Inside Asian Gaming

INSIDE ASIAN GAMING JULY 2018 8 More effort needed to change Japan’s negative IR attitude www.asgam.com W ITH Japan’s IR Implementation Bill now on the verge of being ratified after passing through the lower house in June, the onus is on operators to spread the word and start changing the public’s negative attitudes regarding the development of casino resorts in their backyard. By now it is no secret that the thought of Japan launching an integrated resort industry doesn’t sit well with the Japanese people. In March, an opinion poll run by Kyodo News found that 65.1% of people were opposed to the IR Implementation Bill with just 26.6% in favor. Of course, we also know that much of this opposition is a result of misinformation, or at the very least a lack of information as to exactly what an IR is and does. The situation certainly hasn’t been helped by a largely aggressive anti-casino campaign being conducted by many local Japanese media outlets. Rather than touting the benefits IRs can bring to Japan – including the introduction of meaningful problem gambling initiatives currently absent within the more problematic pachinko industry – the message being heard by the public has to this point centered largely on the terrible social ills IRs will supposedly bring. But the truth is that, outside of a handful of public forums run by the government last year, little effort has been made to alter these negative perceptions. There are some economic realities behind this, of course. First and foremost is a reluctance on the part of operators to invest the resources needed to launch a comprehensive education campaign across the country when there is no guarantee that they will be granted one of the three IR licenses on offer. The general feeling, IAG has been told, is that there is no point in spending big on a PR-campaign without knowing which companies will reap the rewards. With this in mind, it stands to reason that little will be done to change public sentiment until the three successful IR candidates are named sometime around 2020. Hopefully the education process will begin in earnest once the time comes. In the meantime we are left with the uncomfortable reality of the IR bill being pushed through in direct opposition to the wishes of the general public. It’s far from the ideal scenario. As an industry, and knowing as we do the tremendous facilities today’s great IRs present, it’s natural for us to think, “Once Japan experiences a real IR for the first time they’ll understand.” Yet as Japan’s ruling parties prepare to push through their bill with force, it’s hard not to feel that more should already have been done. Ben Blaschke Managing Editor We crave your feedback. Please email your comments to bb@asgam.com. EDITORIAL