The next breakthrough strategy for increasing revenue in Macau casinos might involve gaming machines specifically tailored for the unique traits of Asian cultures.
At the moment, 88 percent of revenue at Macau casinos comes from baccarat. A maximum of only twelve players can be dealt per table, and often gamblers gather around tables they feel are lucky while leaving other tables vacant.
Compared to slot machines, baccarat tables operate slower and cost more to operate, especially as croupier salaries continue to rise.
Slot machines represent just 4.3 percent of overall revenue in Macau casinos, compared to more than 60 percent in Las Vegas.
It may be that general concept of slot machines simply does not and will not appeal to a broad Asian audience. But it also may be that the games in the market simply haven't been designed appropriately.
"There are plenty of games in the market with themes on Star Wars, Spiderman and the like," Tony Tong, chief executive of gaming supplier PacificNet told Agence France-Presse. "Asian people know about these stories but they do not have an emotional or cultural attachment."
Tong suggests that machines might attract more players if they were themed around more culturally significant characters and stories, such as Jackie Chan or hit television series "Super Voice Girls".
MGM Grand Macau trains staff to encourage customers to use gaming machines because they are a relatively new concept for many Asian gamblers, and therefore something about which they may be wary.
"Chinese customers are generally more technologically-advanced than U.S.-based customers," said Gabe Hunterton, VP of casino operations at MGM Grand Macau told AFP. "But they tend to be less comfortable just with slot machines themselves because they don't have much experience with them."