Two Way Hard Three | Las Vegas Casino & Design Blog

September 5, 2006 10:46 AM Posted by mike_ch

Results from some photo searchin'.

Think they got enough fireworks? There's one shot that makes it look like the building is undergoing a flashy Vegas-style demolition.

First picture of the fountain feature out front. Looks rather small, but I'd still kill for a shot of them firing up in front of the hotel tower, like every Bellagio PR photo ever.

September 5, 2006 4:32 PM Posted by charlie

Big "A" can say what he wants...but Wynn is going to pack this place with premium players all across Asia. Steve and Okada know these guys personnally and know what they want. Sure, LVS may become the HET of Asia (I can only imagine how profitable that proposition is), but Wynn is going to be wildly successful in Macau; capitalizing on his existing client base and continuing to expand it. As far as all of this "day tripper" talk, the players Steve wants (and will have)in his casino have time plenty of time on their hands. If they want to stay a couple of days, they will have a beautiful 5 Star place to do it.

The beauty of Macau is that if a guest has a million dollar run on the casino, there is always a 777, 747 or private plane in Hong Kong waiting to whisk them away to Wynn Las Vegas..."all expenses paid!"

September 5, 2006 9:54 PM Posted by bert

And here is the video of the opening! Its part English and Chinese!

http://macaudailyblog.com/2006/09/06/wynn-macau-opening-video/

September 5, 2006 11:06 PM Posted by chris

I was at the Wynn opening last night. My brother and I were probably the first paying customers in Tryst (where I saw Steve Wynn) and had a good look around, though the crowds of people made it somewhat difficult. There will be plenty of photos around in the media, but I'll send some of those that I took shortly. Fantastic stuff being there.

September 6, 2006 7:53 PM Posted by bert

These pictures by Chris were great!

Here is a video clip about the Wynn opening with some comments by Stanley Ho.
http://macaudailyblog.com/2006/09/07/the-daily-macau-about-casinos/

April 25, 2007 10:13 AM Posted by Leonard Stern

This is from Google Finance: "Wynn Looks to Replace Humans on Casino Floor". (Wynn Macau). It appears that Steve has discovered a creative high-tech "work around" in order to deprive his employess @ Wynn Macau of gratuities, install f*cking automated ROBOTS! Can you imagine a robotic bartender or table dealer who you don't have to tip? I wonder if [the bartenders] can be programmed to "over pour" or a robotic dealer purposely deal a really good hand? LOL I thought that I heard it all, but this is just so over-the-top it only serves to bolster the fact that this man really needs to be institutionalized. "Yo, R2-D2, make that a double Grey Goose, chilled + no fruit, BTW you forget about getting a tip." LOL

"In Macau Wynn has a shortage of qualified employees to service the casino guests. Wynn is working with a new company that wants to deliver robots to do the jobs Wynn needs done.

The Taiwan Fulgent Entertainment Co. has seen the future, and is making way for it: It is already marketing a series of games with robot dealers. These android croupiers can handle all table games. The robot that flips over cards never slouches or hustles tips. Think of
the savings.

The second is a Bartender that can make just about any drink and you
don't have to tip.

Wynn is also working with Melco IT,Shuffle Master, and IGT in a new series of 'Virtual Dealer' for Baccarat. Being tested in Macau at the automated Mocha Clubs of Meclo PBL Entertainment.

Wynn is looking to add the automated Three Card Poker game and multi- link and host the 2007 Three Card Poker World Championship.

Blackjack, Three Card Poker�, Let It Ride Bonus� with 3 Card Bonus�, Dragon Bonus� Baccarat, Royal Match 21� Blackjack, and Ultimate Texas
Hold'em� all have version of automated table games.

Can't wait for Wynn to start deploying more automated machines as payroll eats up about 25 percent of revenue. That's one-quarter of the
total take spent on wages, benefits and other compensation -- the largest operating expense by far, except for debt caused by new
construction."

April 25, 2007 10:23 AM Posted by Hunter

Holy ancient thread, Batman! :-)

My initial reaction is that having robots serve is a bad idea. Maybe this is a pilot program and maybe we're just talking about part of the process being automated. I can't imagine anyone would think robotic servers/dealers/bartenders would be a good idea.

If this gets on to the actual floor, I'll be very interested to hear more.

April 25, 2007 10:50 AM Posted by Mike E

LOL, I had to laugh at the R2-D2 bit. Still, if it saves money, you can bet MGM Mirage and LVS will be first to capitalize on it.

April 25, 2007 12:07 PM Posted by Craig

Looks like some of this info was taken from an article in the LV Business Press back in 11/28/05.
http://www.lvbusinesspress.com/articles/2005/11/28/columnists/col02.txt
The end of the article talks about how jobs on the casino floor have been automated over the years.
I suppose if robotic camel jockeys can catch-on, anything can happen. I think I would still rather talk to a person (although I've had dealers that could very well have been robots).

April 25, 2007 1:50 PM Posted by Leonard Stern

I am speculating that Steve will use his Macau joints as a "test bed" of sorts for this newfound technology + eventually fully automate the WLV bartenders + dealers with these robotic androids in order to avoid the inevitable, that the now resurrected + ammended tip sharing Bill is likely to pass as well as the dealer's union there. Steve's plan really backfired on him + he knows it! This will be Wynn's way of making sure that the table dealer's, bartenders, + other emloyees are expendable + can all be replaced with ROBOTS for Christ's sake. I wonder if the robots can all get together + form a union of their own? Or, better yet, like HAL-9000 in "2001: A Space Odyssey" end up taking over the whole damn operation! Oh Steve, you are such a simple-minded moron, a "giant" only in the distorted confines of [your] own disturbed world of fantasy, they definitely broke the mold right after your sorry ass was born. LOL "Most powerfull man in Nevada" I think not..."Biggest nut-job in Nevada" is more like it.

April 25, 2007 3:12 PM Posted by mike_ch

Keep in mind that just because something seems absurd by Vegas standards doesn't mean it won't work in Macau, and just because something flies in Macau doesn't doesn't mean it'll work here.

I've seen these automated dealers. I don't know what the problem is, there is something a bit impersonal about them which is a turn off to some people but not others.

They should keep live people to service the high rollers, though. Harrah's made a huge mistake at Caesars when they put an automated baccarat dealer in the high limit room, and the whales felt that their bets were somehow seen as not good enough to warrant a live dealer.

In Macau, where table games are all over the place and varying in level of play, automated dealers aren't that bad of an idea to try out so long s they're limited to low limit play. It in essence gives high limit play a bit of a perk and it allows them to have to have as many employees in a region where rows and rows manned tables are as ubiquitous to the average casino as rows of automated slots are to LV.

April 25, 2007 3:15 PM Posted by mike_ch

Gah, I was correcting so many typos I didn't complete my entire sentence.

Basically, what I'm saying is yes, the automated dealers do allow Wynn to not have to staff live dealers for every game. Considering the sheer number of tables in your average Macau casino, that's not an effort to sneeze at. If players rebel, they'll have no choice but to go to live humans at every table, but you can't blame them for trying this.

Traditional dealers should always be maintained at the fat cats' table, though, because they provide enough to the bottom line to make the table staff's salary worth it.

April 25, 2007 4:40 PM Posted by Leonard Stern

mike_ch: You're forgetting the fact that Wynn wants to automate, not just table dealers, but bartenders + other service personnel property-wide as well in Macau. GMAB, robotic dealers, at even low level gaming play, will NEVER fly here, 100% guaranteed! I have talked with several industry sources about Wynn's "robotic replacement concept" in order to get a professional perspective/POV on the success of Steve's revolutionary android plans + they ALL laughed hysterically + also noted that Wynn is starting to becaome a real thorn in the side of other operators here with all of this recent crap [he] he keeps coming up with. "Visionary", my ass, the jerk can't even see two feet in front of him (Hunter, this is my last reference to Steve's rapidly deteriorating blindness, however, this is a different thread so don't chastise me for bringing up the "eyesight thing".) [T]hey also indicated, that customers who frequent the upper end tier luxury Strip properties will NEVER warm up to anything but direct human interface, period! Steve has definately become out of touch with reality + he just continues to make everthing worse for, not only his own operation, but all of the other competing operators here in Las Vegas as well with his irrational (+ evidently now potentially illegal) proposals as well as both exhibiting unprofessional irratic behavior by openly threatening his employees. Wynn's days are definitely numbered + I am willing to bet my life on it. Right now EVERYBODY that I have spoken with, who hold upper management executive level positions in competing properties just wish that Steve would keep his stupid mouth shut + stop opening up another upon another Pandora's Box.

April 25, 2007 8:41 PM Posted by mike_ch

Leonard, there are no revolutionary androids. I've seen the automated dealer systems for myself at G2E last year. It's a flat-panel HDTV usually with a video of a woman asking you to place your bets, announcing no more bets, etc. There's certainly nothing too fancy about it. It's essentially a computer program.

The Rapid Roulette system at various properties does okay when I walk by, I don't know how much of a future there is for this stuff but the need for it is far different in Macau than LV because table games make up so much of the enormous casinos there.

Computerized bartenders, on the other hand, are a pipe dream unless we can somehow invent the technology from Star Trek. You know, "tea, earl grey." I have no idea what the idea is there.