MGM Teams Up With Playtech For New Live-Dealer Casino Games Streamed From Las Vegas

MGM Resorts International has announced a partnership with Playtech to launch an exclusive range of live-dealer casino games, with proprietary content streamed directly from the heart of Las Vegas and offered to players worldwide.

The new live iCasino content, aptly named MGM Live, will be broadcast from the gaming floors of two of MGM Resorts’ properties on the Las Vegas Strip, the MGM Grand and the Bellagio Resort & Casino.

This initiative marks a significant step in expanding real-time, floor-based casino play to a global audience as the online casino industry continues to evolve.

“The launch of this new and exciting live casino offering, in partnership with Playtech and directly from Bellagio and MGM Grand in Las Vegas, furthers our strategic vision to be the world’s premier gaming entertainment company. This collaboration amplifies our commitment to providing unparalleled experiences and expands our global reach to our customers.”

— MGM Resorts CEO and President Bill Hornbuckle

At the core of MGM Live’s offering are classic casino games, including roulette and baccarat. The roulette games will feature both the American double-zero and the European single-zero variants. Baccarat, a game synonymous with high stakes gambling action, will also be a central part of the live content, providing an authentic Vegas experience to players.

More content to come

In addition to the initial offerings, MGM Resorts, which just added Brian Christopher as its newest BetMGM brand ambassador, and Playtech have plans to expand the content library to include branded TV game shows and other innovative gaming formats. These additions aim to advance the live casino segment by introducing elements of mainstream entertainment into the gambling domain.

The strategic partnership between MGM Resorts and Playtech reflects a shared vision of pioneering new forms of gambling by leveraging Playtech’s technology and MGM Resorts’ gaming expertise.

While MGM Live will be available for licensing in regulated markets across the globe, it will adhere to the specific legal frameworks of each region. Notably, in the U.S., the availability of live-dealer games is subject to state regulations, which require that such games be dealt within the respective state where iCasino is legal.

Casino games against the house are not legal for play online in Nevada.

Live-dealer games explained

The world of online gambling has witnessed a significant transformation with the arrival of live-dealer gaming studios. They offer a bridge between the traditional brick-and-mortar casinos and the modern convenience of online platforms, providing a real-time gaming experience that is both authentic and accessible.

Live-dealer games use high-definition video streams to connect players with professional dealers in real-time. This setup helps to develop a sense of transparency between players and the casinos that some players find lacking in purely digital games.

The variety of games available in the live dealer format is expansive. Classics such as blackjack, roulette, baccarat, and house-banked poker games have been seamlessly integrated into live-dealer platforms, with each game offering multiple variants to cater to different player preferences. The interactive nature of these games is a key selling point, as players can communicate with dealers through a chat function, making the experience more engaging and social.

The technology behind live-dealer games is complex. It involves sophisticated Optical Character Recognition (OCR) technology that translates the actions made by the dealer into data that the software can use to update the game in real-time.

The future of live-dealer casino games looks promising, with continuous improvements in technology expected to enhance the player experience further. Virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) are set to take the immersion of live-dealer games to new levels, offering players an even more realistic and engaging gaming environment.