Casino giant Caesars Entertainment plans to open hotel in India

Caesars Entertainment, the world's biggest casino company, is entering India through non-gaming businesses such as luxury hotels and entertainment businesses such as managing Bollywood-centric events, concerts, musicals, drama and stand-up comedy. India does not allow foreigners in the gaming business. The Las Vegas-based Caesars Entertainment, which owns 50 hotels and casinos and several golf resorts around the world, plans to open up to 15 hotels in India in a decade and has already initiated talks with around half-a-dozen real estate developers, a top official of the $9-billion firm said. "We spent the last year exploring the Indian market and there are great opportunities for us," Neera Chanani, South Asia head at Caesars Entertainment Hospitality, said. "In the non-gaming space we will focus on hotels and convention centres and building entertainment destinations within or adjacent to them," she said. The company plans to bring its global brands and offerings such as upscale hotel brand Caesars Hotel and luxury offering Caesars Palace, and customise them for the local market. "In the entertainment space one of the major focus areas will be Bollywood. We are looking to create content that is specific to the Indian market," Chanani said. Caesars is in talks with large event management companies as well as production houses in India for partnerships. Experts say it's a good time for Ceasars to enter the country. "In case of non-gaming entertainment, this could be the right time for Caesars to evaluate and introduce new concepts in India," Vivek Dahiya, CEO of real estate consultancy GenReal, said. "Though the market is not evolved yet and is still unstructured, with the success of Formula 1 (Grand Prix), Kingdom of Dreams (alive entertainment destination), bowling destinations in the country, it is clear that Indians are willing to experiment beyond films and F&B and spend money," he said. "The entertainment offering could be a differentiating factor for Caesars in India in comparison to other hospitality companies," Dahiya said. Caesars' entry will mean that India could host performances by music stars Elton John, Celine Dion and Rod Stewart, and stand-up comedian Jerry Seinfeld, who all have traditionally been associated with the hotel's entertainment properties such as The Colosseum at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. Internationally, Caesars has about 15 destinations for live entertainment events like concerts, musicals, drama and stand-up comedy events. Many of them are in the Las Vegas strip, known for its casino business. "We will look at big cities like Delhi, Mumbai, Bangalore, besides tapping locations like Goa and Tier-II markets," Chanani said. The firm is primarily scouting for management partnerships, but is also open to investing in properties. When asked about the investment planned for India, she said: "There is no fixed figure in our mind at the moment." The company is also exploring the market in the gaming space, although Indian policies do not permit foreign direct investment in casino and gambling, which are banned in most states. Some states like Goa and Sikkim territories like Daman have given limited licences to Indian entrepreneurs to run casinos. These businesses have been making huge money on the back of growing prosperity of Indians. There is no report or data that has estimated the quantum of gaming activity in India. A PwC report estimates the casino market in Asia Pacific to more than double to $79.3 billion (approx 4 lakh crore) in 2015 from $34.2 billion in 2010. Swiss wealth manager Julius Baer expects the number of high net worth individuals in India, with assets of $1 million or more, would more than double to 4,03,000 by 2015. Recently Michael A Leven, president and CEO of integrated resort developer Las Vegas Sands Corp, had told ET that his company is open to having operations in India, but it would be either in Delhi and Mumbai. "We have looked at India as a potential market but there are problems like gaming is not legal and lack of infrastructure is another issue," Leven had said. www.dgevent.in