Thorns in his Crown

E ach new casino in Macau comes with a new round of superlatives. The Venetian, opened in August, claims to be the world's second largest building and boasts the biggest ever casino floor.

Hong Kong's Galaxy Entertainment Group, which is run by Australians, is busy shipping in sand for the world's largest rooftop beach. The wave pool, which will sit above the casino, is expected to be bigger than a football field.

James Packer's Crown Macau sells itself as the city's first ever six-star resort and the tallest building on Taipa Island.

Meanwhile, in Singapore the world's two most expensive casino developments are under construction and the island nation will have the lowest tax rate for VIP gambling, at just 5 per cent.

In comparison, Australia's casinos are sadly lacking in adjectives. And some in the industry are warning that without sufficient upgrades, Publishing and Broadcasting's Crown and Burswood properties and Tabcorp's Star City and Jupiters casinos could start losing customers to their Asian counterparts, particularly in the lucrative VIP market. It may already be happening, says Peter Caveny, head of investor relations at Galaxy.

"In excess of 95 per cent of people coming to Macau are ethnic Chinese," he says. "Sixty per cent are from mainland China and 35 per cent are from South-East Asia - Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, Taiwan, Indonesia and Thailand. Many of those South-East Asian players would have previously gambled in Australia."