You Will Be Assimilated
January 16, 2010
Well, it’s official.
Harrah’s Entertainment, Inc. will assume management of the hotel at the Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino on the Las Vegas Strip on January 16, 2010, at midnight. The Planet Hollywood hotel is adjacent to Harrah’s Entertainment’s Paris Las Vegas Hotel & Casino on the Las Vegas Strip.
“Harrah’s has been in discussions with Planet Hollywood and its lender group regarding a restructuring of the ownership of the resort. We continue to work on a plan that would allow Harrah’s to own and manage the entire casino resort property,” said Gary Loveman, chairman, CEO and president of Harrah’s Entertainment. “In the meantime, we are pleased to take on the management of the Planet Hollywood Hotel for the current owners.”
The cliffs notes version of the above release is that tomorrow at midnight, Planet Hollywood will hand over the operational reins of the property to Harrah’s.
While it is only a “management takeover” and not yet an official sale, the move is meant to ease the transition once the inevitable sale takes place.
Planet Hollywood’s owner Robert Earl said that things would be “business as usual” during the transition, yet managers from Paris and Bally’s will take over the primary duties of day-to-day operations.
This takeover also means that roughly 70% of all Strip properties will be owned or managed by either MGM/Mirage or Harrah’s.
Obviously, this is horrible news.
I’ve been a fan of Planet Hollywood ever since it was converted from the Aladdin. Since that time, the service has always been a cut above, and in my opinion, they’ve always maintained a “fun factor” that has exceeded their neighbors. From the largest nudie show to the Pleasure Pit, to some of the best costumed waitresses, I would go so far as to say that the PH is currently the most entertaining property mid-Strip.
The Las Vegas Strip - Planet Hollywood Hotel and Casino
The Las Vegas Strip - Planet Hollywood Hotel and Casino
The Las Vegas Strip - Planet Hollywood Hotel and Casino
Although it is supposed to be business as usual for the near future, it is fairly obvious that there will be a large number of changes going forward as the property is slowly but surely “Harrahized”.
If the Rio is any indication of what they might do with it, I would look for the cocktail waitresses to quickly cover their assets, and I would expect the PH to lose its current flavor over time.
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again … in my opinion, the duopolization of The Strip has been a large contributing factor in the decline of Las Vegas. Poor odds, poor service, stale ideas, complete lack of effort … it is all a direct result of a lack of competition. However, not only have tourists suffered at the hands of this consolidation, but so too have residents.
It’s hard for casino employees to leverage a good salary with dwindling competitive opportunities for work, and they more or less have to obey their corporate masters because there are no alternatives. The old “if you don’t like your job, leave” adage does not apply when there is no place else to go. Instead, many employees shut up and scrape by … hoping that they are not replaced with cheap third-world labor, the threat of which hangs over their employment like an omnipresent sword of Damocles.
As more properties get behind due to the economic realities of the valley, consolidation will probably continue for the foreseeable future until Las Vegas is little more than a larger version of Primm or Laughlin. We are going to have a variety of casinos, but one or two groups are going to own pretty much everything.
This is also why I would like to see Downtown, and the remaining independent properties get a little more love from in-the-know Vegas folks.
I was hoping that this takeover would not happen, but deep down, I knew it would.
In any event, for those of you who wish to visit non-Harrah’s Planet Hollywood, you’ve got about 30 hours left.
Go nuts.
Written by Dan on January 16, 2010 at 4:51 am
This is definately a sad day for Las Vegas. More 6/5 Blackjack and 7/5 Video Poker will only add to the unemployment lines in Nevada. If I want crappy odds and horrible service I can go to any of a dozen Indian casino’s within an hour of my house. I certainly don’t need to travel to Las Vegas.
We always stay Downtown but prior to the whole downturn in 2007/8 they were headed in in the wrong direction as well. Most downtown properties have righted the ship and are once again offering decent “gaming”, but how long will that last once the “recovery” takes hold?
Written by blueboar on January 16, 2010 at 6:30 am
Well, this is a real shame. Because I agree that the PHo was a lot of fun lately.
The way I read the press release, Harrah’s is only taking over the hotel operations so far. So hopefully it’ll be a couple of months yet before they take over the casino operations and the place begins it’s inevitable slide.
As far as casinos that aren’t part of the duopoly, I’m curious to see what happens with the Trop. The previous owners let it turn into a bit of a shithole. But new owners and they’re putting some money into it. And I’ve heard that a couple of top PHo executives have bailed over the past couple of months since Harrah’s started their PHo takeover attempt and went to the Tropicana. Be interesting to see if they can help bring the Trop back, especially in this economy. Hey, at least it sounds like they’re going to try.
Written by Michael on January 16, 2010 at 6:34 am
Agreed that Downtown needs to get more love and the locals should start going there instead of the Station casinos, which grew too quickly and have been too greedy. Downtown offers great value and services and is closer to the Rat Pack Vegas experience most douchebages yearn for. Plus, it’s nowhere near as dangerous as it used to be.
Written by Disco Stu on January 16, 2010 at 9:59 am
Who doesn’t enjoy a Sword of Damocles reference on a Vegas site? Quality!
I have enjoyed PH every time I have stayed or played there. They have some of the nicest standard rooms, a great location, a buffet of note, and the casino plays music I would play myself. Knowing this will put an end to the last solo property between the Trop and Casino Royale is disappointing.
I know the last time I was there, I spent enough time on the second floor of the casino to realize how dead the space was. Such a huge area was being vastly underused, especially with the theater and Koi up there to draw customers. The machines up there were almost an afterthought like, “Play them if you want, we don’t care.” There was a lack of energy up there that was completely different from the main playing area.
Since I am staring at a PH chip on my keyboard as I type this, I hope that it will retain some of the flavor that makes it my favorite mid Strip property.
Written by Huddler on January 16, 2010 at 1:15 pm
Bad news indeed. I have stayed and played at P-Ho my last couple trips and have loved it! Great energy and vibe. It is, or WAS, a totally different gaming experience than Harrahs and MGM properties. I never thought I would say this but I think I am going to start staying downtown after my next trip. I hate these Mega casino corporations and how every property they touch turns to shit.
Written by Ron from MI on January 16, 2010 at 11:47 pm
Certainly a beginning of the end of the Las Vegas Strip as we know it.
Why would Harrah’s buy a property in hard, yet recovering times when THEY can’t pay their bills? It baffles me that Loveman and the two private equity companies would jump in and do business with Robert Earl.
If this sale goes through, it may be the beginning of Harrah’s Entertainment; and no bailout by the U.S. Government is going towards rescuing a casino company, that and MGM-Mirage, which has a City Center to worry about.
Harrah’s is out of touch and out of its mind; I see a bankruptcy filing on the horizon.
Sad.
…if only people would learn.
Written by BeeeJay on January 17, 2010 at 4:05 am
Its a good risk for the private equity owners, I’m sure they are getting P.Ho for next to nothing and if it doesn’t work out, which it wouldn’t have anyway for Harrah’s, they file bankruptcy and enjoy the other $70 billion worth of holdings they own whose growth alone during the same time frame will cover the Harrah’s losses.