Your Daily Asia Gaming eBrief: Video gamers the next generation of gamblers

Wednesday 30th of March 2022

Good Morning. The gambling industry has long seen opportunity in the video gaming cohort, and recent research seems to suggest that they may be on the right track. However, it's both an opportunity and a risk for the gaming industry. Our deep-dive today looks at some of the problem gambling implications that have been identified in the convergence between video games and gambling.

What you need to know

Macau operators’ gas tanks “are running low” after two years of Covid, with the companies reporting $800 million in losses per quarter and $250 million in cash flow leakage: MS.
Law firm Slater and Gordon has filed a class-action lawsuit against Australia’s Star Entertainment, saying investors have a strong case against the operator.
Star Entertainment established a backchannel to transfer at least $76 million from Macau to Australia after its own bank account in the city was shut for non-compliance reasons.

On the radar

Osaka IR wins approval from city council despite ground cleanup concerns.
Macau average occupancy rate reached 48.7% in Feb.
Mohegan appoints Raymond Lin as chief legal officer.

What the papers say

Cambodia was accused of weaponizing Covid in striking Naga worker suppression.
Macau Golden Group to end all VIP gaming from March 30th.
India to establish cryptocurrency tax from April 1.

AGB Intelligence

DEEP DIVE

video games, next generation of gamblers

Video gamers the next generation of gamblers

It’s no secret that more video games have been employing gambling-like mechanics across their titles – loot boxes, random weapon skin rewards, and casino games played for “fun”, being just a few examples. Over the last few years, there has been increasing evidence pointing towards a link between video gamers and real-money gambling, a revelation that could be seen as both an opportunity and a risk for the global gambling industry.

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