PokerStars, on the other hand, seems to have a well-deserved reputation as a player’s brand.
Making matters more interesting, an article appeared in Forbes on Monday citing “sources familiar with PokerStars” in saying that Caesars Entertainment had offered both the Rio hotel and casino in Las Vegas and the World Series of Poker to PokerStars.
While I don’t doubt that Caesars offered the Rio to PokerStars, I am highly skeptical that Caesars offered the WSOP, if only because Caesars’ entire online poker operation is predicated on the strength of the WSOP brand. Meanwhile, the words “World Series of Poker” or “WSOP” do not actually appear in the quote used in the story, leaving author interpretation as a more likely source of the inclusion of the WSOP in the alleged offer:
“Caesars Entertainment approached PokerStars and offered to sell us certain assets, such as the Rio Casino in Las Vegas. Caesars suggested that this acquisition would give us a better relationship with Caesars and would help PokerStars gain a license in Nevada,” said Eric Hollreiser, a PokerStars spokesperson, in a statement. “PokerStars declined the offer because we had no plans to acquire another casino in the near term.”
Regardless, there are other problems for PokerStars other than Caesars Entertainment and the AGA.
Brick-and-mortar: Genting vs. Poker Stars
Let’s assume for a moment that the AGA is wrong, and that PokerStars is entitled to consideration for licensure. The first problem for PokerStars is that the license in question is a license to operate a brick-and-mortar casino, and not an online casino. And this is a problem not just because winning a brick-and-mortar license doesn’t necessarily guarantee that PokerStars will win a license to operate online, but also because for the process to be anything but a joke, PokerStars must win a brick-and-mortar license on its own merit.
And if you are the New Jersey Casino Control Commission or Division of Gaming Enforcement, you need to think about what PokerStars is offering.
On Monday, Boyd Gaming announced the sale of its Echelon Place project and its 87-acres of Las Vegas Strip real estate to Malaysia-based Genting for $350 million. But not only did Genting pony up $350 million, the company also announced plans to spend between $2 billion and $7 billion on a large scale, Asian-themed casino resort that will stretch the usable Las Vegas Strip once again past the Wynn/Encore to the north, and could ultimately launch the next wave of development in Las Vegas.
PokerStars, on the other hand, has intimated no such grand visions for Atlantic City, saying only that “The acquisition of the Atlantic Club Casino Hotel will secure up to 2,000 jobs and maintain the economic benefits the casino brings to New Jersey.”
So PokerStars has neither a track record nor a demonstrable expertise in operating a full-scale brick-and-mortar hotel casino (the company does have some experience with brick-and-mortar poker rooms). It is also yet to demonstrate intent to do anything in Atlantic City other than keep the Atlantic Club afloat for the sole purpose of operating online. And unless PokerStars comes forth with a grand plan for the redevelopment of the Atlantic Club, I suspect the company’s argument for a brick-and-mortar license will be quite weak.
