A former governor of the Nagano prefecture Yasuo Tanaka is intending to run in the Yokohama mayoral election, constituting as the seventh person to run in the mayor, taking over for incumbent Fumiko Hayashi.
It is understood that he will not be supporting the establishment of an IR in the city.
“Attracting integrated resort facilities (IR) including casinos is not feasible because the citizens are against it,” he said, speaking to Kanagawa Shinbun.
Indian casino operator Delta Corp is set to resume its casino operations in Sikkim from today, whilst its subsidiaries in Goa will remain closed until July 12.
“The Government of Sikkim has allowed reopening of the Casinos in the State subject to the safety norms being followed. Further the company …will follow all the safety norms laid down by the state in this regard,” said the company in a filing on Monday.
In regards to Goa, Delta said it would be “unable to estimate the quantum of potential losses on account of this temporary closure and the pandemic at this time.”
An estimated 30 million passengers are transported on nearly 300 cruise ships per year, bringing diverse populations into close proximity for many days.
It’s a mix that the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) said presents a unique combination of health concerns when it comes to communicable diseases.
“Travelers from diverse regions brought together in the often crowded, semi-enclosed environments onboard ships can facilitate the spread of person-to-person, foodborne, or waterborne diseases.”
Unsurprisingly, when a highly contagious pathogen made its way into our world in late 2019, the cruise ship industry suffered tremendous damage to its reputation. More than 44 cruise ships had passengers and crew positive for covid-19, which eventually ground the entire industry to a standstill in 2020.
However, the cruise industry is already adapting to a post-pandemic new normal and is already in the designing stages of new cruise liners which will aim to significantly mitigate the chance of disease communication – whether it’s another form of the coronavirus or a new contagion.
Our infographic today summarises some of the key features of these new cruise liners – some of which have been detailed by Colin Au of Genting Hong Kong’s new Universal class of cruise liners, set to launch in 2025.
Some of these features will likely have a place in land-based venues that are looking to take a page from the cruise industry. If you are looking for the latest in disease-prevention technology, one should keep an eye on cruises.
Lotte Tour Development, operator of the new Jeju Dream Tower casino, has announced that it will be expanding its casino staff by about two hundred additional employees for the purpose of ensuring smooth casino management.
Recruitment fields include workers on the casino floor, marketing, security, IT specialists, F&B, accounting, gift shop staff, and others.
Jinhee Kim, Lotte Tour Development’s executive vice president of human resources, stated, “With the operation of an additional 850 rooms in the second half of the year, we have decided to secure additional manpower, focusing on local talent, for the smooth operation of the foreigner-only casino, which has been performing better than expected since its opening.”
Since opening on the 11th of last month until the 4th of this month, Jeju Dream Tower Casino has been receiving an average of 300 visitors per day, and has recorded over KRW5 billion (US$4.4 million) in sales.
The company is accepting applications for the various positions offered until the end of this month through the official website of Jeju Dream Tower.
Separately, Lotte Tourism Development has recruited 58 participants to participate in its summer internship program through the recommendations from four universities in the province.
Last month, it was reported that the Jeju government is planning to officially propose to the government a “travel bubble” aimed at attracting foreign tourists to the island, which has seen its visitor numbers plummet by 89 percent. Should such a project go forward, it could bring more patrons to the foreigner-only casinos on the island.
Good morning.
In Australia, a first true cashless gaming trial is set to go underway, led by gaming supplier Aristocrat along with the Wests Group in Newcastle. Being the first of its kind in the country, eyes will be on how the technology will assist AML and responsible gaming efforts which have been front and center in Australian media over recent months.
In Vietnam, hoteliers from Ho Tram, Danang and other regions are expecting domestic tourism recovery to begin from the end of July, after a recent wave of Covid-19 infections battered the industry.
We also take a look at Singapore’s approach to reopening, and determine that the rest of Asia will not have an easy time as the island city-state, due to low vaccination rates.
Finally, Nagasaki officials are concerned about Japan’s new security legislation around sensitive infrastructure – which could impact its prospective IR in Sasebo City, home to one of the nation’s most important naval bases.
Hotel and tourism experts in Ho Tram, Nha Trang, Cam Ranh, and Da Nang in Vietnam are expecting to see gradual recovery of its tourism industry starting from the end of July, with tourists mainly flowing from Hanoi for the long summer holidays. The country is also reportedly mulling reducing the isolation period for fully vaccinated travelers and is considering piloting a program that would allow tourists into certain regions with no quarantine requirements whatsoever, similar to the trial that is being run in Phuket as of July 1.
The recent announcement by authorities in Singapore of “learning to live with COVID-19” calls into question how nations are handling their responses to the pandemic. Initially focused on a zero transmission model, a recent article in the Straits Times indicates that the city-state’s Trade Minister is calling for citizens to “get on with their lives.” However, it’s a notion that could be hard to replicate in nations with lower vaccination rates.
Prefectural and city officials in Nagasaki have expressed concerns about the impact of Japan’s new security legislation on the prospective IR, but they have no immediate remedy to ease their concerns. The new legislation was pushed by the far right of Japan’s political spectrum, and it mandates the government to establish some kind of special surveillance on land purchases and land use by foreigners within a certain proximity to sensitive infrastructure, including military bases. Since the home of the prospective IR—Sasebo City—is also home to one of the nation’s most important naval bases, it clearly falls within the scope of the legislation.
Digital gaming wallets are finally making their first inroads in Australia after years of stakeholder debate, with Australia’s first digital gaming wallet trial set to take place in an NSW club in the final quarter of 2021. On the surface, it’s a technology that could bring Australia’s gaming sector in line with virtually all other sectors, allowing customers to use their digital wallets to supplement cash and cashless technologies. Until now, players have been required to bring physical cash into gaming venues, or onto player cards or tickets which are then loaded onto the machine. On a deeper level, this cashless technology is set to bring responsible gaming and anti-money laundering (AML) capabilities out of the dark ages.
The well-known content provider in the iGaming industry— Pragmatic Play will continue to expand its footprint in emerging markets worldwide. The increasing acceptance of iGaming has resulted in a gradual shift in attitude toward regulation, with more and more markets taking an approach to deliver legislative roadmaps that will drive business in a period of hyper-growth.
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Australian-listed Crown Resorts says it expects to report EBITDA after closure costs of between $90-100 million for the full year ended June 30, 2021.
It also expects to record a statutory loss after tax for the year.
Crown said its results were significantly impacted by the Covid-19 pandemic which led to property closures for extended periods of time as well as covid-19 operating restrictions, including capacity limits and physical distancing protocols.
Looking ahead to the 2022 financial year, Crown expects impacts to arise from: more Covid-19 related closures; regulatory processes, which will lead to higher legal, consulting, and associated costs; more investment in resourcing and capability, particularly in its Financial Crime and Compliance and Responsible Gambling functions; and an ongoing review of its top-end local players that are resulting in an exit of a number of customer relationships.
“Crown continues to monitor and respond to the impacts of the current challenging operating environment. Crown is also undertaking a review of the potential gaming tax underpayment recently referred to in the Victorian Royal Commission and will update the market once Crown’s review is complete.”
Hotel and tourism experts in Ho Tram, Nha Trang, Cam Ranh, and Da Nang in Vietnam are expecting to see gradual recovery of its tourism industry starting from the end of July, with tourists mainly flowing from Hanoi for the long summer holidays.
The revelations come from an online networking event organized by Vietnam Hospitality Networking with more than 130 attendees, which was hosted by Mr. Mauro Gasparotti, Director of Savills Hotels Asia Pacific, which was covered by local media.
During the discussion speakers highlighted the importance of attracting domestic tourists as the driving force of economic recovery in the country’s hotel and travel industry.
Before the last wave of the coronavirus, Vietnam was expected to serve around 80 million domestic tourists in 2021, which would have been a 42 percent rise from 2020, and the same levels of that of 2019.
The country is also reportedly considering reducing the isolation period for fully vaccinated travelers and is considering piloting a program that would allow tourists into certain regions with no quarantine requirements whatsoever, similar to the trial that is being run in Phuket as of July 1.
Under the “Phuket Sandbox,” people wishing to visit the island without quarantine will need to show proof of vaccination and a negative covid-19 test within 72 hours prior to arrival. Additionally, they will be required to install a covid tracing app.
Digital gaming wallets are finally making their first inroads in Australia after years of stakeholder debate, with Australia’s first digital gaming wallet trial set to take place in an NSW club in the final quarter of 2021.
On the surface, it’s a technology that could bring Australia’s gaming sector in line with virtually all other sectors, allowing customers to use their digital wallets to supplement cash and cashless technologies. Until now, players have been required to bring physical cash into gaming venues, or onto player cards or tickets which are then loaded onto the machine.
On a deeper level, this cashless technology is set to bring responsible gaming and anti-money laundering (AML) capabilities out of the dark ages.
Nevada, which rivals NSW as the world’s biggest state-wide EGM market, finally made this step last year during the pandemic by approving the use of cashless wagering technology in casinos. The Covid-19 pandemic generated real concerns about physical bills being a vector for the virus.
On the other hand, Australia’s gaming industry push for cashless appears to come from a responsible gaming and AML front, issues that have become the centerpiece of discussion amid ongoing inquiries into Crown Resorts’ practices across the country.
Craig Butler, director of commercial strategy at Aristocrat Australia has been chosen to lead the digital wallet trial, which will take place at Wests Group New Lambton venue, in Newcastle NSW. Trial preparations will commence in August and the trial itself will occur in the final quarter of 2021.
“This is an exciting development for the industry. As you know, consumers are rapidly moving toward cashless and mobile payments. This is a global frictionless trend that has only been accelerated by the Covid-19 pandemic with patrons seeking cleaner, contactless payment solutions,” according to Butler in an interview with Asia Gaming Brief.
“We know that governments and regulators are increasingly expecting cashless gaming to support industry integrity and stamp out any illegal activity, as well as offer new responsible gameplay functionality to patrons. Aristocrat believes that facilitating cashless payments is a key pillar that will underpin the ongoing sustainability of our industry.”
One of the key questions that will be answered by the trial is around digital wallets’ impact on a patron’s gambling behavior. Specifically, whether there is any exacerbation of gambling harm among other considerations.
“While a trial research scope is yet to be determined, we believe this will be a factor considered by the regulator in making its decision on whether the digital payment solution is suitable for approval in NSW,” Butler explains.
The cornerstone of the digital wallet technology used in the trial is Aristocrat’s PRIME Mobile system, which allows players to set up gaming limits and determine the venue response for when limits are reached.
Thresholds can also be established for session length, frequency of play, the amount spent or won, total bets, bet size, and staff intervention can be enabled.
Messages and push notifications are sent to the patron via the venue’s gaming management system. Credit cannot be used, there are limits on funds transfers to the player’s digital wallet, and topping-up on the gaming floor is not permitted. Players can also self-exclude using the app. Additionally, PRIME Mobile structure provides a quarantine wallet to allow players to prevent funds from being used for EGM play for a period of 24 hours.
It is a technology that gaming futurist Earle Hall, CEO of AxesNetwork says is imperative for responsible gaming.
“Responsible gaming is a fallacy without Know Your Client (KYC) empowerment. Anonymous responsible gaming policies only lock the barn door once the horse has been stolen,” said Hall in an interview with AGB last month.
“With KYC, responsible gaming is real, quantifiable, and traceable. Think cashless smart cards. There are a number of modern jurisdictions that already require players to be verified against some form of national identification. Once the player or patron has been identified, they are issued a player’s card and then can play. Then the fun starts.”
Thus a clear question remains. Why has it taken so long for Australia and other jurisdictions like it to take on digital wallets in gaming venues?
Paul Newson, principal at Senet Advisory and a former deputy secretary of the Department of Liquor and Gaming noted that Australia saw an active push for cashless between 2018 and 2019 – leading to the Liquor and Gaming NSW establishing a joint Technology Working Group to properly examine and inform advice around merits and options.
Though, he says that some regulators have been either resistant or uninterested in the technology.
“Perhaps concerns around the risk of aggravating gambling harm by removing existing friction and controls involved with accessing cash in venues has made regulators hesitant,” said Newson.
“Ideally it would provide the majority of players increased convenience and the discretion in their betting decisions, however, would also provide means to set voluntary controls or limits as well as mandatory threshold and flags for anomalous profile or betting behavior etc,” said Newson. “To my mind, it wouldn’t displace the responsible gambling role of attendants at venues, but would enhance monitoring and be alert to much richer data and flags than simple observation by an RCG training attendant.”
Newson has been a strong advocate for greater funding and more innovative technology to be at the disposal of gaming regulators in Australia.
Butler believes that governments and regulators are increasingly encouraging cashless gaming to address responsible gameplay, money laundering, and compliance concerns.
“Bringing forward options to support cashless gaming which address these regulatory considerations is therefore important to ensuring the long sustainability of the industry in Australian markets,” he said.
Looking ahead, Butler believes that the adoption of digital payments for gaming will increase in line with payment trends in Australian society.
“Australians are fast adopters of digital technology including payment and the use of digital wallets is commonplace… Whilst we believe cashless and existing card-based cashless technologies will continue to be utilized by players, we do see some real potential benefits for players adopting mobile technology.”
The Chief Operating Officer of Malaysia’s RGB International is making a further disposal of shares, selling off 500,000 ordinary shares.
No specific reason for the sale was given in the company’s announcement, but the company COO, Steven Datuk Lim Tow Boon, made a similar disposal in May, also of 500,000 shares.
The moves come as RGB tries to return its stock price to the highs seen in 2019, which crashed in March of 2020 amongst the effects of the pandemic.
RGB recorded a loss of some MYR4.4 million ($1.1 million) during the first quarter of the year, a 200 percent decline from the MYR4.6 million in profit in the same quarter of 2020.
Amongst the downturn in customer volume at land-based casinos, the company recently announced that it was exploring a “remote gaming solution”, targeting operators of land-based casinos.
The recent announcement by authorities in Singapore of “learning to live with COVID-19” calls into question how nations are handling their responses to the pandemic.
Initially focused on a zero transmission model, a recent article in the Straits Times indicates that the city-state’s Trade Minister is calling for citizens to “get on with their lives”.
However, it’s a notion that could be hard to replicate in nations with lower vaccination rates.
Singapore has had a solid vaccination program, with over 2.14 million citizens receiving their second dose of vaccine as of last Friday. In a population of 5.7 million, at least 5.63 million people have received at least one shot of vaccination. Reuters data shows an average of 10 people infected per day, just 1 percent of the peak.
Compared to the Philippines for example, only 5 percent of the population has been given a vaccine. In Australia, only 8 percent have been fully vaccinated.
Thus Singapore has been able to progress more quickly towards a return to normality, while Australia and the Philippines are still coming to terms with how to handle new outbreaks.
In the Philippines, president Rodrigo Duterte has extended the general community quarantine in Metro Manila to July 15th, with “some restrictions”.
This quarantine also covers Manila’s Entertainment City zone, housing the region’s casino resorts.
In the Philippines, at the current rate of vaccination it will take 102 days to administer enough doses for another 10 percent of the population, making it highly likely that further lockdowns will be implemented in the future.
Australia, meanwhile, is undergoing a new wave of COVID infections, causing casino and hotel closures in primary cities such as Sydney until at least July 9th.
Singapore doesn’t currently have a limit on capacity in casinos, but some limits have been set for entertainment and retail zones.
Australia is, however, planning four phases to transition out of the pandemic, but details of the later stages of the plan, unlike in Singapore, are still vague.
This includes what percentage of the population it requires to be vaccinated in order to return to normality.
Thus, while operators across Asia may be keen to ease restrictions, they will continue to be dependent on how quickly federal and state governments implement their vaccination policies, and what benchmarks they set for reopening.
Asia Gaming Brief (AGB) is a news, market intelligence, events, and networking company focused on Asia Pacific’s rapidly expanding gaming industry.
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