Venetian OK'd to open private gambling salons, but fined

LAS VEGAS - The Venetian hotel-casino can open two plush private gambling salons to lure Asian high rollers to the Las Vegas Strip property, the Nevada Gaming Commission decided Thursday.

The salons, on the ground and 36th floors, are expected to generate about $5.5 million in annual gambling revenue, said Fred Kraus, The Venetian's vice president and general counsel.

Both salons will cater to players willing to spend at least $500,000.

Players at the Asian-themed Paiza Club on the 36th floor also will have access to 23 new luxury suites and are entitled to the services of a private chef.

"You've done a great job," Commissioner Arthur Marshall told Kraus after his presentation.

The commission expressed few concerns, but Kraus was asked if notifying regulators when the gamblers played was a problem.

Players in private salons are kept under constant surveillance and their financial information is made available to regulators.

Some players have shied away from the salons, not wanting to be subject to such oversight.

"That creates marketing issues," Kraus said.

Kraus called the situation "antithetical" because players come to the private salons seeking privacy but are closely scrutinized in reality.

The Venetian will cross-market the Las Vegas Paiza salon with the one at its Sands Macau property in the Chinese enclave.

A paiza was a special pass given to travelers by emperor Kublai Khan.

The pass afforded the explorer safe passage and first-class treatment throughout Khan's vast 13th century empire.

Kraus said the salon on the lower floor could open by the Chinese New Year in February, and the Paiza Club in March. Both salons can hold up to three gambling tables and four slot machines, Kraus has said.

The MGM Grand, Caesars Palace and Mandalay Bay all operate private gambling salons at their hotel-casinos.

But players have been slow to gravitate to them, prompting regulators to question their purpose.

Lawmakers approved the law allowing private salons in 2001 at the urging of resort operators who said Nevada needed to compete with other gambling locales that allow such wagering, especially in Asia.

In other commission business, The Venetian was hit with a $10,000 fine after a minor was caught drinking and gambling there.

The minor gambled for more than an hour on April 3, 2004. Casino officials caught the minor after he attempted to cash his chips and then reported the incident to authorities.