Hard Rock Purchases IP Rights to Vegas Hotel Casino Resort

Hard Rock Hotel & Casino might reappear on the Las Vegas gaming and hospitality scene after Florida-based casino and hotel operator Hard Rock International announced that it has purchased all rights to the Hard Rock brand in Las Vegas.

The original Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Las Vegas closed doors this past February to be transformed into a Virgin Hotels property.

Hard Rock said in a statement Wednesday that it has acquired all rights related to the Hard Rock brand and associated trademarks in Las Vegas from Houston-based private equity firm Juniper Capital.

Juniper purchased Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Las Vegas from Brookfield Asset Management in the spring of 2018.

Hard Rock’s recent transaction provides the company with full rights to “memorabilia, signage, and merchandise, along with intellectual property rights for affiliated restaurants and entertainment trademarks and website domain names.”

This basically means that Hard Rock is no longer restricted from developing, owning, operating, and licensing a Hard Rock-branded hotel and casino resort in Clark County, Nevada.

Chairman Hints at Vegas Comeback

The purchase of intellectual property rights could mean that Hard Rock might be seriously considering to return to the Las Vegas scene.

The company’s Chairman, Jim Allen, said on Wednesday that the agreement with Juniper marks “an exciting chapter for Hard Rock, in Las Vegas and beyond.”

He went on to say that they look forward to the opportunity “of enhancing our presence in Las Vegas, which will always be one of the most iconic entertainment markets in the world.”

After the sale of the original Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Las Vegas resort, Hard Rock now only operates a Hard Rock Cafe on Las Vegas Boulevard in Sin City.

Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Las Vegas opened doors in the spring of 1995 with a 28,000-square-foot casino and an 11-story hotel tower with 339 rooms. The property was small compared to the behemoth integrated resorts that had just begun springing up along the Las Vegas Strip.

However, since many disliked the new megaresorts trend at the time, Hard Rock quickly found a spot in the hearts of Las Vegas regulars.

The property closed doors for good on February 3, 2020, or nearly 25 years after it welcomed its first visitors.

Transformation

The former Hard Rock Las Vegas is now being transformed into a Virgin Hotels property. The resort closed doors for an eight-month renovation and transformation process, during which it would be stripped of its Hard Rock features to become an entirely different hotel and casino complex.

Virgin Hotels is the hospitality brand of British billionaire businessman Richard Branson.

The transformation includes renovation of the property’s 1,500 hotel rooms, a new 60,000-square-foot casino with slots and table games, the addition of five acres of pool space, 130,000-square-feet of meeting and event space, and multiple food and beverage outlets.

The resort’s casino portion will be managed by Connecticut-based gaming and hospitality company Mohegan Gaming & Entertainment.

Follow us on Facebook and Twitter to stay up to date on the day’s top casino news stories