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Aladdin deal clears FTC review

Aladdin deal clears FTC reviewAladdin deal clears FTC reviewThe
acquisition of the Las Vegas Strip"s Aladdin hotel-casino by a
group headed by Planet Hollywood co-founder Robert Earl has cleared
another regulatory hurdle.Las Vegas, NV August 21, 2004 -- The
acquisition of the Las Vegas Strip"s Aladdin hotel-casino by a
group headed by Planet Hollywood co-founder Robert Earl has cleared
another regulatory hurdle.

A spokesman for the
Federal Trade Commission said Tuesday that the acquisition of
Aladdin Gaming LLC by BH/RE LLC, an Earl subsidiary, posed no
antitrust concerns for the FTC or the U.S. Department of Justice.
The spokesman said all transactions in excess of $50 million
receive initial antitrust scrutiny and if the deal has a potential
detrimental impact on the market, an investigation is
launched.

The spokesman said the transaction was
granted "early termination," meaning it wouldn"t receive further
antitrust review. He would not say whether there were any protests
filed with the FTC or the Department of Justice against the deal,
noting that the case file is not public.

BH/RE
LLC is a Nevada corporation controlled by Earl and Bay Harbour
Management LLC managing principal Douglas Teitelbaum. The
management group that will run the proposed Planet Hollywood resort
includes Earl, Bay Harbour and Starwood Hotels and Resorts
Worldwide Inc.

In another matter, Planet
Hollywood officials affirmed their earlier estimate that about 20
managers are being fired as part of the transition to a Planet
Hollywood resort.

But sources said the number of
managers being terminated was greater than the number Planet
Hollywood disclosed and that the property"s marketing and public
relations departments were among those being axed.

Planet Hollywood spokeswoman Amy Sadowsky said the
company is not announcing details of which employees and
departments are being eliminated as part of the
transition.

Such purges are common in corporate
takeovers, said Keong Leong, chair of the management department at
UNLV"s College of Business.

"The (image) that
Planet Hollywood would like to project would be different than they
had before. I"m sure they would like to have their own people
running the show."

"Apparently what they had in
the past did not work. They must make some changes," Leong
said.

The Gaming Control Board last week
recommended approval for the group taking over the Aladdin after
grilling Earl about a variety of concerns with his application as
well as concerns about Planet Hollywood"s prior bankruptcies. The
group faces a final hearing before the Nevada Gaming Commission
Aug. 26.