Ohio Hoping Harrah's Brand Will Compete With Indiana Casinos

The casino gambling industry is new to the state of Ohio, but even in an area where casinos have been non-existent, people understand what the Harrah's Entertainment name means in the industry. That is why state officials are counting on Harrah's to help the state compete with Indiana casinos.

Harrah's agreed to a deal this past week with Rock Gaming, a subsidiary of Rock Ventures. The Rock group is owned by Cleveland Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert, and Gilbert has spent several months trying to determine which gaming company would be best to operate casinos in both Cleveland and Cincinnati.

Harrah's has several different brands that they can bring to the Cincinnati and Cleveland areas. The top of the line would be the Caesars brand. That, however, would be a stretch since Harrah's likes to use the Caesars brand in areas where high rolling gamblers can be attracted.

For Ohio residents that have been waiting for casino gambling for decades, the brand will not be important. State officials, however, understand that the Ohio casinos must not only draw from their own gamblers, but also from the gambling pool in other states.

"Indiana has been one of the top gaming areas in the Midwest," said Gaming Analyst Steve Schwartz. "Ohio is hoping to steal some of that thunder and in order to do so, Harrah's will have to build top notch facilities in both Cleveland and Ohio."

Penn National Gaming will be Harrah's competition within the state of Ohio, and they also will be the competition from Indiana. Penn National currently runs the most successful casino in the area, Hollywood Casino in Indiana. Penn National holds the rights to the other two new casinos in Ohio being built in Columbus and Toledo.

The Harrah's deal with Rock Gaming was just announced this week, and already questions are arising from that deal. The most pressing will be what brand the Las Vegas gaming company will bring to try and lure gamblers out of Indiana casinos and into Ohio.

August 15, 2010
Posted By Terry Goodwin
Staff Editor, CasinoGamblingWeb.com
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