Legendary Horseshoe Casino Brand Coming to Southern Indiana

ELIZABETH, Ind., Aug. 18 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- One of the casino industry's most historic brands is coming to Southern Indiana, as Harrah's Entertainment announced today that it will re-brand Caesars Indiana to a Horseshoe casino and intensify a planning process to upgrade customer service and enhance guest entertainment experiences. Harrah's acquired the property as part of the merger with Caesars Entertainment on June 13 of this year.

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"It's very exciting to be able to offer the legendary Horseshoe experience in Southern Indiana," said Anthony Sanfilippo, Central Division President for Harrah's Entertainment, Inc. "Our guests at the Horseshoe Hammond in Northern Indiana and at our other Horseshoe properties in the South appreciate the excellent dining choices, thrilling entertainment schedule, electrifying gaming action and other energizing experiences that make the Horseshoe unique. That's the same kind of excitement that we will deliver in Southern Indiana -- the fun and exhilaration of a big action casino experience, combined with the top-notch amenities that every guest looks for."

The conversion process announced today is expected to take a year or more, and planning has already begun on upgrades in dining and entertainment venues to bring them in line with the premium services offered by Horseshoe casinos. Numerous other amenities are also being considered, and the full scope of the capital investment has not yet been fully determined.

"Our customers can continue to expect the great guest service and first- class facilities that they love," noted Senior Vice President and General Manager Ed Garruto, who has been with the property since it opened in 1998. "The investments that will be made in the facility will bring a new level of excitement to our lively casinos, restaurants, shopping, nightlife and recreational offerings. The new dining and entertainment offerings, a hallmark of Horseshoe's legendary service, match the enhancements our guests have told us they value.

"Our guests will also be members of Total Rewards, the nation's largest and most preferred casino loyalty program," Mr. Garruto continued. "They will have the ability to earn and redeem their comps and other benefits locally at the Horseshoe, or at any Harrah's Entertainment-operated casino worldwide."

The Southern Indiana property along with the current Grand Casino in Biloxi, Mississippi will be the fifth and sixth Horseshoe casinos in the Harrah's Entertainment portfolio. Three are in operation in Hammond, Ind.; Tunica, Miss.; and Bossier City, La.; and Bluffs Run Casino in Council Bluffs, Iowa is being converted to a Horseshoe in early 2006. The six properties will combine to form a corridor of Horseshoe casinos stretching from Chicagoland to the Mississippi Gulf Coast.

Caesars Indiana initially opened in 1998, and has 120 table games including the largest poker room in the area, 2,300 slots, 503 luxurious rooms and suites, and various dining, shopping, and recreational options including an elaborate pool, full 18-hole golf course, and woodland fitness trail. The resort, open 24 hours a day year-round, is 20 minutes from Louisville, Ky. on a spectacular setting on the Ohio River.

Caesars Indiana employs 2,115 people and contributes $100 million in taxes to local and state jurisdictions as well as $15 million to the local community and Caesars Foundation.

Harrah's Entertainment is the world's largest provider of branded casino entertainment. Since its beginning in Reno, Nevada 67 years ago, Harrah's has grown through development of new properties, expansions and acquisitions. On June 13, 2005, Harrah's Entertainment acquired Caesars Entertainment, Inc. and now owns or manages through various subsidiaries more than 40 casinos in three countries, primarily under the Harrah's, Caesars and Horseshoe brand names. With more than 3 million square feet of casino space, more than 40,000 hotel rooms and nearly 100,000 employees, the Harrah's portfolio is the most diverse in the gaming industry. Harrah's Entertainment is focused on building loyalty and value with its customers through a unique combination of great service, excellent products, unsurpassed distribution, operational excellence and technology leadership.

More information about Harrah's is available at its Web site, http://www.harrahs.com/.

This release includes "forward-looking statements," which you can identify by the fact that they do not relate strictly to historical or current facts. These statements contain words such as "may," "will," "project," "might," "expect," "believe," "anticipate," "intend," "could," "would," "estimate," "continue" or "pursue," or the negative or other variations thereof or comparable terminology. In particular, they include statements relating to, among other things, future actions, strategies, future performance and future financial results of Harrah's. These forward-looking statements are based on current expectations and projections about future events.

Investors are cautioned that forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance or results and involve risks and uncertainties that cannot be predicted or quantified and, consequently, the actual performance of Harrah's may differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. Such risks and uncertainties include, but are not limited to, the following factors as well as other factors described from time to time in our reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (including the sections entitled "Risk Factors" and "Management's Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations" contained therein): financial community and rating agency perceptions of Harrah's; the effects of economic, credit and capital market conditions on the economy in general, and on gaming and hotel companies in particular; construction factors, including delays, zoning issues, environmental restrictions, soil and water conditions, weather and other hazards, site access matters and building permit issues; the effects of environmental and structural building conditions relating to our properties; the ability to timely and cost-effectively integrate into Harrah's operations the companies that it acquires, including with respect to its acquisition of Caesars; access to available and feasible financing on a timely basis; changes in laws (including increased tax rates), regulations or accounting standards, third-party relations and approvals, and decisions of courts, regulators and governmental bodies; litigation outcomes and judicial actions, including gaming legislative action, referenda and taxation; the ability of our customer-tracking, customer loyalty and yield- management programs to continue to increase customer loyalty and same store sales; our ability to recoup costs of capital investments through higher revenues; acts of war or terrorist incidents; abnormal gaming holds; and the effects of competition, including locations of competitors and operating and market competition.