Leading the field, Borgata received New Jersey‘s first Internet-gambling license and will begin test play on Nov. 21. Congratulations to Boyd Gaming and partner bwin.party for having their ducks in a row. Understated Borgata prexy Tom Ballance, “It’s always nice to be first in the queue.” Now it’s a question of leveraging Borgata’s stellar brand equity into the digital domain. Just because you have a great casino floor, there’s no guarantee that’s going to translate into a comparable online experience.
He’s outta here. The face of Mesquite’s gaming industry, Randy Black, has — what’s the term? — “retired” from Mesquite Gaming, which is controlled by Michael Gaughan. There were the usual euphemisms about “looking forward to putting his considerable energies in new directions” and spending more time with the Black family — not that old Randy appears to have much choice in the matter. Despite some pro forma tut-tutting Nevada from regulators about giving Black a virtually monopoly on the Mesquite market, they did so — and he ran it into the ground. I doubt he’ll be missed and at least this will get him off our television sets. He was never quite the celebrity he thought he was.
The aspirations of the Mashpee Wampanoags took another step 
forward this week, as the Massachusetts House of Representatives overwhelmingly approved a new compact with the state. The complex web of tax rates, depending on various scenarios — like the proximity of competition — may raise some eyebrows in Washington, but Gov. Deval Patrick (D, pictured) thinks he’s got this thing in the bag. However, given the unlikelihood of federal recognition for the tribe — which has little going for it except a lot of hot air from Chairman Cedric Cromwell — especially in the near term, it’s difficult not to sympathize with lawmakers who want to see the state pursue other operators instead.
Bringing a bit of Macao to Pennsylvania, the workforce at Sands Bethlehem is of 20% Asian extraction (far more than any other casino in the Keystone State). This predominantly Chinese influx means that you can expect to hear a lot of Mandarin spoken at Sands these days. This state-leading diversity jibes well with Sands’ customer base, which is 50% Asian-American, and the company was very proactive in searching out potential workers who fit that customer demographic. These employees are also enriching Bethlehem‘s ethnic mix and renewing the neighborhoods immediately surrounding Sands Bethlehem. Again, we ask why is Sands bent on dumping a property that, after several years’ struggle, has finally found its niche?
