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ONLINE GAMING Casinos Have A Friend In Facebook SOCIAL MEDIA BEING USED TO RECRUIT NEW PLAYERS By Ron Sylvesterstaff writer F the Strip. As gambling expands overseas and Las Vegas diversifies as a tourist desti- nation, casino operators are looking to online gaming as a way to attract new customers and increase profits. Casino honchos are betting that vir- tual bingo, digital slot machines and games that resemble Farmville, the popular Facebook game, will be the key to the Strip's vitality. Most of the games don't involve betting or real money, but they whet players' appetite for gam- bling and familiarize them with casino brands. And they hope to promote those games, and ease people into real online gambling, via Facebook. Over the past year, almost every ma- jor casino company has bought or part- nered with an online game developer. "Operators are coming together say- ing, 'Here is this transformational op- portunity; Bone, senior vice president of WMS Gaming. Caesars Entertainment bought Playti- ka, the Israeli developer of Slotomania, a Facebook slot machine game. MGM partnered with Playstudios to launch myVegas, a Facebook application com- ing this summer that allows people to play blackjack or slots. Boyd Gaming and MGM invested in Bwin.Party Digi- tal Entertainment, which designs on- line poker and social gaming. And last fall, Fertitta Interactive, an offshoot of Station Casinos, bought CyberArts of San Francisco. The acqui- sition allowed Fertitta Interactive to develop Ultimate Poker, which debuted June 22 on Facebook. The company also owns an online bingo game. The rationale behind the mergers is | 2 JULY 2012 | NOW SERVING LAS VEGAS 95 Vegas then VEGASinc2021 Gate keeper American dream ? ? ? ? 20120702_VI07_F.indd 7 ? ! The innovator FortuneCookie $ Grilled The Survivor 6/28/12 2:01:01 PM Moonlighting STARTING POINT: Slotomania, above, and Ultimate Poker, below, are two social media games that casino operators are using to introduce new players to gambling. IMAGES COURTESY OF FACEBOOK acebook could shape the future of "Hopefully, there's some crossover between people who play the game at home and vacationers who are planning to come here." — ANDY CHOY, PRESIDENT AND CEO OF THE RIVIERA simple: If companies can hook players online, they can lure them into brick- and-mortar resorts. "At some point, part of that audience is going to say, 'I want to play for real,'" said Andy Choy, president and CEO of the Riviera. "They may say, 'I've won all these virtual prizes. How about some cash?' " Online gambling is legal in Nevada but not nationwide. In May, the Riviera partnered with Bingo Blitz, a free online bingo plat- form with 3 million players monthly. Choy said he hopes the collaboration raises the Riviera's profile. "Hopefully, there's let's collaborate,'" said Rob some crossover between people who play the game at home and vacationers who are planning to come here," Choy said. "The hope is they will have a positive view of the Rivi- era from playing the game online." Bingo Blitz's online bingo parlor at- tracts players who likely would never step foot in a real bingo parlor. Almost half of Bingo Blitz's audience is be- tween 18 and 34, decades younger than the blue hairs that typically favor the game. Pick 'Em Get smart Power Lunch CLICK THIS: FARM CLUB FOR GAMBLERS Farmville has amassed a strong following of women with time to spare and money to spend. By copying the Farmville model, Caesars Entertainment hopes to hook a similar demographic. To play, go to facebook.com and search for Margaritaville Online. The Numbers .com Buy high Sell low VEGASINCmag "It's really about suppDone Deally and demand," said Salim Mitha, vice president of Buf- falo Studios, the game's developer. "Las Vegas has always had the supply. I think we can help create more demand." Sin City Media Power tweets Overheard Chatter We hear A similar thought process went into the development of Margaritaville On- line, a virtual 3D world similar to Farm- ville in which players can build and design beach resorts, fish from custom- YOUR AD HERE Executive class Read this! SEE SOCIAL MEDIA PAGE 20 The Pitch is back 7