At last year’s Asian Casinos Executive Summit Dr Toru Mihara, Advisor for the Japanese government’s Casino Study Group, stated that a draft framework for legalising casinos would be presented to legislators in 2008. It now appears that the government is moving even faster, and proposes to have the bill passed by next June. Only resort casinos will be licensed and the government is hoping, much like the Singapore authorities, that the venues will attract tourists, boost local economies and bring in money from taxation.

There is likely to be a great deal of interest from foreign operators if casino legislation is passed. There is also likely to be some public opposition to casinos in Japan. Although around 25% of adults play the pachinko machines, gambling unfortunately has a poor image following the association of some pachinko operations with organised crime. New legislation on gaming machines has already been introduced by the government and gaming manufacturers have quickly adapted to supplying the new Regulation 5 machines.

For foreign operators one of the attractions of casinos in Japan is the fact that the Japanese spend more on gambling than the Americans. The market could be immense, particularly as the numbers of Japanese travelling abroad to gamble at casinos in Macau, Malaysia and Las Vegas is growing rapidly. The Japanese government sees the advantage of keeping some of these gambling dollars at home.

According to Seiko Noda, who heads the government’s Study Group, an entrance fee could be charged locals to enter the casinos, in a bid to discourage lower income earners from gambling there. If legislation is passed the casinos would be just part of entire entertainment complexes with theatres, shops, theme parks, hotels and restaurants. The government hopes to have the law in place before the end of the next ordinary session in June 2008. (E-06.21.07)

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