Our weekly roundup of the casino headlines focuses on Atlantic City, which had a couple of positive pieces of news come to light. We’ll start there as we do our weekly recap of the important headlines in the casino world:
Atlantic City Casino That Offered Rooms For Hurricane Evacuees Fills Up
Although casinos sometimes get viewed in a negative light, one Atlantic City casino helped bring some positive public relations this past week. It was a generous offer and people noticed.
The Ocean Resort Casino in Atlantic City offered free rooms to people leaving the Carolinas to escape hurricane Florence and many who were fleeing took advantage. The hotel actually reached full capacity last Thursday. The Ocean Resort Casino said it would be in position to offer more rooms as of Sunday, Sept. 16, continuing through Thursday, Sept. 20.
Ocean Resort owner Bruce Deifik told the Associated Press of his offer earlier last week. He said that if people could prove they lived in the areas endangered by hurricane Florence and all the expected flooding that was likely to occur in the region, he would let them have a free room at his casino’s hotel. The casino has 1,399 rooms. It reopened in June after being closed since 2014. Over 10 million people have been displaced by the hurricane. Georgia, Virginia, North Carolina and South Carolina all declared states of emergency and will need extended time to deal with the aftermath of the massive flooding. Atlantic City was once rocked by hurricane Sandy, so it’s nice that it is now giving back to help others facing a similar situation.
Atlantic City Casino Revenue Explodes In August, Up 22.5 percent
Speaking of Atlantic City, another positive story came to light as numbers for August were released. The New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement reported that overall casino gambling revenue totaled just over $300 million in August, which is a boost from $244.8 million in August of 2017.
What is also good news is that with the legalization of sports betting in New Jersey, new revenue is expected to stream in during NFL and college football season in September. Many people are anxiously awaiting the first report, which will be due out in October. Regardless, casino betting is already robust across various New Jersey-based outlets with Borgata generating roughly $77 million by itself across multiple platforms.
Myanmar Takes Another Step Toward Casino Legalization
The need to raise revenues will always exist for the world’s nations. Myanmar is encountering that need in a real way and is looking to casinos to help out. The Southeast Asian country has reportedly passed draft legislation in its House of Representatives that would legalize the use of a select number of foreigner-only casinos.
According to a report from GGRAsia, the proposed bill could change current statutes that banned the operation of casinos. Those statutes date back to 1986 legislation in the country. If legalized, it would open the door for Myanmar and its population of 51 million to get into the gaming market. The country, which is already a somewhat popular tourist destination in that neighborhood, is hoping to attract even more foreign clientele should this be ratified.
A lot still has to be worked out in terms of who will be licensed to own and operate casinos, who will be able to gamble and what regulations will be put in place.