Following the current decision made by the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp (PAGCOR) to suspend the concerns of all online-gambling licenses with immediate effect, it is in fact a disturbing period for a few online gambling operators based in the region. The freeze up was applied on 5th July 2016 by Andrea D. Domingo, the newly-elected chairman of PAGCOR, under the directives of the Philippines’ newly appointed president, Rodrigo Duterte that online gambling have to stop.
The stock prices on large e-gaming firms took a drop following Duterte’s inclusion of gambling to his list of stamping out drugs in the country.
Leisure & Resort World (LR&W) dropped to about 8.9% to a 5-month low on the Philippine Stock Exchange. Unsurprisingly both LR&W and Philweb failed to comment on the pronouncement.
Panic Play
Government data reports reveal that at the time of Ninoy Aquino’s administration, a key surge in gambling cafes, and internet-based table, card, slot machine, lottery, bingo and video poker type of games took place all through the country.
The newly-elected chairman of PAGCOR stated that “For now, the issuance of licenses for these game types will freeze, and thereafter appraise the president’s statement.” The shares of the gaming operator PhilWeb Corp. on Friday dropped drastically by about 32% – the lowest of its kind in virtually 14 months.
PhilWeb Corp. runs 8,977 gaming terminals and 277 e-game centre catering to more than 90,000 members. Data from the government reveals that 12,000 e-bingo devices are presently in use all through the Philippines, increasing greatly from 2,160 at the time Aquino first assume office. Other gaming gadgets like gambling terminals increased from 4,662, six years ago to 7,000.
From now till 2020, the international online gambling marketplace is believed to witness a compound yearly growth rate of about 11%, based on the analysis released by the research group Technavio.
The Bigger Picture
The international online gambling market is presently value at about $37 billion annually, as approximately 85 nations worldwide have opted to legalise online gambling, based on the statement released by the American Gaming Association.
Growth in the UK
The largest online gambling market in Europe was owned by the UK. Based on the latest analysis, there are over 18 million internet gambling accounts in the United Kingdom alone, spread over a number of domains. Websites, such as madaboutbingo.com, have been able to tap into this explosive growth and have seen online traffic spike in recent years.
This isn’t a new trend either – based on a statement made by the UK Gambling Commission, online slots play increased by 328% between 2005 and 2009, while poker and table games grew by 26 and 52 percent, respectively.
