2016 August C8- Is It Too Late For Casinos And The Gaming Industry In Japan?

Earlier this year, once again, Japan’s LDP decided not to seek passage of a bill to legalize casino operations in Japan. The bill would lift the ban on casino operations and development. This was yet another disappointment in a long line of setbacks for those who would like to see casinos in Japan as a boost to tourism and local economies.

Integrated Resorts were meant to be an important part of PM Abe’s development model, but now some people say Japan has missed the boat on another regional opportunity. The question now is whether developer and operators that were interested have thrown in the towel? Or is the market opportunity too large to abandon, with those that know Japan playing the long (waiting) game?

Kiyoshi Nishijima has spent a good deal of his time involved with major hospitality projects in the region, as well as various government entities. 10 years ago he founded CLC and three years later formed the Japan Gaming Development Organization (JGDO) for the purpose of representing casino/gaming interests in Japan as a lobbying organization. Since then he has become a legal representative of Melco Crown Entertainment with respect its interests in Japan. Kiyoshi will be able to give us good insight into where the casino bill is headed, whether indeed Japan has lost the opportunity and perhaps some other interesting stories from the work he has done so far to push this casino bill through in Japan.