Stricter monitoring of online gaming in place by March

Where the previously unregulated internet casino industry was once able to cheat the government of its rightful share of revenues, a new computer system will soon allow the state-owned Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (Pagcor) to monitor online betting outfits in real time and provide data on how much they truly make and how much fees the state should collect.

According to Pagcor chair Andrea Domingo, the state gaming regulator was set to activate by next month a “third-party audit service” that would—apart from providing a fuller picture of the revenue stream of Philippine offshore gaming operator (Pogo) firms—also boost the confidence of foreign bettors in the quality of locally domiciled online casinos.

“This system will be in place by March, and it will prevent cheating in the revenue reporting of Pogos and their service providers,” she said in a text message, explaining that the monitoring software was now in the final stages of integration with the country’s 45-odd online gaming licensees.

The monitoring software is a key element that will double Pagcor’s revenues from online gaming from P3 billion in 2017 to an estimated P6 billion this year.

“It is important to note that the audit service provider will not get paid if their service does not yield increases in revenues,” Domingo said.

The Pogo scheme —where only foreign bettors are allowed to play in Philippine-based online casino sites —was conceptualized under Domingo’s term as Pagcor chair to enable the government to capture a greater share of the growing online gaming pie that was previously unregulated and unchecked by national authorities.

In the past, the Cagayan Export Zone Authority hosted more than 200 online gaming operations at its special economic zone and freeport in Aparri, Cagayan. The scheme brought the government only P56 million in yearly revenue, in contrast to the the sharp uptick in the state’s share when Pagcor stepped in to regulate the lucrative business.

“The foreign bettors will be more confident of getting fair play with this system, and they know that that they will be protected against fraud,” the Pagcor chief said.

She explained that, in the past, some “fly-by-night” operators would simply close shop and “disappear” whenever they are unable to pay clients’ winnings —something that will no longer happen under the new system, which will even allow regulators to “lock out” any Pogo operator found to have violated operating procedures.