E-games soon to overtake physical casinos – PAGCOR

MANILA, Philippines — Electronic games in the Philippines are expected to overtake land-based casinos in terms of revenues in the coming years as technology continues to evolve in the local gambling industry.

In a recent briefing, Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (PAGCOR) chairman and CEO Alejandro Tengco said e-gaming has substantially brought up the agency’s revenues and with still more room to grow.

Over the next few years, Tengco said e-gaming has the potential to catch up and even overtake physical casinos.

“There’s a possibility because of the younger market and there are people who would like to not be seen (playing in casinos),” Tengco said.

“And of course, there’s the issue of convenience that you can place a bet at the comfort of your home or offices without having to go to a physical casino,” he said.

While PAGCOR regulates all games of chance and issues licenses to all gaming operations within the Philippines, it has yet to have its own online casino.

For now, its E-Games Licensing Department looks after traditional bingo games, e-bingo, e-casino, sports betting, specialty games and e-billiards.

As of end-2023, there are 23 licensed gaming system service providers that offer e-games. Among the most common ones are Bet88, OkBet, Instawin and Gamezone.

There are also nine more authorized online and remote gaming platforms including Bingo Plus, Solaire Online, Casino Plus, Thunderbird Online Casino, Okada Online Casino and Winford, among others.

“The market is big and there is so much potential. Technology continues to reinvent the wheel,” Tengco said.

“And this is not just in the Philippines. The worldwide trend is very clear, there is a shift from traditional land-based casinos to online gaming,” he said.

Despite the expected potential from e-games, the PAGCOR chief noted that traditional casinos are here to stay.

“Traditional land-based casinos will always stay because there are still people who would want to experience and go for the actual excitement,” Tengco said.

To take advantage of the growth in e-gaming, PAGCOR will proceed with its plan to start its own online casino to boost market growth, provide more convenient gaming experience, and encourage healthy competition.

PAGCOR targets that Casino Filipino, its chain of 43 casinos, will have its online platform by the second half of the year.

Tengco emphasized that the online casino will “bring several benefits and opportunities such as increased revenue, extended reach and market expansion, cost efficiency, and enhanced customer engagement.”