Harrah's isn't saying, but industry observers don't expect to see a Casears Cincinnati. That nameplate is the company's luxury brand, reserved for markets that specifically court international gamblers. Only four Caesars casinos exist in the world: Las Vegas; Atlantic City; Windsor, Ontario; and Cairo, Egypt.
• Photos: A look at Harrah's casinos
"I'd be very surprised if they did the Caesars brand in Cincinnati -- it's very high-end," said Lyle Berman, chief executive of Minnesota-based casino operator Lakes Entertainment, which has an option to buy up to a 10 percent interest in Cincinnati's casino.
"When you open a casino in Middle America, you want to be all things to everybody," Berman said. "You want something that appeals to a broad group of people."
More likely is a Harrah's or Horseshoe brand casino, observers said. Harrah's namesake concept has appeal beyond gambling, emphasizing shows and other entertainment to lure gamblers in.
Harrah's slightly higher-end Horseshoe brand, meanwhile, is marketed more as a pure gambler's casino. The Horseshoe originally was founded by legendary gambler Benny Binion, founder of the World Series of Poker.
"I can see it both ways, but I'm partial to a Binion's Horseshoe brand," Berman said. "What brand they'll use I'm not privy to -- we're strictly a passive investor."
Whatever brand Harrah's settles on for Cincinnati, it will go head to head with the region's dominant casino - the newly expanded and movie-themed Hollywood Casino Lawrenceburg in Southeast Indiana. Hollywood is run by Penn National Gaming, another large casino company that will own and run casinos also upcoming in Columbus and Toledo.
David Katz, a gambling analyst with Jefferies & Co. in New York, said Harrah's will fiercely battle to take the lead in the local market when it opens in 2012. He said the new casino's downtown location will be a huge advantage, assuming there's enough parking and adequate access to the site at Broadway Commons.
"There's no question you're in for a dogfight," Katz said. "Harrah's is a strong competitor and compete they will."
Other industry observers agree.
"The most successful casinos are those located next to major metro areas. Convenience and proximity are very important to the player," said Steve Ferguson, president of French Lick Resort, which operates an Indiana casino.
Hollywood Casino prepared for battle
Penn National has prepared for a fight. In the last few years, it has remade several of its casinos with the Hollywood concept to maximize their appeal.
Penn National already announced it will brand its future casinos in Columbus and Toledo with the Hollywood nameplate. Lawrenceburg's upgrades have grown the casino's local market share from about 60 percent to nearly two-thirds of gambling dollars spent locally.
Tony Rodio, general manager of the Hollywood Casino Lawrenceburg, said the prospect of future competition in this region was part of the reason Penn National spent more than $300 million to upgrade his casino in the past few years. Since unveiling its new theme concept with a larger gambling boat last summer, Penn National has continued to upgrade the casino with new restaurants and the Boogie Nights nightclub.
"We knew eventually competition was coming to the region," Rodio said.
Rodio said Penn National expects Lawrenceburg to take an unspecified hit, but the revenues from new Columbus and Toledo casinos will more than offset the drop. Furthermore, Penn National is developing a loyalty card program that will allow it to cross-sell its three casinos.
Katz said Harrah's is the industry leader in collecting customer data to boost its marketing. He said the one disadvantage Harrah's will have will be Ohio's smoking ban. Not letting gamblers light up might turn off some customers.
"It's kind of like selling a peanut butter sandwich without jelly," he said.
Nonetheless, analysts aren't worried about financial struggles for the future casino.
Once it opens in 2012, it's projected to draw 6 million visits a year and rake in nearly $520 million in annual gambling revenue. That's more than the 4.1 million visits and the $470 million that Hollywood Casino Lawrenceburg is on track to collect this year. While Cincinnati's new casino is expected to take a bite out of the three riverboat casinos in Southeast Indiana, the overall region's gambling market is expected to grow from nearly $700 million to around $1 billion.
Unlikely candidates
Harrah's has other casino concepts, such as Paris, Rio and the Flamingo in Las Vegas. But experts say those are the result of several acquisitions over the past decade.
Bill Eadington, director of the Institute for Gambling and Commercial Gaming at the University of Nevada in Reno, said keeping different concepts in destination markets makes sense. It's a way of offering different casino products in big markets like Las Vegas, but it's unlikely the concepts would be expanded elsewhere.
Eadington notes some storied brands have lost their allure over time. Harrah's owns The Flamingo - the first resort casino in Las Vegas built by gangster Benjamin "Bugsy" Segal.
While the casino has been rebuilt since its post-WWII founding and boasts an elaborate network of interconnected swimming pools, the casino has been supplanted in Las Vegas by other iconic destinations, such as Harrah's Caesars Palace.
"Their acquisition strategy of the past 15 years has maybe given them too many brands to be useful," he said. "The Flamingo had cache 30 years ago, I doubt they're going to use that concept elsewhere."
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