Malaysian conglomerate Genting has put its Resorts World brand on an in-development New York casino one year before its scheduled opening.
On Thursday, Genting-controlled gaming operator Empire Resorts announced that the Montreign Resort Casino in Sullivan County will henceforth be known as Resorts World something or other. A filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission says the casino’s suffix will be determined at a later date.
The name change comes via a licensing deal Empire inked with RW Services Pte Ltd that allows the $1.2b resort casino project to use certain Genting and Resorts World trademarks. The licensing deal is valid through the end of 2027 and will automatically renew on an annual basis for 39 years unless either party decides it wants out.
Empire subsidiary Montreign Operating Company LLC will pay RW Services a licensing fee equal to a “low single digit” percentage of revenue derived from the new casino’s use of the Resorts World brand. In addition to the property’s casino, entertainment village and golf course revenue, the forward-looking deal also entitles RW Services to a cut of revenue from “online gaming” if/when state legislators get off their collective butts and deem such activity to be legally okay.
The whole deal is essentially one Genting division paying another because Empire, which operates the nearby Monticello Casino & Raceway, is 88.7% owned by Genting’s Kien Huat Realty Sdn Bhd, whose main shareholder is Genting supremo Lim Kok Thay. Genting also operates Resorts World Casino New York City, which has at times made a claim to be the top revenue-generating gaming venue in the United States.
In other incestuous Genting news, Empire Resorts announced that last week that it had appointed Ryan Eller as its new president and chief operating officer. Eller, who until recently held down various executive positions with Genting New York and also oversaw development of Genting Americas’ Resorts World Las Vegas project, will be the primary overseer of the new Sullivan County casino development.
