LAS VEGAS (CelebrityAccess) –Las Vegas casinos are increasingly increasingly turning to non-gaming events including music festivals to help attract tourists, such as Rock in Rio's Las Vegas debut this month.
“The demographics are changing, and people are looking for different kinds of experiences,” Chris Baldizan, senior vice president for entertainment at MGM told Bloomberg.
MGM is sponsoring the Rock in Rio festival and spending $20 million to upgrade the 48-acre festival site. MGM will also leverage the festival by providing access to the festival for their guests, including VIP access for high rollers.
The festival boom got started with the 2010 Electric Daisy Carnival, which moved to Las Vegas after Los Angeles put a moratorium on large music festivals after a 15-year-old girl died in EDC in 2010. Since then, the EDC event has grown into a week-long affair with celebrity DJ parties at numerous venues around the city along with a two-day EDM conference. Electric Daisy organizers, Insomniac Events, says their event has generated $338 million for the local economy.
“They’ve been a boon to the economy, no question,” Las Vegas Mayor Carolyn Goodman told Bloomberg. – Staff Writers
