Too many casinos in Macau?

Las Vegas Sands (LVS) and MGM Mirage (MGM) might have a long-term reason to welcome another new mega-casino in Macau, but, as they say, in the long term, we'll all be dead. In the short term, however, they will have to vie for visitors with the latest newcomer, the 420,000 square-foot City of Dreams, which will open next week.

The City of Dreams is the largest development in Macau by non-Vegas-based prinicipals, in this case, the Melco Crown Entertainment Ltd. (MPEL) The company is a combined effort of Lawrence Ho, son of the longtime king of Macau casinos, Stanley Ho, and James Packer, son of the late Australian media magnate Kerry Packer. Packer also owns gaming companies in the UK and Australia. The senior Ho's company still owns many Macau casinos, including the upscale Grand Lisboa, which opened in 2007.