@font-face { font-family: “Geneva”; }p.MsoNormal, li.MsoNormal, div.MsoNormal { margin: 0in 0in 0.0001pt; font-size: 12pt; font-family: Geneva; }div.Section1 { page: Section1; } In the end, the final push Japan needs to legalize integrated resorts may come from Korea.
That is the message from a recent Business Week report on the somewhat-reluctant race being run by Japan, Korea and Taiwan to see which government decides to develop a truly international casino resort industry.
In contrast to Japan and Taiwan, Korea already has a somewhat dated casino industry, dedicated primarily to foreign players but with one property that allows locals to gamble.
The existence of casinos gives Korea an edge, believes Toshihiko Satake, policy secretary for Kazunari Koga, who is a member of Japan’s ruling party and also chairman of an association of 130 pro-gambling legislators from various political parties.
Koga told Business Week that the Korean legislature “just needs to amend the law to create an integrated resort.”
The Japanese association, known as the IR Diet Members’ Association, is said to be hopeful of presenting a bill to the Diet before January. If passed, Satake says, the Japanese will move quickly.
“Casino operations will be ready in three years,” says Satake.
To help understand the business, the recently held 18th general assembly of the IR Diet Members’ Association was treated to a 15-minute presentation by Caesars Entertainment CEO Gary Loveman.
Tokyo-based consultancy Gaming Capital Management had a representative at the meeting, who reported that Loveman’s presentation included the likely ROI and break-even point for a Japan IR, the expected size of an investment, industry-standard player payout ratios and—very importantly—how to be attractive to the Chinese player. Social responsibility and combating addiction also were mentioned.
The meeting, attended by an estimated 120 members and including 20 legislators, also featured association Chairman Issei Koga of the governing Democratic Party of Japan, who presented an update on the progress of a draft bill to legalize casinos. The bill could be debated in the current extraordinary session of the Japanese Diet.
Association Vice Chairman Takeshi Iwaya of the Liberal Democratic Party said the IR bill is intended to give a positive shot to the nation’s economic growth by encouraging tourist visits by non- Japanese. The tourism angle was also put forward by the Singapore government in its justification of IRs.
Association Executive Secretary Sakihito Ozawa of the Democratic Party of Japan said Seiji Maehara, chairman of his party’s Policy Research Committee, supports the bill.
Toshimitsu Motegi, chairman of the Liberal Democratic Party’s Policy Research Council, is said to be one of the most pro-casino members of the association. Three smaller parties belonging to the group also said there is parliamentary support for the bill.
Ozawa also said the urgency to regenerate the economy—devastated by the earthquake and tsunami earlier this year—could reduce the preparation period for casino legislation from two years to one.
