For Anthony Marnell, a traditional reader board just isn’t enough to advertise M Resort, so he commissioned a lightship to do the job.

The blimp will fly around Las Vegas until the middle of 2009, with an option to extend into 2010 or beyond. With an LED screen on one side, and the M Resort logo on the other, it is literally a billboard in the sky.

The M Resort lightship was introduced to the Las Vegas Valley on October 1, making several laps around the resort before heading off to fly near properties like Green Valley Ranch and Red Rock Casino.

“This is a whole new way to get our message out to the people,” Marnell said. “I’m really excited about what this will do for us.”

In addition to promoting M Resort—and if it does so near a competitor, Marnell said it would be “unintentional”—time on the LED sign can be sold to advertisers to create an additional source of revenue for the property. “It’s going to fly for six to seven hours a day, so there is a lot of time available.”

As for M Resort, Marnell said the project remains on budget and on time for its scheduled opening in early 2009.

By Casino Connection Staff