Inside Asian Gaming

IAG OCT 2019年10月 亞博匯 22 Sihanoukville has seen a construction boom on the back of an explosion in the number of gaming licenses being issued. 發放賭牌數量激增致使西哈努克迎來建築熱潮。 COVER STORY S ome see Cambodia’s declared online gaming ban and the Rodrigo Duterte government’s review of its Philippines Offshore Gaming Operator (POGO) licensing regime as the beginning of the end for online casinos in Asia. But recent changes in response to pressure from mainland China may instead mark the end of the beginning for the segment. Experts believe that online play, particularly live dealer online (LDO) streaming from POGO licensees’ studios in Makati, or from casino floors in Cambodia, along with the explosive growth of resort construction in Sihanoukville, became impossible for authorities to ignore. Cambodia has declared it will outlaw LDOs and other forms of online play when current licenses expire on 31 December, but the Philippines appears unlikely to follow suit. Going forward, governments that want to reap the investment, employment and revenue benefits of online gaming may move toward greater oversight. More stringent regulation and taxation could address the concerns of critics while providing a more stable platform for growth. It’s also likely, insiders say, that current gray market forms of online gaming – approved by an operator’s jurisdiction but not necessarily legal in the player’s location – will find ways to persist, albeit more quietly. “GROWTH THROES” “We all knew this day was coming. The only way to control it is by regulation,” FootballBet.com Chairman