LAS VEGAS, Oct. 2 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Boyd Gaming Corporation (NYSE: BYD) today announced that it has reached an agreement with Harrah's Entertainment, Inc. to trade the Barbary Coast Hotel and Casino in a tax- deferred exchange for approximately 24 contiguous acres of Las Vegas Strip property that Harrah's has contracted to acquire from third parties. The land that Boyd Gaming is to receive in the exchange is located directly to the north of its 63-acre Echelon Place development site. Boyd Gaming expects to recognize a non-cash gain of approximately $280 million in the quarter in which the transaction closes and plans to begin reporting the results of operations from Barbary Coast in "discontinued operations" in the third quarter 2006. The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions, including receipt of regulatory approvals, and is expected to close in the first quarter 2007.

Bill Boyd, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Boyd Gaming, commented on the transaction, "This agreement provides additional Las Vegas Strip development opportunities for our Company and is strategically located next to Echelon Place. We are especially excited about the prospect of having 87 contiguous acres on the Las Vegas Strip. The additional acreage provides us with the opportunity to develop future phases related to our Echelon project, as well as extending our strategic growth pipeline well into the next decade."