The new owner of the Planet Hollywood resort has been pressuring the Privé and Living Room nightclubs to either pay their past-due rent and expenses or vacate the premises.

Harrah’s Entertainment officially assumed ownership of the Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino today. The Nevada Gaming Commission unanimously approved the takeover Thursday.

CARSON CITY – While unanimously approving the takeover of Planet Hollywood, the Nevada Gaming Commission today questioned whether Harrah’s is becoming too big in the Las Vegas market. Harrah’s will now have nine casinos with an estimated 25,000 employees in Southern Nevada.

Harrah’s received preliminary state approval to acquire Planet Hollywood today, with company executives telling gaming regulators they plan to cut the property’s workforce by less than 5 percent. The Gaming Control Board recommend approval of the deal, which calls for Harrah’s to acquire $306 million in debt.

Harrah’s Entertainment will take over the management of the Planet Hollywood resort on the Las Vegas Strip at midnight tomorrow as part of the company’s longer-range plan to buy the property, Harrah’s announced today. In an internal memo to employees today, Planet Hollywood owner Robert Earl said things would be “business as usual” during the transition.

The first 20 timeshare owners of Planet Hollywood’s PH Towers by Westgate checked in Friday morning, marking the first of several residential tower openings over the next few months.

A second executive from Planet Hollywood has joined the management team at the Tropicana, the company recently announced.

Harrah’s Entertainment Inc.’s chief executive officer confirmed to employees Wednesday that the company is interested in acquiring the Planet Hollywood resort on the Las Vegas Strip. In an internal e-mail, CEO Gary Loveman told employees of the company’s interest, Harrah’s spokeswoman Jacqueline Peterson said.

The four Las Vegas Strip resort casino supervisors and managers who were charged in an alleged plot to take phony jackpot payoffs netted a total of $2,201 in two days, according to police reports. Nevada State Gaming Control Board agents arrested the four men at Planet Hollywood after months of investigation and a tip from another employee who became suspicious, said David Salas, deputy enforcement officer for the board. The investigation is continuing, Salas said.