For the third month in a row, the state of Nevada is reporting a significant decline in gaming revenue blamed on the economy. In March, Nevada casinos won 2 percent less from gamblers than a year ago while the state’s biggest economic engine, the Las Vegas Strip, generated 5 percent less gaming revenue, the Gaming Control Board reported today. But the real story is in slots, historically accounting for more than 60 percent of the state’s gaming revenue.
For the third month in a row, the state of Nevada is reporting a significant decline in gaming revenue blamed on the economy. In March, Nevada casinos won 2 percent less from gamblers than a year ago while the state’s biggest economic engine, the Las Vegas Strip, generated 5 percent less gaming revenue, the Gaming Control Board reported today. But the real story is in slots, historically accounting for more than 60 percent of the state’s gaming revenue.
Topeka, Kansas - Four state-owned resort casinos and slot machines at race tracks could generate up to USD 739 million in annual revenue even if two Indian casinos operate near the border in Oklahoma, a study prepared for the Kansas Lottery concluded. The estimate assumes the Quapaw casino will operate south of Cherokee County and the Pawnee tribe will have a casino south of Arkansas City. Without the two casinos, the study said annual revenues could reach USD 811 million.
Holland Casino logged a total of 7.5 million visits in 2007. That is 7.6 percent more than in 2006 and it makes Holland Casino an extremely popular entertainment venue. The growing number of visitors, however, did not make for higher operating results. Net operating income was 85.6 million Euro, 4.1 percent lower than in 2006. Spending per visit decreased compared to 2006, from 104 Euro to 101 Euro in 2007. Holland Casino's net operating income has been decreasing since 2003.
Vienna - At the Casinos Austria Group Annual Press Conference held in the Austrian Lotteries multimedia event center, Studio 44, Casinos Austria International (CAI) today announced record results for the year ended 31.12.2007. Aggregate revenues (win, registered tips, entrance) at the 66 casino operations around the globe wholly or partly owned and/or managed by CAI rose by 10.7 % year-on-year to a record 1.1 billion euro (2006: 990 million euro), exceeding the 1 billion euro mark for the first time in the company's 30-year history.
The Kansas City area’s four riverboat casinos’ combined revenue and customer counts decreased in March compared with the same month last year, according to statistics of the Missouri Gaming Commission. Only Argosy Casino in Riverside bested its year-ago figures. The Kansas City market as a whole reported March revenue of USD 65 million, down 3 percent from USD 66.9 million last year. The four casinos combined reported 913,020 customers, down 8 percent from 989,913 last year.
Des Moines (AP) -- The gambling industry brought USD 1 billion to Iowa in 2007, according to a state report. The Iowa Racing and Gaming Commission report shows the 17 riverboat and racetrack gambling facilities -- regulated by the state -- provided salaries, wages and employee benefits last year, totaling almost USD 280 million, according to a copyright article in The Des Moines Register.
Gambling and hotels group Sun International will continue to look at expansion plans, despite a rocky road ahead, CE David Coutts-Trotter said yesterday. “We’re going to continue to focus on expansion and renewal of our assets. It is tempting to cut back on these but if you do you tend to miss out at a later stage,” Coutts-Trotter said, following the announcement that a tougher industry outlook had hurt growth in the group’s gambling revenues.
High rollers are helping the Strip weather the economic downturn but lower rollers might just be keeping Nevada’s entire economy afloat. And these folks don’t wager millions at baccarat. Their game is “penny” slots — devices with countless “paylines” that allow wagers of as little as a penny per spin, although most players bet on more than one payline and more than one coin per line.
Gold Reef Casino Resorts Ltd., whose planned acquisition by Ethos Private Equity Ltd. was thwarted by regulators, rose the most in more than eight years in Johannesburg trading after Tsogo Sun Holdings Ltd. said it may bid. Gold Reef advanced as much as 4.31 rand, or 19 percent, to 27.01 rand, the biggest gain since December 15, 1999. The stock traded at 26.60 rand as of 9:44 a.m. local time, giving the Johannesburg- based company a market value of 7.8 billion rand ([[USD]] 994 million).
The smoking ban in public places, effective since the 2nd January of this year in casinos, caused “an annual downward trend of 14% in the gross gaming revenue.” This was pointed out in a statement issued by the Casinos de France union last week. The professional organization added that “an investigation carried out in the gambling establishments which are members of Casinos de France showed a fall in entries and a sensible decrease in the time spent by the clientele inside the casinos.”
Games of chance business in Colombia generates USD 1.5 billion a year, equivalent to two tax reforms. According to the Colombian Federation of Games of Chance business (Feceazar), three sectors obtain the best collection: chance, the most sold, followed by casinos, bingos, slot halls and lotteries, with sales of USD 518.5 million. However, lotteries have been losing its space lately, mainly due to the appearance of online games such as Baloto.
