The Maryland Live Casino is the biggest casino in Maryland and is currently investing $200 million to expand its operations in an effort to not lose any market share to the new MGM National Harbor casino in Prince George’s County that is expected to open before the end of this year.

Maryland Live Casino has so far managed to outperform all the other casinos in Maryland and wants to continue to keep its spot as the market leader. The expansion plans include adding a 17 storey hotel and conference center, a 1,500 concert theatre, a day spa and new dining options that are expected to meet the growing demands of its patrons.

Rob Norton the president of Maryland Live casino stated that in the casino industry, it is important to be ready to change and adapt to market conditions or be prepared to go out of business. Norton expects stiff competition to emerge from the MGM National Harbor and believes that his customers will definitely go out and check out the new MGM casino. However he remains confident that they will return to Maryland Live because of the great service they have become accustomed to.

MGM has invested $1.3 billion to build its mega casino resort that will offer entertainment options similar to a Las Vegas casino. The casino which is situated on the banks of the Potomac River will be branded as a destination resort and look to lure visitors from Washington. The casino, which is close to the Maryland-Virgina border, will pose the biggest threat to the Maryland Live casino as Maryland Live also targets gamblers from Virgina.

Cummings Associates was commissioned by the state government in 2013 to carry out market research on the impact that the MGM casino will have on the Maryland casino industry. The report stated that Maryland Live would lose around 16 percent of its business in 2019 while the Horseshoe Casino will lose around 7 percent. However, gaming analysts have played down these numbers considering the fact that such market analysis has not always proven to be highly accurate.

In a statement, James Karmel, casino analyst and professor at Harford Community College said “There’s definitely a significant number of Maryland Live players who are coming from the Washington, D.C., area, the Maryland suburbs and Northern Virginia who will probably find it more convenient to go play at National Harbor when it opens. It is very hard to quantify that. It might be 10 percent, it might be 20 percent. I’ll be surprised if it’s much higher.”

The Maryland Live casino currently makes around $50 million each month in gross gambling revenue as the company has invested heavily into its marketing operations and has also focused on attracting Asian gamblers.