Prominent tribal gaming operator Mohegan proudly celebrates the 10th anniversary of its highly acclaimed loyalty program, Momentum. This milestone underscores Mohegan’s unwavering dedication to enhancing the gaming experience for its loyal patrons. The Momentum program has steadily evolved to offer many exclusive benefits and will continue to grow as the operator expands its global footprint.

Momentum Has Steadily Grown in Scope and Ambition

Mohegan’s Momentum loyalty program is more than just a rewards system. It is a token of appreciation from Mohegan to its players. One of its standout features is that it is free, with no membership fees or hidden costs. Players can easily enroll and become part of this exclusive community, unlocking significant perks and privileges.

Over the years, Mohegan has continuously enhanced the Momentum loyalty program. It extends beyond the gaming floor and includes perks like reserved parking privileges. Mohegan corporate marketing VP Erica Tessier Hunt noted that the program demonstrated the operator’s unwavering bond with its guests and would continue to improve.

We are proud of what we have offered the past ten years… and look forward to future enhancements to Momentum that will… offer unparalleled experiences.

Erica Tessier Hunt, Mohegan corporate marketing VP

At the heart of Momentum lies the concept of Momentum Dollars, an exclusive currency players can accumulate as they engage with Mohegan’s offerings. Patrons can redeem these Momentum Dollars for wide-reaching rewards, ranging from tangible goods to services and luxury experiences. Such a dynamic system encourages players to keep returning, knowing their loyalty is truly valued.

Mohegan Remains Dedicated to Delivering Outstanding Service

The operator will celebrate Momentum’s anniversary with several new member-only events. These gatherings offer a unique opportunity for players to connect, share experiences, and enjoy special perks. Such initiatives are crucial for player retention and align with Mohegan’s proactive, customer-focused mindset. The operator’s 2023 Hot Summer Fun Celebrations proved a smashing hit, cementing its leadership position.

Momentum will soon reach far overseas as Mohegan prepares to launch its newest $5 billion resort in Incheon, South Korea. This remarkable project should launch before 2024 and feature world-class amenities, promising a fusion of luxury, entertainment, and convenience. The venue’s newly announced leadership team promised to provide the same high-quality service and perks synonymous with the Mohegan brand.

By offering exclusive benefits, hosting member-only events, and recognizing player loyalty, Mohegan ensures that its customers have more than just a gaming experience. They have a lasting connection with a brand that values and appreciates them. As the journey continues, Mohegan remains dedicated to making Momentum even more rewarding for the years to come.

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Fontainebleau Las Vegas is well on its way to opening in December with a preliminary Nevada Gaming Control Board suitability hearing in the rearview mirror and a Nevada Gaming Commission hearing on July 27 which almost certainly result in a recommendation to grant the property a license in November. Then, it’s all blue skies, or Fontainebleau wrapping up the details to open in December – finally, after breaking ground in 2007 and investing nearly $4 billion dollars in the development and surrounding economy.

Long Time in Development, Multiple Setbacks

The nearly 70-floor property has stood out on The Strip for years, at one point, it was swathed in white construction wrapping and called an eye-sore by neighboring businesses when in the hands of another owner.

A quick rundown of the type of property visitors can expect when it is opened all point to a high-end experience with over 400 suites included in a count of over 3,500 hotel rooms.

The casino space will be modest by the percentage of total floor space with about 150,000 sq ft of gaming area holding 128 gaming tables and 1,300 slots. High rollers and mid-rollers will be catered to with nearly 20,000 sq ft of VIP gaming space and over 3,000 square feet of domestic high-limit floor. There will reportedly be 6 Salons Privé. Sports bettors will find a dedicated space of more than 13,000 square feet.

The casino will be at ground level with a retail promenade above it and health and fitness above that. Over half a million square feet of convention and meeting space is included with one area covering over 100,000 square feet making it the second-largest meeting hall in the market.

About half of the dining space will be high-end and the remainder reserved for casual dining. The upscale areas will include international chefs and globally recognized brands.

Nightlife has not been overlooked with a nightclub as well as a day club and a theater to seat nearly 4,000 visitors. Development partner “It’s an arena-size theater stage and it will be a multi-purpose room,” Fontainbleau development partner Brett Mufson said. “We will have residences and host groups and meetings, speaker series, and car events.”

To Employ 7,000+

Nearly 4,000 workers are currently on site and operations will require more than 4,500 full-time workers and nearly 2,000 part-time employees. At full operational capacity, including partner employees, over 7,000 people will be employed with some 250 in executive positions.

At Wednesday’s preliminary hearing, Jeffrey Soffer and Brett Mufson of Fontainebleau Development were found suitable to operate the property. They will face the Gambling Board soon for what usually results in a rubber stamp after a few tough questions that may be left dangling, giving applicants a chance to tidy up any loose ends and give finality to any open questions not fully addressed at the preliminary hearing. In this case, it may be a tax matter from a decade ago and whether any debt forgiveness was included in Soffer’s repurchase of the loan involved in the property.

Soffer was the original developer, but he ran into difficulties when the great recession set in and turned the economy upside down in 2008. The current development also includes the deep pockets of Koch Industries’ real estate investment subsidiary, Koch Real Estate Investments. Raider/investor Carl Icahn owned the property for a while but it didn’t progress toward opening under his ownership.

Concerning the “suitability” issue that was brought up during the hearing, gambling lawyer Frank Schreck provided some detail. Schreck said:

“The focus of the investigation appears to be an analysis of a loan related to the development of Town Square more than 10 years ago. It was purchased from the lender by Jeff Soffer and his sister Jackie. According to Mr. Soffer’s counsel, Rod Rosenstein, the former Acting Attorney General, the issue seems to be whether or not there was any debt forgiveness related to the repurchase of that loan. We are still unsure whether Mr. Soffer’s tax accountants properly accounted for any forgiveness in the complicated transaction.”

Thanks to the consequences of the “Great Recession” of the late 2000s, Soffer reportedly had hundreds of millions of dollars of net operating losses. These would presumably be available on paper to take care of any tax liability.

Second Chances

Soffer has owned the property again since February 2021.

“Soffer said, “It’s been a full circle with this development and I’m excited to be able to finish this. It’s going to be fabulous for Las Vegas. It’s definitely a little different than originally planned. It’s much more upscale.”

According to an article in CDC Gaming Reports, Gaming Control Board Chair Kirk Hendrick didn’t have any concerns about earlier failures of the property during the “economic downturn” of the 2000s.

“I’m very excited for that part of the Strip to see some revitalization and your property move forward,” Hendrick said.

According to local ABC News affiliate KTNV, US casinos made a record-breaking $60 billion in revenue in 2022. Nevada casino operators accounted for $14.8 billion, and casinos on the Strip accounted for more than 10%, or $8.2 billion of the entire nation’s gambling revenues, making the Las Vegas Strip the top gaming market in America. A distant second was Atlantic City with 2022 revenues of $2.8 billion last year.

Source: Fontainebleau Las Vegas on track for November licensing ahead of December opening, CDC Gaming Reports, July 12, 2023

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For nearly a decade now, judge after judge has ruled that Pennsylvania skill games known by the Pace-O-Matic name are legal in the commonwealth. yet prosecutors and agents of the Pennsylvania Bureau of Liquor Control and Enforcement (BLCE) seem hell-bent on finding a jurist who will take their side in the matter of “Chance v. Skill” and stand behind the authorities when they raid a local gathering place and seize the machines and any cash or collateral equipment associated with them.

So far, Pace-O-Matic’s Skill Games have been found to be legal in the state by rulings in the following courts: Beaver, Dauphin, Monroe, and York counties. Clearfield County and Delaware County reviewed the law itself and case law as created by those decisions and returned seized games without the need to go to trial and determine the facts for themselves.

Games Deemed Legal Since 2014

The Beaver County Court of Common Pleas ruling that Pace-O-Matic’s Pennsylvania Skill games are legal and games of predominant skill have stood since 2014 (ruling .PDF)

Once again a judge has ruled in favor of game providers. This time in Monroe County where the DA’s office and the BLCE carried out a raid on a small business there in 2022 and held the devices in a secure location until the gambit played out in court – again. Judge Mark said in his recent ruling that the gaming “devices are games of skill and not games of chance.”

In the same county earlier this year, prosecutors caught an earful from Monroe County Common Pleas Judge Jennifer Harlacher Sibum who scolded them for not only prosecuting non-criminal behavior but for misconduct in the investigation and prosecutions themselves. In fact, she used the withholding of crucial evidence and misrepresentation of evidence by the prosecution side of the equation as reason to suppress the actual evidence from a court hearing as the case was dismissed.

“The court finds that the Commonwealth improperly withheld and misrepresented material evidence relative to the issuance of the search warrant in this matter and that such conduct warrants the suppression of the seized property,” wrote Judge Sibum in her order dismissing the charges and ordering the return of the machines, cash, and other instruments to the rightful owners.

According to a report on G3 Newswire, Wednesday judges in York County and Dauphin County have ruled against prosecutors and the BLCE in other cases this year as well.

Pace-O-Matic got its machines, cash, and related equipment back from prosecutors in York County after it was improperly seized by the Bureau earlier in 2023. In Dauphin County, the “L” was chalked up to prosecutors there, and the “W” for POM.

In that case, Dauphin County Common Pleas Judge Andrew H. Dowling wrote, “Initially, it is this Court’s belief that the Commonwealth’s investigation shows case bias. The Commonwealth is seeking to make all machines like the POM Machines into illegal gambling devices, and their whole approach and intent is to shut down games regardless of the actual gameplay… Thus, the Commonwealth as a whole is biased against the games, and their approach lacks case credibility.”

Pace-O-Matic lawyer, Matthew Haverstick of Kleinbard, LLC, stated: “Pace-O-Matic’s Pennsylvania Skill games are legal. The Commonwealth has wrongfully seized its equipment for years with no credible evidence that the games are illegal. Judges are now carefully looking at the evidence and ruling in our favor.”

Mike Barley, Chief Public Affairs Officer for the company added, “Again, another Pennsylvania court has found that Pennsylvania Skill games, powered by Pace-O-Matic, are legal games of predominant skill. With the legality of our games upheld repeatedly, we are eager to work with the Legislature to pass legislation that will fairly regulate and tax the skill game industry. In fact, Pace-O-Matic stands out among our competitors as the active driving force seeking additional regulation and taxation.”

Pennsylvania Skill games are manufactured in the commonwealth and 90% of the profit generated from them reportedly stays inside the state. Earlier reports claim to show that “real casino” businesses are not cannibalized by play on the devices as those seeking to spend a few dollars for entertainment with potential prizes on the games visit a neighborhood mom-and-pop grocer or other stores, another nearby small business, a favorite fraternal or social club, the local volunteer fire company or a veterans’ organization without the need to plan travel, overnight accommodations, or even to plan any form of major budget expenditures.

The Same or Similar Games have been Banned by Law in Kentucky Since March 2023

The games do not enjoy the same standing in Kentucky where they were recently codified into law as unregulated and illegal.

Pennsylvania casino and lottery revenues have continued to grow year in and year out as the skill games find their way into more and more locations giving at least anecdotal evidence to advocate’s claims that it is a totally different clientele than would be found looking for flashing lights, bells and whistles, and big jackpots.

Sen. Gene Yaw who serves as Vice Chair on the Judiciary Committee in Harrisburg has introduced legislation that would tax the machines and reportedly provide some $300m a year in revenue to the commonwealth while regulating the games as well.

As part of most press releases from the company, POM often mentions that it “employs a team of former state police officers to enforce all terms of contracts and codes of conduct. These contracted terms limit the number of machines, where they are placed in a location and have protections in place to prevent anyone underage from playing the devices.”

Source:Judge rules that Pennsylvania Skill games are ‘devices of skill’, G3Newswire, June 7, 2023

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