Evolving technologies pose threats to legal gaming industry

An official of the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) said the local gaming industry must recognize that technological advances are fueling an unstable environment where illegal operators can thrive while legitimate businesses struggle.

Speaking at the inaugural Asia-Pacific Regulators’ Forum on Thursday, 11 September at the Newport World Resorts, PAGCOR vice president for Human Resource and Development Group Dr. Angelito Domingo said a three-pronged gaming education framework can help address the problem.

“There are three forces — technology as the tool, the criminal divide as the motive, and social impact as the public outcry — that create a perfect storm which threatens the integrity of the legal gaming industry,” he said.

Gaming education framework

Dr. Domingo said PAGCOR is currently implementing a gaming education framework focused on player education, operator training, and public outreach to counter growing social concerns associated with illegal online gambling.

“This framework envisions stronger collaboration among gaming and financial regulators, licensed operators, law enforcement, non-government organizations, the community, and the players themselves,” he said.

Accessibility of technology

Dr. Domingo noted that the exponential rise of online gaming in the Philippines is driven by the accessibility of technology and Filipinos’ heavy reliance on mobile devices.

“Also, a lot of people are not aware of the financial implications when they engage in gambling. They only realize the impact of what they did when it’s already too late. They could have done better by being educated at the onset,” he said.

Player education

“Player education should center on responsible play and awareness of gambling’s financial and psychological risks, which we are currently doing,” he said.

“Operator training, on the other hand, should involve mandatory certification to ensure that frontline staff can identify and respond to problem gamblers,” he said.

Public outreach, meanwhile, requires unified campaigns, clear messaging, and active collaboration with NGOs, financial regulators, and law enforcement agencies which PAGCOR is also presently doing, he said.

Meanwhile, PAGCOR assistant vice president Jessa Mariz Fernandez, during the Senate Committee on Games and Amusement hearing on Tuesday, 16 September, said PAGCOR logged a 40 to 50 percent income loss from online gambling after delinking payment links from major e-wallet providers.

The drop was recorded in the first two weeks after e-wallet platforms such as GCash and PayMaya cut their links to online gambling websites.

“We confirm that there was an effect. This is based on the income for two weeks after the delinking. We experienced around 40 to 50 percent decline in income,” Fernandez said in Filipino.

“The information came from our accounting data and the Electronic Gaming Licensing Department,” she added.

Asked by Senator Erwin Tulfo about its policy preference, Fernandez stressed its support for the strict regulation of online gambling rather than a total ban.