24/7 online bingo operator not affected by Pogo ban

INQUIRER FILE PHOTO

Digital gaming company DigiPlus Interactive Corp. assured players and stakeholders it is not going away following the blanket ban order on Philippine offshore gaming operators (Pogos).

In a statement on Wednesday, the gaming operator stressed its operations remained unaffected since it does not fall under the category of a Pogo.

READ: Marcos: ‘All Pogos are banned!’

During his State of the Nation Address last Monday, President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. made a grand proclamation of halting all Pogo operations in the country after being linked to crime syndicates engaged in human trafficking, money laundering and online scams, among others.

“DigiPlus is not a Pogo or an Internet Gaming Licensee as defined under Philippine laws,” DigiPlus president Andy Tsui said.

The company explained it was a digital gaming company required to have physical branches for operations, unlike Pogos which only cater to online gambling.

In addition, DigiPlus said it had secured different licenses to operate traditional bingo, electronic bingo games, electronic gaming services, sports betting, specialty games and poker.

“As such, local gaming enthusiasts need not worry. Fans of DigiPlus’ products will be glad to know that their top-of-the-line platforms will continue running without interruption, unaffected by the recent presidential announcement,” Tsui said.

DigiPlus runs 24/7 online bingo streaming platform BingoPlus, which is supported by over 140 physical sites across the country.

READ: Pagcor: Pogo ban covers legal gaming hubs or IGLs

It also operates ArenaPlus, an online sports betting platform that livestreams local and international sporting events, including the conferences of the Philippine Basketball Association. Other games offered are Color Game, BingoPlus Poker and TongitsPlus.

Tsui earlier told the media they were anticipating to attract an additional 5 million to 10 million registered users this year with the launch of more games and its diversification into digital content portfolio. DigiPlus currently has about 20 million players.

The company has earmarked P1.5 billion to P2 billion this year for capital expenditures, half of which will be invested in technology and game development. Tsui also said they were looking into making digital content like movies and sports news available on their platform as a value-added service.

With projected growth in player base, Digiplus estimates its revenues to shoot up by 10 percent to 20 percent this year.