AUSTRALIA, RELOADED

The focus of this August edition of the AGBriefings magazine is Australia, where there is certainly a lot to talk about. The country has shown strong resilience in the past few months. It has a strong local market that has been stimulated by government support, resulting in solid numbers, even up until the most recent state lockdowns. Nonetheless gaming has dominated the headlines for all the wrong reasons.

In our first article in this section, Jamie Nettleton, a partner with law firm Addisons, examines some of the implications from the findings of the Royal Commission enquiries against Crown and the potential shake out for Australia’s regulatory scene across the different states. We also bring you the thoughts of Paul Newson, a former New South Wales regulator, who says what’s needed is more power and funding for state regulators and the increased use of modern technologies to help avoid another Crown debacle.

On performance, gaming industry executive David Croft examines the Covid-19 related restrictions, and finds that while lower customer numbers and distancing has hurt gaming revenue, it hasn’t hurt yields as much as you would expect.

On the subject of new technology, we examine Australia’s first steps into cashless gaming. A club in New South Wales will be trialling digital wallets in the final quarter of this year. It will bring the gaming industry up to speed with almost all other forms of retail and entertainment, where digital payments are widespread. Problem gambling is always front and centre in Australia, where there is a strong focus on minimizing harm.

Our focus section also features research from Sydney’s Gambling Treatment and Research clinic, where researchers were given unprecedented access to nearly 40,000 customers’ account data from six leading sports and race wagering sites in Australia to monitor the efficacy of online tools to prevent gambling harm.

Finally, we look at the barriers for new entrants into the Australia market. Although it’s the sixth-largest in the world in terms of installed units, it’s dominated by just a few local players. Suppliers eager to gain access need to jump through a series of regulatory hoops as well as overcome reluctance from club managers, who prefer to stay with the tried and tested. We speak with Slovenia- based Spintec, which has managed to break in, about its experiences.

In these pages you’ll also find the most recent developments across the 22 gaming jurisdictions across Asia.

Starting with Macau, the Grand Lisboa Palace finally opened in Cotai, albeit softly. The massive property opened with 150 new-to-market gaming tables, all exclusively placed on the mass gaming floor and is expected to host another 118, relocated from other SJM operations.

Meanwhile, operators are turning their attention to opportunities on the Chinese Mainland as Macau steps up cooperation in the Greater Bay Area.

In turn, The Philippines is pushing on with efforts to develop its domestic online gambling market, with the regulator recently tweaking rules to lift a restriction on only accepting bets from VIP players.

In Vietnam, Ho Tram, the country’s first integrated resort has completed its rebranding, which was designed to bring in more international travellers and take greater advantage of the booming MICE space - the grand unveiling has been put on hold due to the Covid situation. Also in these pages the Supplier Special Report we bring you the latest endeavors from the industry’s suppliers from both the land based and online spheres.

Happy readings and stay safe!

On behalf of Asia Gaming Brief

Rosalind Wade & Luis Pereira

CO-FOUNDERS