TOKYO -- Foreign casino operators are salivating over the prospect of finally winning access to the world's third-biggest economy. They estimate that the Japanese casino market could be worth 1.75 trillion yen ($15.8 billion) a year when resorts are opened in three cities, surpassing Nevada's $11.1 billion.
Opponents have waged a decade-long campaign against legalizing casinos in a nation that already has 5 million addicts to pachinko, a form of vertical pinball slot machine. But Prime Minister Shinzo Abe has waved critics aside, his eye set on the tourism-boosting potential of so-called integrated resorts -- developments featuring a casino along with hotels, other entertainment and conference facilities.