Macau tycoon pays 330,000 US dlrs for two truffles

HONG KONG — Macau casino tycoon Stanley Ho paid 330,000 US dollars for two white truffles at a weekend auction, a report said Monday, matching the record price he paid for one of the prized fungi 3 years ago.

The billionaire made his winning bid through representatives at the event held at his own Grand Lisboa hotel in the Asian gambling hub, the fourth straight year he has won the truffle auction, the Standard newspaper reported.

Ho's winning bid bought him a giant truffle from Italy's central Tuscany region that weighed about 900 grams (2 pounds) and a smaller one of about 400 grams, the report said.

The auction in Macau, a former Portuguese colony returned to China in 1999, also saw bidders vie for the delicacy from Rome and London via satellite link, it said.

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Gamblers bet $41.3M on slots at Erie casino

Gamblers wagered $41.3 million on slot machines at Presque Isle Downs & Casino during the week of November 15-21.

The amount returned to gamblers was $37.5 million, the Pennsylvania Gaming Control Board reported.

The gross revenue -- the amount of gamblers' losses -- was $3 million, after subtracting $917,664 in promotional free plays. Of that gross revenue, $1.6 million went to the state, and $1.4 million to the casino.

During a comparable week in 2009, November 16-22, gamblers wagered $37.5 million.

Incredible $7.3 Million Slots Jackpot Hit In Atlantic City

A Trenton, Mercer County man is celebrating his unbelievable good fortune after winning a staggering $7,355,381 while playing the slots at Harrah’s Resort Atlantic City.

The anonymous man, identified simply as “Tom”, was playing a progressive $5 Wheel of Fortune machine at 9:05 in the morning, when he hit the enormous jackpot in Harrah’s Diamond Cove slot section.

The $7,355,381 progressive jackpot is linked to a whole network of other similar slots in Atlantic City’s 11 casino and is actually the second biggest ever paid out in the casino’s history.

Harrah’s opened its casino doors on November 23rd, 1980 and “Tom” said he was actually present at Harrah’s Resort Atlantic City on its opening night all those years ago. Amazingly he has now won the huge sum of money on exactly the 30th anniversary of the casino.

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Indians sign Sullivan casino pact

MONTICELLO — Countless failed casino schemes were dismissed and a new path to gambling was risked Monday as another Indian tribe signed another deal for a casino in Sullivan County.

Before a crowd of 200 and beneath the bright lights of several TV cameras, Gov. David Paterson and the Stockbridge-Munsee Band of Mohican Indians signed a compact for a $700 million casino in Bridgeville, off Route 17's Exit 107.

Standing in the same Government Center room where, nearly 10 years ago, Gov. George Pataki signed a law allowing three Indian casinos in the Catskills, Paterson touted the thousands of jobs and billions of dollars this first casino would mean to the state and struggling Sullivan County, with one of the highest unemployment rates in New York.

"A catalyst for great economic development right here in (the Town of) Thompson and all of Sullivan County," said Paterson, flanked by Sen. Chuck Schumer, Rep. Maurice Hinchey, Assemblywoman Aileen Gunther, former Rep. Ben Gilman and other officials.

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Omni Casino Dettori's Bonus

A new slot game has just gone live at Omni Casino. It is Frankie Dettori's Magic Seven. The slot game is based on the renowned jockey Frankie Dettori, who won all seven races at Ascot on a single day. So players, who are horse racing fans and particularly Dettori fans, will love this slot games.

Video clips of all seven magic wins can be activated. And even if players do not know Frankie the new slot is really fun to play. Omni Casino says, "Our slot designers have yet again stepped up and built you a great game packed with bonus rounds and features."

Three or more scatter symbols trigger the Free Games Race in which players will be able to pick their winner in an attempt to be awarded free spins. Up to 35 free spins are up for grabs, all with 7X multipliers. And the icing on the cake is the huge 7,777 coins line bet jackpot.

In order to complement the new slot game Omni Casino has announced that this weekend will be Frankie Dettori's Slot Bonus Weekend. There are 3 bonuses on offer called Win, Place and Show. These bonuses are named after popular racing bets, but again players not familiar with horse racing can claim the bonuses anyway. All three bonuses are available only on Saturday Nov. 20 and Sunday Nov. 21.

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Caesars dealers OK 5-year deal with 18 pct raise

Dealers at Caesars Atlantic City overwhelmingly approved a five-year contract with the casino that will increase salaries by 18 % over the life of the agreement.

The ratification vote by the United Auto Workers, which was completed Thursday, marks the second contract the union has reached with an Atlantic City casino, following a pact with the Tropicana Casino and Resort in August.

The union is bargaining with management at Bally's Atlantic City and Trump Plaza Hotel and Casino, but has yet to reach agreement on deals with those gambling houses.

"Everyone is thrilled, just jubilant," said Kyle Noel, a 26-year Caesars dealer. "We have been waiting for this day for 3 1/2 years. Everybody feels like we have job security now and a bright future. Everyone's been smiling a lot for the past few days."

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Sullivan County taking key step toward casino

MONTICELLO — Gov. David Paterson is expected to be in Monticello next week to sign a compact with the Stockbridge-Munsee Mohican Indians that will allow the tribe to operate a casino in the Sullivan County town of Thompson.

The tribe owns more than 330 off Route 17 in Bridgeville.

The governor is expected to sign a land agreement with leaders of the Wisconsin-based tribe spelling out details of a pact with New York.

That doesn’t seal the deal, though, because the tribe still will need federal approval to operate an off-reservation casino, and there has been no policy change since the Interior secretary in the George W. Bush administration, Dirk Kempthorne, nixed such plans.

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Conn. casinos report rising, falling October revenue

The Mohegan Sun says casino revenue in October slid 4 % as fewer gamblers visited due to a drop in concerts. But rival Foxwoods Resort Casino said revenue jumped 4.5 %.

Mohegan Sun in Uncasville said Monday that revenue for the month was $60.3 million, down from $62.9 million in Oct. 2009. It was the third consecutive month that revenue dropped.

Foxwoods said revenue for the month was $57.2 million. However the increase was the second in as many months, Interim President William Sherlock said executives at the Mashantucket casino are wary because of the weak economy.

Mitchell Etess, Mohegan Sun's president and CEO, said 28,000 fewer visitors came to the casino in Oct compared with the Oct. 2009. He says the lower number is a result of fewer concerts.

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Casino antique show starts Friday

Riverside Casino and Golf Resort will host its third annual Antique Show from Friday to November 21 in the casino's event center.

The show will feature 35 dealers from the Midwest offering items including toys, jewelry, books and Indian artifacts.

The event will run from 4 to 9 p.m. Friday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. November 21.

Admission is free.

World's Biggest Casino Owner Set to Raise $532M

Investors will get another chance to roll the dice on the world's biggest casino operator next week. It may be a risky bet, according to some observers.

Harrah's Entertainment Inc. — which will change its name to Caesars Entertainment Corp. by the time its initial public offering closes — plans to raise as much as $532 million.

Its shares will start trading at a financially precarious time for the casino business. Like the rest of the industry, Harrah's and other casino companies hit a wall during the recession as people opted to save their extra cash rather than gamble it. Results for the first nine months of this year suggest casino visitors aren't yet ready to spend the way they used to.

In a recent securities filing, the company said it lost $634.4 million during the nine months that ended September 30. Revenue over the same period totaled $6.7 billion, down from $6.8 billion in the first nine months of 2009.

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Illinois considering casinos in Chicago, Ford Heights

INDIANAPOLIS | Illinois lawmakers again are trying to expand riverboat gaming in the state, including new casinos in Chicago and Ford Heights, even as Gov. Pat Quinn says the plan is dead in the water.

State Sen. Terry Link, D-Waukegan, introduced legislation this week that would boost Illinois' casino population to 14 from 10, permit slot machines at horse tracks, including Balmoral Park in Crete, and allow existing casinos in the state to nearly double in size.

Link estimates the state could bring in an additional $1 billion a year from expanded gaming. Illinois has a $14 billion budget deficit, according to Comptroller Dan Hynes.

But Gov. Quinn is not on board, saying the state can't gamble its way to prosperity.

"I think we have to understand in Illinois that we have some gambling. But do we want to expand it and make Illinois the Las Vegas of the Midwest? Not in my opinion," Quinn said.

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Arizona tribe expands suit opposing casino project

A southern Arizona tribe planning to build a casino resort in suburban Glendale already used up a federal allotment being invoked to acquire the site, according to a new court filing by a tribe that already operates casinos in the Phoenix area.

The Gila River Indian Community has sued to block the Tohono O'odham Nation's project, contending in its original lawsuit that the U.S. Interior Department acted illegally and skirted its own policies when it agreed to take land into trust on behalf of the nation.

In a court filing Tuesday, Gila River asked a judge to accept an updated lawsuit.

It contends that newly discovered evidence indicates that previous Tohono O'odham land purchases totaling 16,000 acres exceeded a 9,880-acre cap set under federal law, before the 2003 purchase of a 135-acre parcel that includes the proposed 54-acre casino site.

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Detroit casinos showing gains

Detroit's casinos Tuesday reported a 3.1 % increase in combined revenue in October compared to the same month a year ago, signaling growing confidence in the economy.

Through the first 10 months of the year, revenue rose 2.7 % at the MGM Grand Detroit, MotorCity Casino Hotel and Greektown Casino Hotel compared with last year's January-October period.

The gains are likely due to increased optimism about the economy and weak 2009 performance, said Tom Nelson, principal with Haslett, Mich.-based Gaming Regulatory Consultants LLC.

Revenue at MGM Grand Detroit last month rose 4.2 % to $46.8 million from $44.9 million in October 2009. MGM, which holds the city's largest casino market share, has experienced the biggest revenue gain this year.

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Sands' Macau casino: quarterly profit doubled

HONG KONG — Las Vegas Sands' Macau unit said Tuesday it more than doubled quarterly profit to nearly 200 million US dollars, after the world's most lucrative gambling hub posted record monthly gaming revenues.

Sands China said it earned 199 million dollars in the third quarter, up from 87 million dollars a year earlier, on revenues of 1.08 billion dollars -- a 27 % year-over-year increase.

The rosy results come a day after rival SJM Holdings, controlled by gambling tycoon Stanley Ho, posted a massive six-fold increase in third-quarter earnings.

SJM said Monday that it earned 867 million Hong Kong dollars (112 million US) compared with 138 million Hong Kong dollars in the third quarter last year.

The company's sales rose 69 % to 14.1 billion Hong Kong dollars, an increase largely credited to growth in its high-roller gaming tables which raked in 9.38 billion Hong Kong dollars during the quarter.

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Government to reconsider proposal for Jemez tribe casino

ANTHONY, N.M. - The U.S. government is taking a second look at a proposal by the Jemez Pueblo Indian Tribe to open a $72-million resort casino - an action that is worrying some and exciting others in this community of 7,900.

The Bureau of Indian Affairs and the Department of Interior said they are reconsidering the application the tribe submitted to build the 48,000-square-foot casino on 100 acres near Interstate 10 about 20 miles north of El Paso.

The casino, if opened, would be a significant boost to the economy and create 950 jobs, according to tribal officials.

That possibility has some people saying the good times are on the way.

"It will be a win-win situation," said Ray Loretto, former governor of the Jemez Pueblo and member of the Jemez enterprise management board.

In 2008, the Department of the Interior rejected the tribe's application.

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City of Dreams casino leads revival at Melco Crown

JAMES PACKER'S Macau joint venture has ''turned the corner'', says his business partner Lawrence Ho.

Melco Crown, which owns two casinos in Macau, has declared its first quarterly profit for 2½ years.

In the 3 months to the end of September it made $US15.8 million, compared with a $US39.5 million loss for the same period last year.

And while a new development in Macau is stalled, the company is still interested in expanding out of the Chinese Special Administrative Region into Japan, Taiwan or the Cayman Islands.

Melco Crown had been weighed down by its City of Dreams casino, which underperformed after it opened in June last year.

But City of Dreams raked in $US504 million in the September quarter, compared with $US288 million in the same period last year.

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On the Call: Wynn Resorts CEO Steve Wynn

Casino company Wynn Resorts Ltd. recorded a loss for its third quarter Tuesday, including the cost of rolling over debt, but it also reported a 23 % increase in revenue in a statement one analyst called "a happy release."

Billionaire CEO Steve Wynn focused in a conference call with investors afterward on the company's plans for expansion in Asia, which produced that revenue jump, and on his frequent claim that the Obama administration has frightened U.S. consumers and business owners.

Wynn said struggling Las Vegas has "seen the bottom" and praised one analyst for asking about what might help things improve in Las Vegas.

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