Illinois – New Gaming Opportunities for Everyone (to Get Cannibalized?)
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Illinois – New Gaming Opportunities for Everyone (to Get Cannibalized?)

Earlier this month, the Illinois General Assembly passed legislation that paves the way for a major expansion of gaming in the state. Slots at racetracks and airports, new casinos in six new cities (including Chicago), as well as sports betting proximate to large stadiums around the state will all add to the existing gaming landscape…

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Progress Toward Integrated Resorts in Japan

Just returned from yet another Japan Gaming Congress. Things seem to have progressed somewhat slowly since last year’s Congress, but as compared to last year when prognosticators were all over the board as to when integrated casino resorts would ultimately pop up in Japan (2024-2030), there didn’t appear to be much variance this time around…

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Online Elephant in the Room

By: Suzanne P. Leckert, AICP The second article in Suzanne Leckert’s series discussing online and mobile sports betting for iGaming Business North America: Since my last article for iGB North America in August 2018, sports betting fervor in the United States has only increased. To date, 32 states (probably more by the time this article…

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Life-Long Learning (or what I’ve learned recently)

Keeping up with the latest research, trends, and technology can be exhausting in any industry.  From time to time, I am guilty of allowing myself to get so busy with work, that continuing education is put on the back burner.  However, I’ve managed to fit in some really interesting in-person and online training courses over…

Sports Betting Success Indicators: Consumer Behaviors
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Sports Betting Success Indicators: Consumer Behaviors

Fresh off the heels of some great discussions on sports betting over the weekend, I’ve put together a few quick graphics that shed some light on the potential for the legalized sports betting market.  Utilizing proprietary consumer behavior data, with the Gulf Coast as an example, the above maps demonstrate: For each variable, these maps…

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A Few of Our Favorite Things . . .

At Convergence Strategy Group, we are a team of lifelong learners.  We are always seeking more information, better ways of doing things, and insights from across the globe.  In the spirit of the holidays, Convergence Strategy Group would like to share a few of our go-to online resources – a few of our “favorite things”…

The Path Toward Sports Betting for Native American Tribes
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The Path Toward Sports Betting for Native American Tribes

If you read the news, it appears that the entire United States gaming industry is obsessed with sports betting.  Hungry for new product offerings and approaches, operators see the potential that sports betting has to produce new revenue streams.  Sports betting and iGaming are very popular with players and largely profitable for operators across the…

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Chinese Gamers – A Commodity Hit by the Trade War?

Following through on campaign promises, Donald Trump started announcing new tariffs on Chinese goods in early 2018, with tit-for-tat additional tariffs announcements on goods from both sides ever since. Both countries have actually experienced some economic growth as a result of the trade war, largely due to desires of businesses to increase output and trade…

Traffic Patterns and their Impact on Project Success
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Traffic Patterns and their Impact on Project Success

As real estate professionals have repeated for years, “location, location, location”.  When our clients begin the process of planning large and small-scale development projects, the location is generally a given.  A parcel may already be owned, and our client wishes to utilize it to its fullest, or a small number of parcels are being considered…

No New Casinos in the Philippines???
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No New Casinos in the Philippines???

This past Tuesday, Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte fired the board and management of the Nayong Pilipino Foundation because he was unhappy with the lack of a public bid process and the resulting license terms for the Landing International casino resort project in Entertainment City near Manila. But what followed on Wednesday, I would assume reverberated…