January 11, 2007
Paul Steelman Design Group to Raise the Bar With Macao Studio City
Macao, January 11, 2007 - Macao Studio City, Asia's first leisure resort property combining theatre, television and film production facilities, and Studio RetailTM, with gaming, entertainment and world-class hotels, was officially launched at a groundbreaking ceremony in Cotai, Macao, yesterday. Paul Steelman Design Group - the pioneering architect behind what is currently the world's largest casino, the Sands Macao - is the architect of this phenomenal project. The enormous scale of Macao Studio City will make it amongst the ten largest casino projects currently being undertaken in the world. The project's developer, Cyber One Agents Limited, is a 60/40 joint venture between Hong Kong-based eSun Holdings ("eSun"; stock code: 571 through its subsidiary, East Asia Satellite Television Holdings) and New Cotai LLC.
eSun Holdings is one of Asia's leading media and entertainment companies and an associate company of Lai Sun Development ("LSD"; stock code: 488), a leading hotel and property developer. Both companies are part of Hong Kong's Lai Sun Group. Singapore's CapitaLand is a shareholder with eSun Holdings in East Asia Satellite Television Holdings owning 33.3 per cent of that venture. New Cotai, LLC is a consortium of US-based investors including David Friedman, Co-Chairman of Macao Studio City and a veteran resort and gaming developer who led Las Vegas Sands' entry into Macao, and funds managed by Silver Point Capital, L.P., a private US-based investment firm, and Oaktree Capital Management, LLC, a global independent investment management firm.
During his opening remarks at the groundbreaking ceremony, Paul Steelman, President and Chief Executive Officer of Paul Steelman Design Group said, "This is a very special time in our history and I am proud to be a part of this impressive project. We are going to make sure that Macao Studio City is going to be our most exciting project yet. "In terms of design, we're going to create everything on a curve, and create an exciting experience. Instead of looking back in time, we wanted to make a modern project - a building that is seamlessly relevant for any time period. We want it to be functional and deemed as a great design and special tourist attraction forty years from now. Our retail shopping center will feature experiences currently unknown to man. It will be the moniker for interactive retail experience. Our goal is to make people feel comfortable to make people feel younger and we want people to leave feeling more alive. Macao Studio City, will offer unparalleled entertainment facilities and a state-of-the-art concert hall."
The project will be developed on an approximately 35-acre site strategically located "Where Cotai BeginsTM", next to the new Lotus Bridge immigration checkpoint, linking the complex directly to Zhuhai's Hengqin Island. Renown as a visionary Las Vegas-based entertainment and casino design expert Paul Steelman Design Group, the new world-class studio, entertainment, and Studio RetailTM complex is projected to have a total developed gross floor area of approximately 6 million square feet. Steelman's past and current clients include such recognized names as MGM Mirage, Las Vegas Sands, Sheraton, Hyatt and Harrah's, among others. The planned entertainment components of Macao Studio City will be some of the most comprehensive and extensive of any single property in Macao, including a 2,300 seat theatre, a 4,700 person capacity arena/MICE center, stand-alone state-of-the-art television and film production facilities and a 1.4 million square feet Studio RetailTM complex to be created in partnership with Taubman Centers, Inc., one of the world's leading destination retail developers, owners and managers.
Studio RetailTM will integrate live-audience taped lifestyle and fashion programming throughout the retail environment, re-interpreting the Asian shopping experience. Studio RetailTM will draw upon eSun's leadership in the film, music production, talent management and live entertainment arenas and Taubman's own unmatched track record in creating dynamic retail environments such as The Pier at Caesar's in Atlantic City, the future MGM MIRAGE CityCenter retail district development in Las Vegas, and other retail properties spanning from Beverly Hills to Orlando, Florida. In Phase One, some of the world's most recognized hotel brands are also anticipated to partner with Macao Studio City to create over 2,000 luxurious guest rooms and suites, including Marriott International, Inc., which has submitted a letter of intent with the joint venture to manage both a Marriott hotel and a Ritz-Carlton hotel on the property. This exciting new venture will also include in Phase One, a new 6-star boutique hotel concept to be created by Mr. David Tang, founder of the China Clubs and Shanghai Tang, which will be called The Tang Hotel.
In cooperation with a subsidiary of NASDAQ-listed Melco PBL Entertainment (Macau) Limited which owns one of the only six gaming licenses in Macau, New Cotai LLC plans to create 500,000 square feet of gaming facilities comprising more than 400 gaming tables at Macao Studio City. Mr. Peter Lam, Co-Chairman, Macao Studio City and Chairman of Lai Sun Group %26 Executive Director, eSun Holdings Ltd. said, "We are seeking to create not only an entertainment home for Asia's leading stars, but also an opportunity for our visitors and guests to become a part of the star experience, themselves, through their participation in television and entertainment events."
Mr. Friedman, Co-Chairman and Co-Chief Executive Officer of Macao Studio City, said, "We are bringing together the best in entertainment, hotel and retail to create an all-encompassing, new and unique experience for visitors to Macao. eSun has unsurpassed experience in the region's entertainment industry and an in-depth understanding of what Asian consumers want. New Cotai has extensive financial resources and experience in resort development through major projects in Las Vegas and Macao. Our retail offer will be unsurpassed in Macao and our hotel partners are among the world's most respected brands." "Cotai is a key element in Macao's emergence as a world-class leisure resort destination. We expect Macao Studio City to be Cotai's leading gateway facility, welcoming visitors to the new Macao," said Mr. Ambrose Cheung, Co-Chief Executive Officer of Macao Studio City. "We are proud of the internationally renowned partners who are joining us in this endeavour, and we believe that together, we will be creating a must-see, must-stay, must-shop destination."
