Beyond the Tables: Measuring the Impact of Non-Gaming Diversification on Casino Profitability in Macau

Round 1

Reviewer 1 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

The following items are areas in which improvements to the manuscript are needed.

--The authors should provide more detail on development of the theoretical framework for this study.

--The authors are encouraged to examine the current literature on more depth in order to incorporate recent studies to ensure a through review has been conducted as well as highlight any gaps in the existing research in which this study could fill.

--Provide additional justification for the choice of methodologies, particularly the use of bootstrapping techniques. Provide more justification and explanation as to why the methods used in this study, particularly the bootstrapping technique, is suitable for this research.

--Provide more detail on the limitations and areas for future research. 

--Provide more practical/industry recommendations 

 

Author Response

Dear Reviewer,

Thank you for your valuable comments. They are extremely helpful. We have revised our paper accordingly. 

--The authors should provide more detail on development of the theoretical framework for this study.

Thank you for your comment. We have added more details on the development of the theoretical framework, including a diagram to illustrate the mechanism in Section 2.4. This enhancement clarifies how non-gaming diversification can impact a casino's profitability.

--The authors are encouraged to examine the current literature on more depth in order to incorporate recent studies to ensure a through review has been conducted as well as highlight any gaps in the existing research in which this study could fill.

We agree with your suggestion. We have incorporated more recent literature in Section 2, updating it to include sources from 2025.

--Provide additional justification for the choice of methodologies, particularly the use of bootstrapping techniques. Provide more justification and explanation as to why the methods used in this study, particularly the bootstrapping technique, is suitable for this research.

Thank you for highlighting that. We have provided additional justification for the identification method we chose, particularly regarding the bootstrapping technique. This information can be found in Section 3.2.

--Provide more detail on the limitations and areas for future research. 

Thank you for your comment. We have outlined the limitations and identified areas for future research in Section 5.

--Provide more practical/industry recommendations 

Thank you for bringing that to our attention. We have included additional practical and industry recommendations in Section 5.

Thank you again and have a good day!

Best,

Authors

Reviewer 2 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

The article should be improved by new related references and also, the authors should analysis their point of view  in discussion and conclusion. Research method should be more clear! In my view the article is good and proper to publish in your nice journal. 

Comments on the Quality of English Language

First of all, the articles is good. If the author improve the literature review with few of new related papers can be improved the paper!! It is better to consider the authors' view of point as well as the others!!

Author Response

Dear Reviewer,

Thank you for your valuable comments. They are extremely helpful. We have revised our paper accordingly. 

The article should be improved by new related references and also, the authors should analysis their point of view  in discussion and conclusion. Research method should be more clear! In my view the article is good and proper to publish in your nice journal. 

Thank you for your comment and kind words. We have incorporated more recent literature in Section 2, updating it to 2025. The previous findings have been analyzed and compared with our results in Section 5. Additionally, we have further clarified our research method in Section 3.

Comments on the Quality of English Language

First of all, the articles is good. If the author improve the literature review with few of new related papers can be improved the paper!! It is better to consider the authors' view of point as well as the others!!

Thank you for bringing that to our attention. We have added new literature in Section 2 and compared our study with theirs. Additionally, our paper has undergone English editing with MDPI.

Thank you again and have a good day!

Best,

Authors

Reviewer 3 Report

Comments and Suggestions for Authors

I must admit that I didn't expect an article with a focus on gambling outside of Las Vegas. But this industry, if developed, can become important for any country's economy, and Macau is recognized as the Las Vegas of the Orient.

The article is well structured, the assumptions and conclusions are well presented, although the research is up to 2019. In my opinion, there is a fairly large gap from 2019 to the present, especially due to the impact of the Covid 19 pandemic on all activities. It would have been interesting to present this aspect as well.

Another thing I notice is that there is very little talk about tourism. What is the impact of tourism on the gambling industry? But vice versa? Can it be said that a large number of tourists come to Macau just for gambling?

Author Response

Dear Reviewer,

Thank you for your valuable comments. They are extremely helpful. We have revised our paper accordingly. 

I must admit that I didn't expect an article with a focus on gambling outside of Las Vegas. But this industry, if developed, can become important for any country's economy, and Macau is recognized as the Las Vegas of the Orient.

The article is well structured, the assumptions and conclusions are well presented, although the research is up to 2019. In my opinion, there is a fairly large gap from 2019 to the present, especially due to the impact of the Covid 19 pandemic on all activities. It would have been interesting to present this aspect as well.

Thank you for your comment and kind words. We have included a discussion on the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on Macau’s gambling industry in Section 1.

Another thing I notice is that there is very little talk about tourism. What is the impact of tourism on the gambling industry? But vice versa? Can it be said that a large number of tourists come to Macau just for gambling?

Thank you for bringing that to our attention. We have highlighted the significance of Macau in tourism in Section 1. As one of the most visited cities in the world, Macau's primary source of revenue is gaming tourism. With the expansion of non-gaming tourism, Macau is poised to achieve sustainable development.

Thank you again and have a good day!

Best,

Authors