Steve Wynn speech about everyting else
Steve Wynn the charismatic casino mogul was the main attraction at G2E on Tuesday 30th September with a keynote speech to conference attendees.
However the speech Mr Wynn gave was not that enlightening to all attending delegates, the casino tycoon said that gambling alone will not make a successful casino resort but all the things around gambling will.
On the first full day of the G2E at the Sands Expo the flamboyant billionaire focussed his speech on revenues sources and said customers had shifted their focus from the gambling floor to other areas around the resorts over recent years.
Continuing his focus he gave examples of his background of casino resorts and how he looked at hotel rooms, restaurants and shops as making the major money and not just gambling. He pointed to his time at the Golden Nugget, the Mirage and the Bellagio all made more money from amenities off the gambling floor than on it.
“It’s always been that the non-casino story was the story. It was never the slot machines — they’ve been everywhere for centuries,” Wynn said. “The machines have no power unto themselves. A roulette table is a roulette table anywhere on Earth.”
The problem with the speech is he said nothing that the listening attendees did not already know for years. All new resorts have focussed on non-gambling amenities to generate income, of course gambling is still a big revenue generator but everything around gambling now makes more money than the attraction itself.
One other thing Mr Wynn pointed to was that the increase in casinos around the country in many states now has impacted on Las Vegas and indeed the struggling Atlantic City, all again those listening know all too well.
“You got to give people something they’re willing to get on an airplane and submit to a body search for,” he said. “That ain’t a slot machine, friends, and it sure as hell ain’t a baccarat table.” Said Wynn in regard to Las Vegas and Atlantic City.
One interesting moment came when Mr Wynn took a question from the delegates towards online gambling, he answered by saying he thought “not much” about the sector and was not concerned about being left behind in what he believes is an industry laden with problems.
In all the speech was of little substance and nothing new or ground breaking, attendees already knew of Wynn’s position at present towards online gambling and several delegates said they were disappointed with the content of the speech from such a leading figure within the sector.
Next up on Wednesday is Sheldon Adelson and his speech to attendees, with many observers expecting it to be more fiery in his opinions towards online gambling.
