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Macau Casinos Could Generate $53 Billion by 2022

The Macau gaming sector is on an extended winning streak, with the territory’s resorts posting 16 consecutive months of revenue gains through November. Now, analysts are saying they don’t expect that trend to end anytime soon.

According to data from Morgan Stanley, their analysts are predicting that 2017 is just the start of an upward trend for Macau, one that could run unabated for the next five years.

Analysts from the firm predict that the gross gaming revenue (GGR) for the city’s casinos could reach $53 billion by 2022.

VIP Play Up, Infrastructure Improvements Coming

The analysts cited several reasons for their bullish outlook. VIP play is once again up in Macau, with Morgan Stanley’s analysts expecting an 11 percent increase in VIP revenue year-over-year. The annual GGR total for the industry should be somewhere between $33 and $34 million, which will reflect overall growth of 18 to 20 percent.

Looking forward, analysts projected increased spending and visitation growth. They also took into account the fact that several infrastructure improvements will increase visitation as well, including the Hong Kong-Zhuahai Macao Bridge and Hengqin Island. Hengqin is three times the size of Macau, and could be a critical part of diversifying Macau’s offerings beyond gambling in the future.

Macau casinos have generated $30.4 billion in revenue through the first 11 months of 2017. That guarantees that this will be the first time in three years that annual revenues will surpass $30 billion.

License Renewal Still Creates Uncertainty

While the Morgan Stanley analysis will certainly come as welcome news for casino operators and their shareholders, there’s still plenty of volatility in the Chinese enclave’s gaming sector, as well as a lot of uncertainty over what the industry will look like by 2022.

One of the largest question marks remains the process for the renewal of gaming licenses. Each operator in the city has a different expiration date on their concession, but they all come up in either 2020 or 2022.

Authorities in Macau have been tight-lipped when it comes to the rules and regulations they might impose for companies who want to continue operating in the city, though they have said they plan to announce their intentions sometime in 2018.

Their requests may include asking operators to put more emphasis on non-gaming attractions. According to date released in November, attendance at non-government exhibitions is up more than eight percent this year, while meetings and conferences are up nearly 88 percent.

Meanwhile, research from brokerage Sanford C. Bernstein has suggested that the average non-gaming spending from Chinese visitors to Macau could double by 2025, though that would still lag behind what Chinese travelers spend in markets like Las Vegas.

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Popular slot provider EvoPlay increases its game portfolio with a brand new Chinese–themed online game – Emperor’s Tomb slot. Emperor’s Tomb slot is a simple 5 reel video game that leverages 9 paylines and features the story of Mausoleum of Qin Shi Huang, the Emperor of China. According to the legend the Tomb was protected by the Terracotta Army and, ...

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European Commission Draws Criticism over Closure of Online Gambling Infringement Cases

The European Commission announced on Thursday that it is dropping all infringement procedures against Member States in relation to online gambling. The institution explained that it has always tried to pursue its political priorities and this approach has been reflected in its treatment of infringement cases.

The Commission will thus focus its attention on cases it believes are more important in terms of “public and private interests” involved.

The regulation of online gambling has been an important topic in a number of European countries over the past several years. Many of these countries have been the subject of heavy criticism from the industry due to the restrictive measures adopted by them that oftentimes violate fundamental EU principles, including the freedom for the provision of services within the union’s borders.

There have been multiple occasions on which online gambling industry stakeholders have turned to the European Commission to interfere in the legalization and regulatory processes undertaken by EU member states.

In its Thursday statement, the Commission said that it would continue helping member states in their fight against unregulated gambling and in their efforts to protect vulnerable customers from falling victims to unauthorized operators. However, it will leave it to national courts to handle infringement cases as it believes they will be able to do this more efficiently.

Reactions to the European Commission’s Announcement

As it could be expected, the Thursday announcement came as a big blow to the online gambling industry. Criticism from industry representatives and international gambling trade associations mounted quite quickly. The European Gaming and Betting Association (EGBA) and the Remote Gambling Association were among the first to comment on EC’s decision.

EGBA’s Secretary General Maarten Haijer said in a statement that the Commission’s decision is unhelpful in the fight against unregulated online gambling. Mr. Haijer went on to say that the fact the Commission believes individual member states should resolve online gambling regulation challenges demonstrates “lack of understanding of the digital customer”.

Remote Gambling Association’s CEO Clive Hawkswood said in a separate statement that the Commission “has effectively abandoned” the online gambling sector and has thus “given a free pass” to regulatory regimes that are not compliant with EU treaties and laws. The official further pointed out that the control the EC had previously exercised had resulted in the creation of very efficient regulatory frameworks in a number of member states.

News about the Commission’s plan to close online gambling infringement cases first spread last month when it emerged that online gambling operators had been informed about the upcoming changes. On Thursday, the Commission confirmed its new stance and change of focus.

It is believed that its decision will have a particularly negative impact on international operators’ attempts to convince regulators and politicians in a number of member states that a successful gambling regulatory regime should combine a reasonable licensing system that allows foreign operators to bid for local licenses, an equally reasonable taxation system, and proper monitoring and responsible gambling tools that would protect players and the industry, as a whole, from violators.

Image credit: World IP Review, Twitter

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