Macau’s concessionaires could soon turn to digital pop stars and virtual performers to satisfy the needs of the city’s burgeoning entertainment scene.
David Baxley, long-time Regional Vice President for Sands China and Marina Bay Sands, explained during a panel session at the recent IAG EXPO in Manila that although entertainment was becoming an increasingly important driver of high-quality visitation, filling venues on a weekly basis remains a challenging task.
As such, he believes it won’t be long before Macau’s operators turn to virtual performers to fill the void.
“For us, it is the most exciting trend,” Baxley explained. “The truth is that there are not enough Jackie Cheungs and there are not enough Bruno Mars to fill the venues.
“Every continent now has markets that didn’t exist before and they all want the same people to fill their stadiums – and it’s just not possible. But we’re seeing this basic need for humans to be entertained by something.
“So, that’s what’s exciting to us and we’re looking at that now. These things have traditionally taken years to develop but I think that’s also coming to an end now.”
Headline concerts have proven to be a significant driver of both visitation and revenues in recent times, with Galaxy Macau even setting a single day visitation record in June when K-pop superstar G-Dragon performed at Galaxy Arena.
According to Baxley, the idea that virtual performers can fill the void left by a dearth of real names has already been proven as a viable alternative by the current Abba Voyage virtual residency concert in London. Staged in a purpose-built theater in London, the show features virtual avatars of the famous Swedish pop band Abba performing as they appeared in 1979 and since its 2022 launch is believed to have generated more than £250 million (US$340 million) in ticket sales.
It has been reported that similar recreations – such as a Michael Jackson show – are also being explored.
“I do think that’s one area we’re going to see more of is virtual performers,” Baxley continued. “Sometimes it is a bit controversial to bring back to life a certain performer [like Jackson] but I think we’re going to get used to that.
“And then the second is completely digital pop stars that are brought to life by AI that develop their own fan base. They have their own personal life, they have their own scandals.
“And this can happen because the next generation is completely comfortable with a non-living pop star. I think that 20 years from now, people will look back on this era and say, ‘Oh, you actually had a live performer” That’s kind of an old-fashioned or quaint idea’.
“And honestly, the technology behind Abba Voyage has gotten so good using the latest Hollywood-style effects that it’s very hard to tell the difference between a live performance and one that’s just virtual.”
In many ways, says Baxley, Macau’s post-COVID emergence as a regional entertainment hub – the number of shows held has tripled since 2019 on the opening of venues like Galaxy Arena and the revamped Venetian Arena – has created a dilemma.
This is because there is only a limited supply of performers who “move the needle” for the whole city – those who appeal to the perfect demographic of gaming customers.
It is also eye-wateringly expensive to lure headline performers or sporting events like the upcoming NBA pre-season games at Venetian or the recently announced UFC meets at Galaxy.
“That’s mainly because you are competing with every city in the world and also regions like the Middle East that just have unbelievable amounts of money to throw at them,” Baxley said.
“So, there is a certain opportunity cost if they are coming to Macau because that means they are not going to Abu Dhabi or wherever.
“Of course, I do think it great for Macau overall. Once you have these global sports brands being offered in your city, it puts us on a level that we have not been before.”
Roger Lienhard, Executive Vice President Hospitality at Galaxy Macau, notes that Macau’s concessionaires must also keep on eye on the future when programming their entertainment schedules.
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“People who have come to see BLACKPINK (the all-girl Korean K-pop group that performed at Galaxy Arena in 2023), maybe in five years they will be our future customers. We should never forget that these young people who have seen us for the first time, they will remember us in five years’ time and they may come back and they may have enough money to have a gamble.So, we can’t forget the future as we do all these entertainment shows.”
Adds Baxley, “There is some positive effect on gaming from having shows that appeal to teenagers because they bring in parents and they do drive a lot of PR value for the city.
“I know that the analysts and the shareholders are working with us to try to bring in artists that really appeal to that 45-to-75-year-old Chinese-speaking [gaming] customer but I think my goal is to try to find some middle ground – find artists that appeal to both the gaming customer and also the younger generation to sort of build out the middle.
“That’s been difficult but I think that we’re making progress and there is more to come.
“We’re currently in really tough competition with Hong Kong which just opened Kai Tak Stadium where everyone wants to play. That’s a world-class venue and a lot of the artists we had that used to appeal to the gaming customer are now graduating to that level – playing to a 40,000-capacity audience instead of our 10,000 or 15,000.
“That’s another challenge and I believe it’s inevitable that Macau will eventually build a stadium to compete with Kai Tak.”
