Harrah's/Horseshoe deal on hold

The Federal Trade Commission has put the proposed acquisition of Horseshoe Casinos LLC--all of the Horseshoe casinos except downtown Las Vegas--by Harrah's on hold because of concerns about potential domination of certain markets.

I'm not usually much for interference by the Feds, but I'm with them on this one. Harrah's already has a presence in Tunica and Shreveport, where the Shoe leads each market, and in Chicagoland. In Tunica, the Shoe is the best casino in town for BJ players, dice shooters and all-around gamblers. Their comps are legendary--if you play, you eat (some would say, "if you breathe, you eat"). Jack Binion learned well how to run a casino from his dad, Benny. On th eother hand, Harrah's tends to think of themselves as the McDonald's of casino gaming, with a presence in almost every major gaming market and many smaller ones.

But think about it--would you want Mickey D's taking over your favorite Ruth's Chris Steak House?

Your comments, please.

I'd hate to see Harrah's take over Horseshoe. It would be worse than the MGM takeover of the Wynn properties. We need enough independent operators to make the big boys stay competitive. Without them, we would be saddled with eight-deck shoes and things like 6:5 blackjack. Comps would be hard to get for a low to middle level player. Harrah's would become the dominant player in Tunica, and that is not a good thing.

The Horseshoe in Tunica is one of my favorite places to play! They really treat their players right. Harrah's is in a close race with the Pile of Debris as my least favorite place to play. If the only place I had to play was Harrah's I would give up casino gambling all together.

I just got back from Tunica and things remain the same at the Shoe...at least, for now.

You're right on about Harrahs...I don't even go in the door...bout the only other places I play in Tunica is Hollywood (a little, since I usually bunk there) and sometimes Grand...

Tunica would be really hurt once Harrah's gets the go ahead. The dealers at the Shoe already are complaining about the deal...