQ states that the firm experienced operational and administrative teething issues during its soft opening period. Despite the shaky start, however, the newcomer to Cambodia’s gambling industry managed to attract modest
player traffic, largely brought on by gamblers betting on World Cup football matches.
“Since the Casino’s soft opening on May 26, 2014, the casino’s operations have been viewed as a trail for the purpose of realis- ing and attending to teething operational and administrative issues,” the statement, which was signed by company secre- tary Deborah Ho, says.
“It was encouraging to note that during the trial period, a count of players at gaming tables were noted every two hours and yielded a average of 550 patrons daily,” the statement continues,
adding that the firm has recent- ly launched an online gaming operation.
After purchasing the rights and title to the casino in March, CAQ invested some $2m into reno- vating the previously run-down Roxy Casino, which is now one of 10 gaming venues peppered along National Highway 1 only metres from the Vietnamese border gate and employs more than 350 staff. “Vietnamese locals are the most important market for the Roxy Casino due to its proximity to Ho Chi Minh City, which is the largest city in Vietnam and about 87 kilome- tres to Bavet," the statement says. “Marketing programs and promotions are created to tap into this primary market, including attracting junkets from Vietnam,” the statement adds.
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