News

Josh Swissman quoted on CDC Gaming Reports

Canadian influx helped Las Vegas’ 2022 international segment as Asia slower to rebound

Despite a slower return from Asia, international travelers, led by a surge from Canada, came to Las Vegas in much greater numbers in 2022, according to a report released by the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority.

Last year, 3.41 million international visitors came to Las Vegas, easily topping the 1.2 million in 2021 and 1.14 million in 2020 when the pandemic started.

Las Vegas has recovered 60% of its pre-COVID international travel. But it’s behind the high mark of 5.98 million recorded in 2014 coming out of the global recession.

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Josh Swissman quoted on Yogonet Gaming News

Gaming industry veteran Josh Swissman to serve as G2E 2023 Education Chair

Josh Swissman, Founding Partner and Managing Director at consulting firm GMA Consulting, has been selected as the G2E Education Chair for Global Gaming Expo 2023. He will oversee the programming and execution of G2E’s four-day education program from October 9-12 at The Venetian Expo in Las Vegas, Nevada.

As per GMA Consulting, Swissman brings global expertise, a deep understanding of the gaming industry, and an extensive network to the G2E Education Chair role. Working in collaboration with the show’s producers, the American Gaming Association (AGA) and RX Global, as well as the G2E education advisory board, “Swissman will ensure that the 2023 program provides a rich and meaningful educational experience for attendees from all facets of the gaming industry.”

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Josh Swissman quoted on Ice365.com

Looming Oakland A’s relocation to Las Vegas to provide another boost to family visitation

Las Vegas has long been billed as Sin City by visitors touting the city’s one-time tagline of “What Happens Here, Stays Here”. But thanks to professional sports, families are becoming a bigger part of its visitor pool and will continue to do so with the relocation of a Major League Baseball team to the city.

The latest visitor profile conducted by the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority (LVCVA) shows that more groups with children are visiting Las Vegas than before the Covid-19 pandemic.

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Josh Swissman quoted on the Nevada Independent

Primm casinos reopen as ownership plots course to recapture the market

Guests looking to view the bullet-riddled Bonnie and Clyde death car inside Whiskey’s Pete’s Hotel Casino were confused. The historic V-8 Ford, in which notorious criminals Bonnie Parker and Clyde Barrow perished in a shootout with law enforcement in 1934, was missing from where it had been displayed since the late 1980s in the Primm casino.

It disappeared once before when it was used at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library and Museum in Simi Valley, California as part of an exhibit honoring law enforcement.

This was different.

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Josh Swissman quoted on Las Vegas Review Journal

Hawaii bill would ban Nevada casino ads in Aloha State

A Hawaii state senator wants to block advertising in the state that touts Nevada hotels, resorts or other recreational services promoting casinos or gaming — even citing one Las Vegas-based operator by name.

Sen. Stanley Chang, D-Honolulu, introduced Senate Bill 935 on Jan. 20. The legislation proposes a fine of an unspecified amount for violators. A public hearing on the bill is scheduled Thursday morning before the Senate Committee on Commerce and Consumer Protection.

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Josh Swissman quoted on Las Vegas Review Journal

Experts skeptical Strip hotels colluded to fix hotel room rates

A number of hotel operators on the Strip were accused of artificially inflating the prices of hotel rooms this week in a class action lawsuit. But several hospitality and business experts have expressed skepticism that the Strip hotels colluded.

The lawsuit, filed by Seattle-based law firm Hagens Berman, said a revenue management platform used by a majority of Strip hotels used real-time pricing and supply information data from competitors to design rate recommendations that “unlawfully maximize profits for its hotel operator users.”

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Josh Swissman quoted on NPR.org

2023 in Las Vegas: Several major projects to open amid recession worries

Last year, 2022, was a banner year for the Strip and Nevada’s gaming industry. Records were broken in both revenue and visitation.

In 2023, the MSG Sphere will debut, Fontainebleau casino-resort is expected to open, and Formula One racing is coming to the Strip. Also, a new local’s casino will open.

So, it sounds like the good times will keep rolling in 2023, right? Maybe not. Economists and other experts are still expecting a downtown in the economy; maybe a recession. If that happens nationwide, what happens here?

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Josh Swissman quoted on cdcgaming.com

Global Payments ecosystem removes uncertainty

Global Payments takes away the uncertainty when it comes to a casino’s payment ecosystem. The company has positioned itself so that when all of its products are combined, no company can compare with what Global Payments offers. It handles all facets of transactions through products and services built in-house.

“When you look at a casino’s payment ecosystem, it’s made up of a number of different partners, which means there’s a lot of integration and potential service and liability and support handoffs, all of which can introduce uncertainty into that environment,” said Josh Swissman, founding partner at The Strategy Organization, a company consultant. “Global Payments is vertically integrated from start to finish. That leads to a more secure and hardened environment, a one-stop shop in terms of support. Thus, the user experience is typically more refined and more seamless.”

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Josh Swissman quoted on cdcgaming.com

Nevada regulators to hear from Virgin’s Betfred Sportsbook

Betfred Sportsbook will appear in front of Nevada regulators in a special meeting Wednesday, setting the stage for Virgin Hotels Las Vegas to open sports betting prior to the Super Bowl.

Virgin, the former Hard Rock, reopened in March 2021, but without the Betfred sportsbook that was announced in July 2020.

The special Gaming Control Board meeting comes one day before the Nevada Gaming Commission holds its monthly meeting. That agenda hasn’t been released yet.

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Josh Swissman quoted on americanbanker.com

What China’s post-COVID travel reopening means for payments providers

While cross-border travel revenue for card networks and processors has rebounded in many global regions — surpassing pre-pandemic levels — Asia’s recovery has lagged behind primarily due to lingering lockdowns. That’s poised to change as China this week reopened its borders for travel.

There are already indications of strong pent-up travel demand that could be a boon for Mastercard and Visa, which have each seen significantly lower revenue from cross-border travel spending in Asia since the pandemic began.

Read the full article here.