Macau casino owner Lawrence Ho criticized Crown Resorts and other gambling companies targeting Chinese high rollers for adopting a bit too aggressive approaches when marketing their services in Mainland China.
Mr. Ho said in an interview with the Financial Times that it had been a common practice for casinos from around the region to send sales staff members who would offer credits to potential customers as well as other treats in a bid to draw greater attention to their gambling venues.
Casino gambling is illegal in China, with Macau being the only exception to the rule. The special administrative region currently has more than 35 integrated resorts and other casino facilities on its territory and those are managed by some of the world’s largest operators.
The promotion of casino services is also considered a criminal activity under China’s existing laws. And President Xi Jinping, the country’s top official, has not been discreet about his extremely negative stance on gambling, and casino gaming in particular.
Last fall, eighteen Crown Resorts staff members were arrested in China for allegedly promoting their services across a number of Chinese provinces. Their detention affected the operator’s VIP business in quite a negative manner and hit its profitability significantly.
Chinese high rollers are the Asia-Pacific region’s favorite casino customers, due to their proverbial tendency to spend big on different table games offered at gambling properties. Crown Resorts and its casinos have, too, long been dependent on this particular gambling group and as the arrests of employees were announced, the company got to realize the exact scope of that reliance.
Following the months after the detention, the Australian gambling operator announced that it would reduce its international investment and would focus its attention on its domestic business. Earlier this year, it became clear that Crown Resorts was exiting its Macau joint venture with Mr. Ho’s Melco International Development. Formerly Melco Crown and now re-branded to Melco Resorts & Entertainment, the operator is running casino resorts in Macau and the Philippines and is eyeing expansion to the newly-legalized Japanese casino market.
As for Crown Resorts, after disposing of its international assets, the company now runs casinos in Melbourne and Perth and is building a A$2-billion integrated resort in Sydney’s Barangaroo district.
Mr. Ho said that despite Crown Resorts’ exit from their joint venture, he and Australian businessman James Packer are still great friends. Mr. Packer left his executive posts at the Australian operator in 2015, but announced earlier this year that he would return to the company’s board as a Director.
