Podcast Rumor - No more free drinks at MGM?

Was listening to a Vegas specific podcast and they mentioned MGM will soon stop giving out free drinks.
Instead, you use your players card and they take your credits.

Anyone hear more on this?
Is there an official date?

They expect CET and other properties to follow soon afterward.

 

I believe they are that stupid. IE Resort fees, paid parking, paid valet, disappearing comps. I won't even go into what the Bartender at Aria Sports bar dictated to us about a drink every half an hour, or what the sweet cocktail Waitress told us was rumored to come next at the Mandalay. BOYCOTT will be the only fix. Shame we can't all fit into the 4 Queens, and probably don't want to.

 

Rumor I guess.

There are so many in Vegas.

 

Older guy. White hair. He's a peach. That's the one bar I always hit and run at.
Come on, we need some gossip. What did she say? I like Mandalay. It was a tossup for my July trip - there or Mirage.

 

MGM, ruining vegas for the past 10 years... And the part that sucks is they know they can get away with whatever stupid idea because all the other casinos will follow suit no matter what.

 

I don't think even Murren has the balls to stop offering free drinks while gaming.

He's definitely got the greed. And I'm sure he and the other greedmongers have discussed every scenario possible if they do it.

And CET wouldn't follow if the action and crowds on the gaming floor picked up.

I kind of hope he does it. It would be the straw that broke the jackass's back.

And it may put some fear in them to pull any other greedy moves.

 

But wait... between MGM2020 (and related rumors), CET/Eldorado (and related rumors), BConnected (and related rumors) and SLS/Sahara (and related rumors)... that's half the topics. Without singeing hair, what would we read all day?

 

Gambling as a whole in Vegas is declining which is why we are seeing more and more of a shift to clubs, shops, shows, sports......which is generating most of the revenue.
In their minds, squeezing the belts on the portion of business on constant decline will only help squeeze out more profit.

 

It would sure drive a lot of business to CET.
If and when we get some facts and timelines, it may be time to run out and buy some CET stock.
And then sell it before they follow suit.

 

I'm a CET gambler and while I love Vegas, being pumped full of a thousand dollars worth of drinks is one of the few things that makes losing two or three thousand more palatable. If this actually occurred, I would stop going, and I'm inclined to think many others would as well.

When even casual people think of Vegas, they think of "free" drinks while gambling. This would take a good portion of the allure out of flying there.

As much as I love Vegas, and it's quite a bit, this would be the end for me. There's probably quite a few better ways for me to invest more discretionary income lol. Hopefully, however, this is just speculation and conjecture which at least for now it appears to be.

 

This would be a game changer for me too. I have never had any problems with MGM - 4 comped nights, FP, F&B Credit and some things on the backend. I know others are not fans but I just prefer their hotels. If they stopped free drinks when gambling I would switch immediately to another company. Like LB9 says above, it makes losing (which is mathematically going to happen over the longterm) more palatable.

 

I can see the future without my crystal ball. BTW, where is my crystal ball?
hnn, soon MGM will implement it.
Then people will find out that the points needed to "pay" for a drink ain't that high, such as a $50 coin-in worth, and continue playing.
Then people will say MGM is just trying to stop the free-loaders.
Then people will get used to it.

 

Our local in PA doesn't comp drinks and people still come. I don't usually drink at the local cause I have to drive so it is isn't too big a deal. Hubby drinks but the price is reasonable ($3/4 for his favorite draft). I can't see Vegas charging a 'reasonable' price for drinks so it would be a game changer for us too.

 

Detroit area casinos charge for drinks as well, and these casinos are packed!

 

I think this would possibly be my breaking point. This is one of the main reasons I never gamble in my hometown casino (Hardrock Tampa.)

Paying for drinks at a casino bar, or on a casino floor just irks the living shit out of me, especially playing at the levels I do, even though I've drastically reduced my drinking.

If I won't drive 15 minutes to one of the largest casinos in the world (seriously it's like # 6 or 7 ) you think I'm going to pay thousands of dollars to fly across the country to get bled in the same fashion?!?! Fuck no.

I took resort fees, lowered comps, parking fees, red light green light dickery , bad pay tables on machines, terrible table conditions (triple zero roulette the latest "fuck you" to the gamblers) skyjacked food costs, etc...

If this shit becomes a reality, I'm done with Las Vegas.

Usually in cases with LV 'gossip" particularly when the gossip deals with scaling back player benefits, where there is smoke, you will inevitably see a towering inferno of shit.

 

The way I see it—I'm paying for my drinks indirectly anyway, thanks to the lousy pay tables at any typical video poker bar.

I'm fine with the trade-off—it is what it is—but if they want to keep the same pay tables AND charge me for my beer, then I'll find another place to play.

 

But ...but ..... but ...what I am supposed to do to my hair while I read these rumors.

Lol, jokes aside, they would be really stupid to do something like this. Half the times I have gone on tilt and lost my money or given back winnings was after a few drinks. It would directly impact their bottom line.

 

As said earlier, it is just a rumor. Maybe something will happen, and maybe not. Until then...

On a related note, maybe they will do a happy medium and do the light system like they do at VP Bars now. And, if they also do the order from the machine like they do at some CET properties, it works better than the current system.