Marriott and MGM Resorts announce long-term loyalty partnership
Hyatt's loss is Marriott's gain when it comes to Sin City.
On Monday morning, Marriott and MGM Resorts International announced a 20-year licensing and loyalty marketing agreement across 17 MGM-branded casino resorts in the U.S. The announcement comes less than a week after Hyatt and MGM announced their strategic partnership will end in September.
The Marriott and MGM tie-up begins in October with the creation of a new platform — the MGM Collection with Marriott Bonvoy — for some of the more than 40,000 MGM-affiliated hotel rooms across Las Vegas and other U.S. cities. Bookings for these 17 resorts will be accessible via Marriott's website and the Marriott Bonvoy mobile app, as well as MGM Resorts' booking channels.
"This is a very robust relationship. It's not just a traditional franchise agreement," Marriott CEO Anthony Capuano told TPG during a press conference Monday. "I think that's really illustrated by the creation of the MGM Collection with Marriott Bonvoy. This is a relationship that allows us to take full advantage of the breadth of the entertainment, culinary and sports offerings that MGM enjoys and, in turn, allows MGM and its loyalty members to take full advantage of the breadth of our global portfolio."
Marriott already has a relationship with MGM Resorts via The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas, which is currently part of Marriott's Autograph Collection. This deal widely expands that partnership.
"This historic, long-term agreement brings together two of the most trusted and iconic brands in hospitality and entertainment," MGM Resorts CEO Bill Hornbuckle said in a statement ahead of the press event. "We've seen first-hand the strong demand from Marriott International customers through our existing relationship at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas, and this new agreement will enable us to further optimize our overall profitability. We're thrilled to now scale the relationship and offer Marriott Bonvoy members greater distribution access to our award-winning resorts – as well as exclusive event and entertainment opportunities - in Las Vegas and across the U.S."
Loyalty benefits
Similar to how MGM and Hyatt's partnership works through September, the Marriott deal will enable members of MGM Rewards and Marriott Bonvoy to link accounts and receive "select benefits." Further details of how the loyalty tiers from each program will link were not immediately available.
Capuano and Hornbuckle indicated that members on both loyalty platforms would get details of how the linkage will go ahead of the partnership going live in October.
"Members of both programs will be able to exchange MGM Rewards points, Bonvoy points and vice versa," Capuano added. "Specifics about linking those accounts, points transfer, experiences, lounge access and other benefits will be communicated to consumers later this fall."
Marriott also becomes a partner with MGM's BetMGM online gaming and sports betting platform thanks to the new deal. This agreement means Marriott Bonvoy members will be able to earn Bonvoy points on certain BetMGM transactions and be able to participate in exclusive games and offers.
New options and challenges to overcome
The 17 MGM resorts across the U.S. linking up with Marriott will go into a mix of Marriott's existing brands as well as the new MGM Collection with Marriott Bonvoy.
Bellagio Resort & Casino will join the Luxury Collection while Aria Resort & Casino will join the Cosmopolitan in the Autograph Collection. Park MGM will join the Tribute Portfolio.
The eight MGM resorts in Las Vegas joining the MGM Collection with Marriott Bonvoy include Vdara Hotel & Spa, MGM Grand Hotel & Casino, NoMad Las Vegas, The Signature at MGM Grand, Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino, New York-New York Hotel & Casino, Luxor Hotel and Casino, and Excalibur Hotel & Casino.
An additional five MGM properties elsewhere in the U.S. — Borgata in Atlantic City, New Jersey; Beau Rivage in Biloxi, Mississippi; MGM Grand Detroit; MGM National Harbor in Maryland; and MGM Springfield in Massachusetts — will also join the MGM Collection with Marriott Bonvoy.
One area worth watching is whether the Marriott and MGM partnership will improve the lag time of seeing elite nights and loyalty credits appear that many guests experienced with the Hyatt and MGM partnership.
The Marriott deal seems to bring these resorts much closer into the mix than what was seen with Hyatt, so that challenge may already have found a solution.
"We're going to spend a lot of energy around the linking of our two companies in the product," Hornbuckle said during the press conference. "We bring the excitement, the opportunity and experiences — whether it's Formula One or any and all of the entertainment that Las Vegas has known for decades — …that is something unique and special that you can't really experience anyplace else. We're excited for that."
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