Melco Resorts and Entertainment has announced key pillars of its development strategy in Japan.
Following the recent establishment of a Japanese division with headquarters in Tokyo, the company held a special event where chairman and CEO Lawrence Ho and the recently appointed Japanese leadership team under Ako Shiraogawa, Japan office president, discussed initial plans for developing an original integrated resort for the Japanese market.
Ho said: “It’s still early days in the long road ahead to a potential IR in Japan. So while some details may change along the way, we will do in Japan what we have delivered in Macau, the Philippines and Cyprus: build with local partners, invest in extraordinary world-first architecture and design, create sophisticated entertainment experiences and embed state-of-the-art technology into everything we do.”
Called The City of The Future, Melco’s Japanese IR concept aims to become the most advanced gaming and entertainment destination in the world, while still holding true to the distinct history and heritage of Japan. Integrated throughout the entire property will be the world’s most advanced facial recognition technology for enabling responsible gaming and security.
Developed directly by Melco, the biometric intelligence system would make the proposed Melco IR the safest and most protected site possible using commercial technologies today. At the event, Melco announced that it would also offer the Japanese government back-end access to and data-sharing with these systems free of charge to ensure the most effective collaboration in safeguarding against potential gaming-related social issues.
Commenting on the system, Shiraogawa said: “This proprietary technology demonstrates our deep commitment to developing and implementing practical solutions for the government’s ongoing consideration of how to uphold socially safe integrated resorts. Its back-end technology can be updated as regulations evolve and on the front-end, the state-of-the-art biometric interface eliminates nearly all risk of human error.”
Ho concluded: “We dream big, think different and deliver more. What does that mean in practice? Our resorts add to their communities. The City of the Future will make its surroundings even better. It will cultivate sustainable local consumption. And it will attract the most valuable type of tourism - mass luxury.”
