Gaming briefs for April 12, 2004

Monday, April 12, 2004 | 10:54 a.m.

Regulator to resign

BATON ROUGE, La. -- Louisiana's top gambling regulator says he will resign today to make way for Gov. Kathleen Blanco's choice.

"My understanding is that they would like to appoint somebody else to it, so I'm going to resign and let them do it," said Hillary Crain, a retired judge who has led the nine-member Gaming Control Board for eight years.

Blanco plans to appoint H. Charles Gaudin, former chief judge of the states Fifth Circuit Court of Appeal, The (Shreveport) Times reported Saturday.

Gaudin did not return calls from the Associated Press. He told the newspaper on Friday he had not received any official word on the status of his nomination and preferred not to comment. Attempts to reach Blanco were unsuccessful.

Crain was appointed by former Gov. Mike Foster, who had named him to another term. That appointment was waiting for state Senate approval.

Casinos hire new ad agencies

NEW YORK -- Luck proved a lady for two advertising agencies as two big casinos in Connecticut coincidentally hired them on the same day this month for creative assignments after closely watched reviews.

The decisions affect campaigns with budgets estimated at $25 million each. One is for the Foxwoods Resort Casino in Mashantucket, which is hiring the Kaplan Thaler Group in New York after five years with Trahan, Burden & Charles in Baltimore.

The other creative assignment is for the Mohegan Sun casino and entertainment center in nearby Uncasville, which is moving to Kirshenbaum Bond & Partners in New York after three years at Cliff Freeman & Partners in New York.

The changes point up the intensifying competition in the casino category as several trends converge. One is the increasing proliferation of casinos, not only in states that already permit gambling but also in states that previously did not allow casinos.

Also affecting the ability of casinos to woo consumers is the growth of other forms of gambling that occur outside casinos, such as buying lottery tickets and playing video poker at racetracks.

"It makes sense over time to anticipate additional competition," said Marty Kramer, director of advertising at Foxwoods, owned by the Mashantucket Pequot Tribal Nation. "And that's why we are enhancing our brand and our physical plant."

Foxwoods plans to complete $300 million worth of improvements to its resort in the coming year, he said.

Tribes funding university programs

LOS ANGELES -- California Indian tribes that have raked in millions of dollars from their casinos are funneling some of that money to various universities for the study of Native American issues.

Tribal representatives said their donations are an extension of generous philanthropy that totals an estimated $70 million annually. The tribes have been one of the largest political contributors over the past five years, spending more than $120 million on local and statewide campaigns.

Some critics believe that academic integrity is at risk when special interests influence higher education. But some experts said the tribes are following the example set by other companies that have funded school projects.

"It's almost like the tribes are coming of age," said Sheldon Krimsky, a Tufts University professor who studies conflicts of interest that arise when private money funds scientific research. "Drug companies and chemical companies have long given professorships or funded graduate education to help shape the agenda of higher education."