Casinos and Entertainment: A Perfect Alliance Also in the United States

By  //  January 10, 2023

The casino industry has always been strongly connected to the world of entertainment. This can be observed from the multitude of events organized around the world, like the EGR Awards and the SiGMA in Malta or the World Series of Poker in the United States, which not only promote providers, developers, and other industry players but also become advertising showcases for other parallel industries such as music, film, sports and much more.

An example of this symbiosis is provided by Caesars Entertainment and SL Green as they add a new partner to their proposed Times Square casino: the multi-millionaire rapper and businessman Jay-Z and his entertainment agency, Roc Nation.

The three-way partnership was announced at SL Green’s annual investment conference on Monday and marks a new direction in the developer’s and Caesars’ proposal to open a casino in an office location at 1515 SL Green Tower on Broadway.

Roc Nation will be the official entertainment partner of the SL Green and Caesar’s proposal. As a partner in the project, the agency will help revitalise Times Squares by partnering with local organisations to rethink programming in the district’s famed epicentre, the parties said in a press release.

New York is the epicenter of culture. We have the opportunity to create a destination in the heart of Times Square. My partnership with SL Green and Caesars, this alliance, has every intention and commitment to the economic growth and enrichment of the community and all people who visit the Empire State”, said Shawn “Jay-Z” Carter.

Land-based casinos often engage entertainment personalities to promote their brands and attract the attention of players through specific marketing strategies.

Celebrities and influencers have a large following on social media and can directly support the launch of a new product, as in the case of Jay-Z. In addition, stars can help to create an image of luxury and glamour around the casino, attracting players seeking a high-class gaming experience.

This relationship between gaming and entertainment has also always been present in the digital sector. In the case of online casinos, it reaches its maximum level in slot machines inspired by famous rock bands, cult films or hit TV series, or even popular sports such as wrestling, football and boxing.

Due to this broad range of themes, the titles in online casinos are able to capture a wide and heterogeneous audience.

The online gaming sector in the United States is growing rapidly and has started to look more and more to music, film and television for the creation of new products, new games, new slots. Proof of this are the comments of Natalia Chiaravalloti, head writer of Giochidislots.com, a leading blog in the online gaming sector: “Games are created with the aim of providing a fun and entertaining experience for players and among the most popular are titles related to the big and small screen. To achieve this, it is critical to understand what users like and expect from a game. For this reason, game developers often carry out user studies to gather data and gain a clearer picture of gamers’ preferences and expectations“.

“The outcomes of these studies – adds Chiaravalloti of Giochidislots – can be used to improve and personalise the gaming experience for users.

For example, if it is discovered that players like a certain type of game based on a movie or TV series, developers can focus on creating more games of that type. In addition, if any problems or difficulties have been identified in a particular game, developers can work on solutions to improve the user experience”.

This relationship can also be seen as one of the reasons for the success of gambling in the US, which is expected to be on track for another record year.

In the first 10 months of 2022, commercial gaming revenue was $49.85 billion, 14.7 percent higher than the same 10-month period in 2021, according to the latest data from the American Gaming Association, which tracks financial performance data nationwide with analysis for individual gaming verticals.