Numbers Prove Gambling Should Be Casinos' Business

Even as most of the world suffers from economic troubles, Macau reported a 54 percent revenue increase in the first six months of this year.

As first theorized by Online Casino Advisory's gambling analyst Sherman Bradley and echoed a week later by Financial Week, much of the economic difficulty arising for the Las Vegas casino industry comes from the diversification of business away from the primary concern, gambling. As casino management has tried to find new revenue sources from hotels, restaurants, and shops, they have left themselves open to the surges and collapses of the general economy.

Now Times Online has uncovered statistics that not only support Bradley's theories, but also the corollary that gambling growth may continue unabated by slowdowns and recessions, if properly courted.

According to the online site, 80 percent of Vegas resort revenue is now from sources not related to gambling. Merchandise, shows, bars and clubs, high-end restaurants and pricey hotel rooms all seemed like great ideas when boom times lined everyone's pockets; now those businesses are hurting.

Meanwhile, in Macau, over 70 percent of income is a direct product of gambling. All the other niceties exist, but they are used strictly as enticements to draw more gamblers.

And, unsurprisingly to Bradley, Macau continues to grow at a prodigious rate. Even as most of the world suffers from economic troubles, Macau reported a 54 percent revenue increase in the first six months of this year.

Asked for comment, Bradley said, "Macau's continued expansion demonstrates the potential of gaming to avoid the negative effects of the general economy. Although the situation in Macau is already changing due to policy changes by the Chinese government, it has occurred long enough to remind Las Vegas of the path from which they strayed.

"Las Vegas will find that, in the face of increased competition and tough times, it would be best served by returning to its roots. Using the luxuries not as independent money-makers, but as lures to bring gamblers flocking to the town again would bring players whose local venues could not match the elegance and style of the Vegas resorts.

"The days of the $1 shrimp cocktail, $2 steak dinner, and comped rooms never felt the dire winds of the economy, and bringing those days back would insulate current casinos from the cold world outside."