Caesars CEO Teases Major Brand Launch for 2024

Audrey Oswell (left), Jim Allen (middle), and Thomas Reeg (right) all spoke at the East Coast Gaming Congress in Atlantic City this week (Image: Alamy)

The second and final day of the recent East Coast Gaming Congress in Atlantic City, New Jersey was devoted to a series of presentations from some of the gaming industry’s heaviest hitters. A parade of top executives representing such entities as Caesars Entertainment, Bally’s Corporation, and Hard Rock International addressed a variety of topics in their speeches, which generally focused on the micro - and macro-challenges legal gaming is facing. 

Casinos.com journalist Chuck Darrow was on the ground, and below are some of the more notable offerings from the talks:

Caesars’ Digital Double-Down

Perhaps the single biggest piece of news to come out of the seaside conference came from Thomas Reeg, CEO of Caesars Entertainment. 

Describing the digital revolution taking place in the industry as “exciting,” Reeg said that “Caesars will launch a second iGaming brand by the end of the year.”

He offered no details about his company’s plan to double down on internet wagering but suggested that his company is looking ahead to 2026, when, he reasoned, iGaming-averse states will change their tunes in order to compensate for budget shortfalls. New Jersey is currently one of five states where casino sites are legalized.

On a related note, given that broadcast and online media are saturated with advertisements for Caesars’ digital operations, it was somewhat surprising to hear Reeg sound the alarm over the industry’s marketing of iGaming.

Claiming that “two out of every three” ads airing during major sporting event broadcasts are for online betting services, he expressed fears that the oversaturation of digital gaming spots will draw increased scrutiny from lawmakers. 

“We as an industry,” he said, “have to develop responsibly to keep regulators at bay.”

Addressing the imminent approval of up to three brick-and-mortar casinos in New York City, Reeg tipped his hat to fellow featured speaker Jim Allen, Chairman of Hard Rock International/Seminole Gaming CEO, which, like Caesars, is vying for a Gotham City license.

“If I was betting,” he offered, “I’d probably bet on Hard Rock before I bet on us.”

Allen Sounds iGaming Alarm

As for Allen’s time at the podium, the gambling czar, who began his gaming career at the dawn Atlantic City’s legal-casino era as a cook at what was then Bally’s Park Place Casino & Hotel, used most of his time to highlight the global success of his company’s famous brand, rather than address industry-specific topics. But he did take aim at what he dubbed the growing threat from “illegal and unregulated” iGaming operations.

Allen also spoke of the prospect of gaming halls in New York City. “If there are three mega-projects in Downstate New York,” he warned, “it can have a 20-to-30-percent impact in Atlantic City casinos.”

Skill Games a Threat

Rush Street Gaming CEO Tim Drehkoff wasted no time training his sights on the unfettered growth of “skill games,” which are arguably the U.S. gaming industry’s biggest challenge.

Describing the electronic units that are proliferating - untaxed and unregulated - at gas stations, taverns, and convenience stores across the country as being akin to “empty calories,” Drehkoff insisted they are “costing our industry jobs and hurting revenue. There is no question these games are hurting our business.”

Drehkoff, whose company is based in Chicago, cited statistics from Illinois: He noted that in 2012, there were no skill games anywhere in the state, but by 2019, there were 30,000, resulting in casino slots revenues taking a 35 percent hit during that time period—and that is without them being in Chicago, where they are illegal.

Conversely, he explained that Virginia shut down VGTs last November, and by March of this year, monthly casino electronic-game revenues at Rush’s Portsmouth Rivers property had increased from $13.8 million to a record $19.9 million.

Kim Touts Digital/Live Hybrid Games

Soo Kim, chairman of Bally’s Corporation, which owns/manages 14 U.S. properties (and which is planning a $1.7 billion hotel-casino in Chicago, where it holds the only gaming license) kicked off his presentation by singing the praises of live dealer online gaming.

Calling the concept of live-streaming an actual person conducting games for online players “significant,” Kim suggested that “embracing live-dealer online gaming can provide one of the solutions for the industry.”

With Bally’s owning an Atlantic City property (which is celebrating its 45^th anniversary this year), he, too is watching developments in New York City. But unlike his fellow industry leaders, he appeared to be unfazed by the prospect of mega-casinos there.

“We believe [Bally’s is] going to be [in Atlantic City] for a long time,” he said, adding that the key to his and his competitors’ survival is cooperation between them. If that happens, he declared, “The future continues to be bright.”

Fun-damentally Speaking

Perhaps the most interesting segment of the day was provided by Audrey Oswell, CEO of the Atlantis mega-resort at Paradise Island, The Bahamas.

For starters, Oswell, who, like Allen, began her gaming-industry odyssey in Atlantic City (in Caesars’ food-and-beverage department), was the only woman executive to speak that day. And she opened her talk not by zeroing in on a specific industry-related issue, but by admonishing those in attendance to remember the “fun” inherent in the gaming realm. She also brushed aside the sky-is-falling stances of her colleagues regarding iGaming, evoking the basic human need for shared experiences.

“A pair of VR goggles,” she proclaimed, “will never replace a brick-and-mortar casino. 

“When it comes to having fun, there is no match for the bright lights of the Boardwalk and the sexy lights of a casino.”