Studio City (Macau)

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For other uses, see Studio City (disambiguation).
Studio City
新濠影滙
Studio City Macau.jpg
Location Macau, China
Address Estr. Flor de Lotus
Opening date 27 October 2015; 8 years ago (27 October 2015)
Theme Hollywood[1]
Number of rooms 1,600
Total gaming space 106,000 sq ft (9,800 m2)
Signature attractions Golden Reel
Batman Dark Flight
Notable restaurants Cosmos Food Station
Casino type Land-based
Owner Silver Point Capital LP
Oaktree Capital Management LLC
eSun Holdings Ltd.
Melco Crown Entertainment (60%)
Architect Goddard Group
Website studiocity-macau.com

Studio City is a hotel and casino resort in Macau. It is Asia's first leisure resort to integrate television and film production facilities, retail, gaming and hotels. It is jointly developed by U.S. investment firms Silver Point Capital LP and Oaktree Capital Management LLC and a Hong Kong entertainment company, eSun Holdings Ltd. In June 2011, Melco Entertainment took over a 60% share of the property developer. Studio City Macau held its grand opening on 27 October 2015.[2][3]

History

File:Studio City Macau Jan2015.jpg
Studio City Macao under construction in January 2015.

The US$2 billion project is being built on Macau's Cotai Strip and is expected to open sometime in 2015.[4] But the Hong Kong and U.S. investors have been locked in three years of bitter disputes, meaning the six-million-square-foot development remains a vacant patch of land and a big problem for the project's backers.

In an effort to end the dispute, meetings took place in London, Hong Kong and the private office of Macau's then-chief executive. Finally, eSun late in 2009 sued Mr. Friedman's consortium in Hong Kong courts. The case is still pending.[5]

Taubman Centers

Taubman Centers was acquiring a 25 percent interest in The Mall at Studio City, the retail component of Macau Studio City, Taubman was to fund an initial cash payment of US$54 million. Taubman's total investment in the project (including the initial payment, allocation of construction debt and additional payments anticipated in years two and five after opening) was expected to be approximately US$200 million.[6] But in August 2009, Taubman announced that it has pulled out of the project, recovering its 25 percent, US65 million interest in the project's huge shopping mall development, according to www.macaubusiness.com. "Under the established agreement, if the developers, Cyber One, were unable to secure financing within an 18 month period, Taubman would get its 25 percent share back. That's what happened, as the set period expired on August 11," Morgan Parker, Taubman's Asia Pacific region president told www.macaubusiness.com.[7]

Melco Crown takeover

Gaming operator Melco Crown Entertainment has gained control of the long-delayed Macau Studio City project, after buying a 60 percent share in the Cotai resort developer. Melco announced the deal on 16 June 2011 morning and co-chairman Lawrence Ho Yau Lung said at a press conference it would invest USD 1.7 billion (MOP 13.7 billion) in the development. Construction on the new resort may resume in 2012 and it may open in 2015, Ho added. "Significant pilling and groundwork is already done," he said.

He said Macao Studio City was on the best site in Cotai, due to its proximity to the Lotus Bridge and a future stop of the Light Rapid Transit (LRT). The original vision of a movie-themed resort is "a fantastic concept" and "very popular with Asian visitors," the businessman said. The resort will include "a self-branded luxury hotel" with 1,200 rooms when it opens and a maximum of 2,000 rooms. It will also have 290,000 square feet (27,000 m2) of leasable retail area.

But entertainment "will be the core" of Macau Studio City, Ho said. The highlight will be a multi-purpose entertainment studio with anything from concerts of Cantopop stars to fights, he added.[8]

On 12 January 2015, Melco chairman announced that the Studio City resort will open in "mid-year" 2015, adding 1,600 hotel rooms and an intended 400 gambling tables to the Cotai Strip. Inspired by Hollywood, the cinematic-themed resort will comprise a 30,000-square-foot Family Entertainment Center in collaboration with Time Warner Inc. subsidiaries Warner Bros and DC Comics. Highlighted in the unveiling ceremony, the entertainment center is said to feature popular DC Comics characters, such as Superman, Wonder Woman and The Flash. Visitors will be taken on a virtual reality Batman ride in the resort, as well as a 130-meter-tall Ferris wheel.[9]

Gaming facility dispute

Macau's Secretary for Transport and Public Works Lau Si Io confirmed on 6 July 2011 that there will be no gaming facility in the Macau Studio City project. The secretary reiterated that the developer of this Cotai property is required to adhere to the 2008 development plan approved by the government. The plan, he reaffirmed, includes a major component of a film production facility but doesn't contain any gaming elements.[10] But Melco Crown Entertainment is confident the Macao Studio City will receive the necessary government approvals to include a gaming floor. The company’s chief executive and co-chairman Lawrence Ho Yau Lung said he was confident of striking a deal with the SAR Government to build a casino on the site.[11]

Design & Attractions

Studio City Macau features an Art Deco design inspired by two asteroids shooting through a Gotham City building.[12] The resort was designed by Goddard Group, a Los Angeles-based entertainment design firm also responsible for the design of Cotai’s Galaxy Macau Resort.[13][14][15]

The resort’s two hotel towers (The Star Tower and the Celebrity Tower) are connected by the Golden Reel, the world’s first figure-8 ferris wheel. Boarding at the hotel’s 23rd floor, the wheel features 17 cabins holding up to 10 passengers each. The design was developed by the Goddard Group, and the hardware was manufactured by Liechtenstein's Intamin Amusement Rides.[16][17] The 15-minute ride will take guests to a height of 130 meters.[18]

Another attraction is Batman Dark Flight, a flying theater attraction.[15][19]

Studio City is home to a unique food court called Cosmos Food Station, on which guest can look out upon space through giant portal windows.[20]

The resort also features a 40,000 square foot children’s playground called the Warner Brothers Fun Zone[21]

See also

References

  1. ↑ http://www.cnn.com/2015/11/05/travel/macau-studio-city-wheel/
  2. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  3. ↑ http://www.studiocitymacaumedia.com/en/doc/pr/20151027c/pr.html
  4. ↑ Macao Studio City website
  5. ↑ Macau Casino Project Face-Off Holds High Stakes Wall Street Journal. 11 May 2010.
  6. ↑ Taubman Invests in The Mall at Studio City. - Macao Studio City Macao Studio City. 31 Jan 2008.
  7. ↑ Taubman pulls out of Macau Studio City Macau Daily Times. Wednesday, 26 August 2009.
  8. ↑ Melco takes over Macao Studio City Vítor Quintã. Macau Daily Times. 17 June 2011.
  9. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  10. ↑ No casino in Studio City: Lau Macau Daily Times 07/07/2011 07:01:00
  11. ↑ Melco hopeful of casino at Studio City Macau Daily Times. 30 August 2011.
  12. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  13. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  14. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  15. ↑ 15.0 15.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  16. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  17. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  18. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  19. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  20. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  21. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.

External links

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