M I T CH G A R B E R I N T E R V I E W
have the ?exibility and the luxury of owning other hotels and other brands and if it makes sense to offer those brands, then we will do it. There may be room for a secondary poker brand on the same platform. If we ?nd that the brand is intimidating to certain casual players then we have the luxury of being able to offer a secondary brand, it could be Caesars Poker or something else.” The subject of US online gambling regulation naturally comes up, and Garber has, after four years of waiting, clearly taught himself not to attempt to predict what might happen next. For him, the question of whether he’d foresee a stateby-state path or a federal law has almost become irrelevant – indeed for much of the industry, attempting to predict it has become a pointless task. “There’s only so many ways you can answer the same question,” he says, referring to the occurrence of the query in every interview or panel discussion he takes part in. Avoiding the subject, I ask whether he’ll be toasting with a glass of Champagne when the day ?nally comes for CIE to accept a US wager. “Yes, I’ll be raising a toast,” he says with a smile. “Because it will be a milestone in US gaming.” Garber’s decision to leave PartyGaming on a high note was driven by a desire to be closer to his family in Montreal, but given the scale of his job, it’s hardly been an opportunity to take his foot off the accelerator. Luckily Garber isn’t the relaxing type. A former triathlete, Garber’s passions outside of work are almost as dynamic as his career. “I love sports and travel as my two sons and my wife equally do, so we do as much sports and travel as we can, whether it’s skiing, scuba diving, wakeboarding,” he says. “My sons are at the age now [12 and 17] that they’re beating me at everything – it used to be competitive! I just want to stay in shape and healthy and ?t enough so my kids still want to play with me.” As the interview draws to a close and we head for the exit, Garber’s attention turns to this morning’s board meeting, glancing over an inchthick presentation handed to him earlier. We set off again through the hallway at the same pace as before, and I get the feeling he can still give his sons a run for their money after all.
THE STORY SO FAR:
BUILDING CAESARS’ ONLINE ARM
MAY 2009
Caesars Interactive Entertainment is formed.
OCTOBER 2011
Signs deal with casino group Lucien Barrière for its WSOP to launch real-money poker in France.
AUGUST 2009
Garber appointed as CEO.
DECEMBER 2011
Wholly owns Playtika after buying out remaining 49%.
SEPTEMBER 2009
Enters licensing agreement with 888’s B2B subsidiary Dragon?sh to supply poker and casino software for the launch of Caesars and World Series of Poker-branded offerings in the UK.
JANUARY 2012
Extends 888 agreement for USfacing poker market; enters into development deal with Barrière to build CIE’s proprietary poker platform.
“I LOVE SPORTS AND TRAVEL AS MY TWO SONS AND MY WIFE EQUALLY DO, SO WE DO AS MUCH SPORTS AND TRAVEL AS WE CAN, WHETHER IT’S SKIING, SCUBA DIVING, WAKEBOARDING”
Garber on his passions
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