Earlier this month, MGM Mirage’s name change was finally approved by its shareholders. Now the company goes by the name of MGM Resorts International, to advertise its commitment to expanding its global presence.

MGM began its global expansion in 2007, when it opened the MGM Grand Macau, after which the company began exploring the option of opening casinos in Vietnam and Egypt. Now, MGM plans on opening over 40 casinos worldwide over the course of the next decade.

“This business model enables us to use our existing resources to extend the global presence reputation of our world famous resorts”.

At the shareholder’s meeting, the company also decided to launch a new rewards program called M Life by the end of the summer. It will first start in the company’s regional casinos before heading to Las Vegas at the end of the year.

It is great idea to launch a rewards program to coincide with MGM’s new global expansion, as it encourages players who may not be familiar with the brand to get acquainted with it. Already, experts in the gaming industry believe that MGM’s expansion will be a huge success, becoming one of the first American brands to take over the worldwide gambling industry.

Last Tuesday, MGM Mirage filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission to change its name. In the filing, it was stated that the company’s board of directors thought it was in the best interest of the company to change its name because of the company’s branding and marketing plans. The filing also cited that the new name would spread the corporate name more while still being a recognizable brand.

This isn’t the only time the MGM resort has been rebranded. Back in May 2000, the MGM Grand Inc was acquired by Steve Wynn’s Resorts, thus becoming the MGM Mirage. 10 years later, it is now the MGM Resorts International, but for how long?

Shareholders have been informed, and the annual meeting on June 15th will allow for shareholders to approve the change. For the time being, the change has become effective immediately, so now the MGM Mirage is now MGM Resorts International.

The name change has fueled talks that the company is trying to sell.

The MGM stands for Metro Goldwyn Meyer, in which the movie studio first purchased it. At the time, that would have made Kirk Kerkorian the largest shareholder. In 1993, The MGM Grand was the largest hotel in the world. In 1998, the largest bronze statue of a lion, “Leo”, was added to the front entrance.

While this may not be the best news for the competitors of the City Center hotels and casinos and much more in Las Vegas, the City Center is the place that is drawing the most traffic to the city these days. The people that are travelling and doing some lavish spending are those that were not much affected by the recent recession and are still spending as if they don’t have a care in the world.

There aren’t too many of those same travelers that were around a few years ago that could spend their extra bonuses and money that they have saved up for that special break or vacation. Now those same people are just hoping to keep their jobs if they still have them and those that do get a bonus they are being much more frugal with their spending as the economy is showing people that it is better to have a little extra and some savings in the bank rather than enjoying a lavish vacation.

It is because of this that the city of Las Vegas as a whole is experiencing a rather slower time than years past. Las Vegas as a city is glad to have the City Center present at this very tough time for the city as some of the people that are there would not be there if it were not for this newly revealed project. While the city center certainly had larger projections than the attention that they are currently receiving, they are quite happy that they are outperforming that of the competition considering everything that is happening in the current economy!

While LVS is certainly performing much better than this time last year they are not doing as well as expected and could not report extremely positive 1st quarter results for this year. The company did have quite a success in Macau but the situation in Las Vegas was still not as good as the company projections would like it to be.

The company that is headed by Sheldon Adelson has been through many ups and downs through recent times but with the newly developed and completed project in China they believed that they would have results that are over the estimates. The hope is that the company will push through the end of this recession and end up on top.

The properties that are not within the US are doing quite well but the staple hotels and casinos located in Las Vegas are bringing the company down. However, it is important to note that when these hotels are at their best they bring in the majority of the income and it is only fair to take the good with the bad.

It is not as if the LVS group of casinos and hotels within the US are the ones that are performing badly and the other hotel and casino companies are doing well. It is fair to say that the entertainment and spending on travel industries have all suffered immensely and all that is really left to do is consolidate spending as much as possible and try to run the more efficient type of business while waiting for the economy to fully recover so that better numbers can be reported.

Well it is a day of celebration for many. Today in Las Vegas and throughout the rest of the US is Martin Luther King day and the annual parade that is scheduled on this day for the last 28 years is likely to be a little damp to say the least. Las Vegas and the surrounding areas are experiencing and expecting some serious rain to move through the city for the duration of the day and perhaps the rest of the week as well.

The parade is scheduled to go on as planned but those planning to attend should come with their umbrellas handy or perhaps opt for waiting until next year’s parade as it is likely to happen yet another year. Many those that had outdoor activities such as golfing and other things of that sort are also urged to reschedule and wait for better weather as the amount of rain coming in is rumoured to be on the heavier side.

There are even some areas of Vegas that are expecting some snowfall which isn’t that common for Vegas but isn’t so unexpected at this time due to the changing climate! There is a total of 1 to 3 inches that are expected to accumulate from the rainfall and one to three feet of snowfall where the snow is supposed to fall near the mountains.

Casinos should be happy about the news of the bad weather because while new guests won’t be as eager to arrive those guests that are already there will be happier to stay inside then spend time anywhere in the rainy outdoors which means casinos can see themselves turning a bit of a profit.

Well even though the economy has seen some better days and the city centre isn’t bringing sold out crowds as we are sure they had hoped? The City Center is sure driving some of the economy in the city at a minimum. With many review written and videoed about the new masterpiece throughout the world, it is surely grabbing the attention of many Vegas visitors and leaving surprised and pleased.

Here are a few things that people had to say about the new mammoth of a building center. “I have never seen anything like it, I came from New York so buildings aren’t foreign to me, but this is something else. I really enjoyed all the restaurants and elite treatment that the city center had to offer but most of all it feels special to be in something so new”.

Another comment was “ I feel like this was meant for royalty, and while that I am not at this time, it is nice to escape to something that feels this way! I will be sure to return and must remember who beautiful it will all be in the summer months”.

Its nice to see what a positive reaction it is getting from the visitors to the city. Many say that the city center will likely continue to do better if they can pull through a time that is not as strong as it would be if the economy was doing better all around. In the meantime its a good time to take advantage of better rates and if you are planning a trip to those parts anyway what a great way to spend your vacation!

As the CES show came to an End in the city of Las Vegas many were impressed beyond belief with what the technology sector had up their sleeves! There are so many innovations and new and exciting designs and prototypes that the industry feels completely revitalized and energized for a year of great performances by the tech industry altogether.

One of the major show stoppers was definitely the 3D TV prototype, while not ready to come to market at this exact time it was displayed and tested by many at the show. Technology has come a long way since something like this was tested the first time around and boy have things changed. The level of realism on this TV was surreal according to many that experienced it firsthand. And the tools required for the experience were actually quite comfortable.

There were many other innovations going around at the show as well. There was a big concentration on Apple products such as the iPhone, iPod and iTouch. There was a whole area dedicated solely to accessorizes and innovate for Apple and the display of applications for these handheld devices were completely unreal! Many very practical apps that we are likely to see and experience for download sometime in the very near future.

After a year of recession this show had a record breaking amount of exhibitors and so many great innovative products were revealed. It will be interesting to see what comes to market and doesn’t stay hidden at the Vegas show but stay tuned and you are sure to find out more!

The very popular casino and hotel company known as LVS or Las Vegas Sands is rumoured to be opening a new casino in Singapore this coming April. The casino and hotel was originally planning to open its doors to the public this coming march but it looks like those plans will be experiencing a short delay and its a little shocking that the company is expanding at all as the year for the land based casino industry has been anything but fulfilling.

The project was originally schedule to cost approximately 3.2 billion but has gone way over budget at 5.25 billion dollars. There have been several issues that added to this problem. There has been a shortage of workers as well as a change in the markets and many forks thrown in the road along the way.

The project will feature a whole assortment of luxury beauty to take in as a visitor for business or for pleasure. Apart from the stunning lavish casino the complex will hold a beautiful hotel, stunning pools and gardens, a convention centre, a performing arts theatre, and a line up of the most popular and top of the line in retail shopping stores that are sure to satisfy the most discerning shopper.

There will be many new projects that stand to be completed this year. It will be interesting to see what happens and when projects are actually completed but we will just have to wait and see what happens! One thing is for sure any project coming from Las Vegas Sands is sure to be completely and utterly gorgeous both inside and out!

The City Center which is conveniently located in the center of the strip on the Las Vegas Strip may be exactly what the city needed to create some kind of momentum for the end of what has been a rather unprofitable year for the Las Vegas economy as well as the rest of the US economy!

The City Center is one of the world’s largest self encompassed indoor cities to date and is sure to bring at least a small quantity of tourists! This is exactly what the city needs as there are so many vacancies currently available and although this adds to the quantity of rooms that are available it also creates a need to see something new that was never available in Las Vegas before.

The city center is different from any other new hotel in that it encompasses so much than just a simply single standing new hotel building could offer. This masterpiece is a combination of several major hotels, several casinos, a plethora of shops and restaurants and so much that it is just too much to describe or even imagine.

They are saying that there is nothing like this City Center anywhere else in the world and that this will definitely an attraction for many travelling into the states from all over the globe. People that are travelling to the US are encouraged to take a stop in Las Vegas and tour the new city center so this should surely create hype in Las Vegas and lend to a much busier vacationing venue!

There has been much talk about the citycenter in Las Vegas. Many had much anticipation about the project and many also did not believe that it was ever going to come together at all. Well those that were pessimistic have been mistaken because the project is being completed and many of the components are opening up to a much awaiting audience.

While the city isn’t as busy as it has been in years past it is actually getting busier and busier as the year moves on and we are close to 2010. There have been several projects within this masterpiece that have already opened up. The shopping area and casino has opened their doors this week and are already receiving a great reception by those that have been thru and spent some time checking out the new places!

There is so much to do and see at the city center! It is absolutely something that is a must see if you are planning on visiting Las Vegas in the near future! It is surely the newest project and the most up and coming. This should remain that way for some serious time now and many are sure to enjoy staying in the various hotel throughout the towers as well as visit the restaurants and the other great luxuries of this unbelievable complex!