Crown's vow to lure VIP punters Crown chief executive Rowen Craigie says it's about critical mass. JAMES Packer's Crown says there is room for significant growth in the international high-rollers market. While the company said Melbourne's 9.2 per cent jump in VIP income was "acceptable," there was room to improve in Perth and Brisbane if the group was to compete on a global stage. "The more options that Australia can give the Chinese high-roller, the better," Crown chief executive Rowen Craigie said in Melbourne yesterday. It's about critical mass. If Australia is going to compete against Las Vegas and Singapore and Macau, it needs to have multiple high-quality offerings, not just one. He said Australia's share of the VIP market was small enough that it was possible to increase high-end client numbers at all casinos simultaneously. VIP clients generated $525.2 million in Melbourne for the year to June. Total VIP revenue across the group's casinos rose 7.8 per cent to $684.6 million. Crown said mass market gambling on the main floor took a hit as weak consumer confidence made punters reluctant to have a flutter. Melbourne also suffered from a major refurbishment program, due for completion in coming weeks. But Mr Craigie said the higher end of the mass market had proved more resilient. "The premium side of activities, whether we are talking restaurants, retail or gaming, is doing better than the low end," he said. It came as Crown reported a 23 per cent drop in net profit to $395.8 million for the year to June. The result also included a $70 million loss made in disposing Crowns investment in rival casino group Echo Entertainment, and Crown's share of development costs of its Macau-based joint venture Melco Crown. However, the Melco Crown stake generated a profit of $175 million for the company. Excluding the significant items, Crown's full-year net profit was down 4.3 per cent to $491 million. "Melco Crown continues to be a key driver of earnings," Citi analyst Michael Goltsman. The company announced a final dividend of 19c to be paid on October 11. Crown shares closed up 5.6 per cent at $14.34.