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Published Thursday, April 10, 2008 | 11 a.m.
Updated Thursday, Oct. 30, 2008 | 2:14 p.m.
What's in a name?
For Harrah's Entertainment, which is losing the international expansion race
to Las Vegas Sands, Wynn Resorts and MGM Mirage, apparently not enough.
That's why Harrah's is changing its name to Caesars Entertainment Corp.
The name change, announced Wednesday, won't affect the names of any existing casinos. The company has spent hundreds of millions of dollars cultivating the blue-collar Harrah's brand, born with company founder Bill Harrah in Reno more than 70 years ago, for its regional casinos in the United States.
But the real money these days is in international expansion and the Harrah's brand isn't cutting it with foreign investors and governments, executives say.
The Caesars name – synonymous with opulence and marquee entertainment – is world famous.
While Wynn and Las Vegas Sands' Venetian have cultivated their own deluxe casino brands from scratch, Harrah's, which bought its way into the club with its purchase of Caesars Entertainment in 2005, will spend even more money to appease foreigners who want to attract the Gucci, rather than the JC Penney, of the casino business.
Harrah's is going to further ruin a great brad, by putting the great Caesar's name on their horrible casinos. Yes, Caesar's is a brand associated with luxury, while the Harrah's brand is associated with Walmart. I think the best thing for Harrah's to do is sell the former Caesar's company to MGM Mirage. Then let Harrah's go about its way. This would give Harrah's a boat load of money, and save a great brand. Harrah's needs to do alot of things to get into the luxury game, not just buy into it. They need to upgrade their casinos, so that they are luxurious. The casinos that Harrah's bought in 2005, when they bought Caesar's Entertainment, were luxurious; not so much any more. The only casino that is benefiting from Harrah's buying it, is Caesar's Palace. Just like the former Caesar's Entertainment, the new one is focused on only one property in town and that is Caesar's Palace. Harrah's; Caesar's Entertainment, needs to also invest in it's other properties in town like they have in Caesar's Palace. MGM Mirae is upgrading pretty much all its casinos in town, not just one. Why is this uch a foreign concept for Harrahs? Sell the other properties and keep Harrah's, and Imperial Palace. Now those two casinos fit each other perfectly, non-luxury.