Gaming Operators Research Articles

MACAU 2.0: New Gaming Law and its Implications for Casino Market

This article discusses the new gaming law in Macau with emphasis on the critical aspects concerning the gaming operators, concession regime, and other regulatory obligations.1Thanks to the gaming liberalization commenced in 2001,2 Macau has experienced tremendous economic growth. The past two decades have seen the rapid development of large-scale integrated resorts, and Macau now ranks among the world's major gaming jurisdictions.3 Policy and regulatory challenges have also emerged along with the growth of the junket-driven VIP business in casinos.4 With the recent amendment of Law No. 16/2001 and the subsequent enactment of Law No. 16/2022, Macau has strengthened the legal underpinnings of its system of gaming regulation to oversee various groups involved in casinos and their industry practices. The present study is among the first to review the scope and impact of the revised gaming law, and associated managerial and operational implications for Macau casinos. Topics covered include policy directions, concession requirements, industry participants, gaming taxes, and fair business practices. This study could provide insights into the “Macau 2.0” project and how casinos are to be operated and managed over the next decade. This article could also provide practical guidance for policy makers charged with formulating gaming policy and regulation in other jurisdictions.

Macau Gaming Operators and the Pandemic: Corporate Social Responsibility is Changing

Macau Gaming Operators and the Pandemic: Corporate Social Responsibility is Changing

A Public Health Perspective on the Necessity of Regulation for the Video Gaming Industry

Video gaming is a widely participated and normalized activity in most global jurisdictions with its engagement continuing to increase. Currently, global gaming operators remain largely self-regulated with minimal government regulation.

Value co-creation through corporate social responsibility in a typical controversial industry: Evidence from Macao

ABSTRACT This paper explores the social values that are created through corporate social responsibility (CSR) disclosure in the gaming tourism industry, and how the industry players use CSR disclosure as a communication channel with their stakeholders. This research applies the content analysis method and collects data from annual reports, sustainability/social reports and corporate websites of all gaming operators in Macao from 2011 to 2017. The results are tied to the Macao government’s report on the gaming tourism industry and the CSR reporting guidelines promulgated by the industry’s regulatory bodies. Further analysis is conducted based on public statistical data to quantify the social value co-created by the industry players with their stakeholders. The findings show that sustainability of enterprises in the gaming tourism industry is created through the participation of various stakeholder groups, such as consumers/customers, government, community, suppliers and employees. This is one of the first studies on value co-creation via CSR disclosure based on companies in the gaming tourism industry, especially in a region under the “one country, two systems” regime. Furthermore, this study pioneers in exploring how companies use CSR reporting to enhance their image and restore social values from their gaming operations which represent a typical controversial sector integrated with tourism.

Revitalizing Keno: A Call for Pattern-Based Proposition Bets

Keno is a renowned game of chance offered by both lotteries and casinos throughout the world. The premise of the game is simple: a set of numbers is drawn at random and players are paid for selecting all or most of those numbers in advance. The mathematical foundation governing the odds and payouts for these basic wagers is elementary. More sophisticated bets, however, have associated probabilities which cannot be easily calculated by applying a manageable series of formulas. As a result, keno’s wagering menu has remained stagnant since the game’s widespread inception. Namely, proposition bets, now commonplace in virtually every other form of gaming, have never been developed for keno to any large degree. This is both unfortunate and surprising because keno is ideally suited for such an expansion. Unlike most other lottery-style games, keno highlights all drawn numbers on a rectangular grid, creating random visual patterns at the conclusion of each drawing. Creative new wagers based on these patterns are rigorously derived herein. These new additions should greatly enhance the game for both gamblers and enterprising gaming operators alike.

OPERATING IN A COVID-19 ENVIRONMENT FROM SHUT DOWN TO REOPENING: INDUSTRY INSIGHTS

OPERATING IN A COVID-19 ENVIRONMENT FROM SHUT DOWN TO REOPENING: INDUSTRY INSIGHTS

Junket Operation: Macao’s Growing Pains or Stimulants?

Two serious junket incidents happened in Macao in 2014 and 2015 which led to the significant drop in gross gaming revenue lasting for 27 consecutive months. In this paper, we investigate the importance of junket operation towards gaming companies’ financial performance and the interaction between the performance of corporate governance and junket operation. This study uses regression analysis to examine the relationships among corporate governance, financial performance, and junket promoters in Macao’s gaming tourism industry as well as the differences between those relationships under different economic conditions. The resultsreflect that when economy is booming, the corporate governance performance of gaming operators shows a decreasing trend. Under the control of corporate governance, the gaming operators tend to cooperate with junket promoters in a positive manner. In contrast, the junket operation brings negative impact on casino incomewithout the interaction of corporate governance, especially during booming economic periods. The result is aligned with the actual commission percentage over casino revenue, corporate governance score, and EPS of gaming operators. In a gaming sector, the junket operation towards casino profit and its interaction with corporate governance still overlooked in the academic study. This study not only fills in the research gap, but also provides constructive suggestions for Macao government to optimize the gaming inspection system and the rules on junket operations.

An original sin of casino hotels? Consequences of CSR misfit and the remedies

Casino hotels have long been stereotypically associated with negative images that induce a perceived misfit between their corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives and their core business as gaming operators. Building on the contingency theory of communication strategies, a multilevel design was adopted to investigate the negative consequences of CSR misfit on legitimacy through CSR authenticity. The firm-level moderating effects of two communicational cues, relational genuineness and marketing skepticism, are also examined. In a context of controversial industries, this study fills a research void by investigating corporate-level moderators that buffer the insidious influences of CSR misfit. It enriches the literature on the consequences of company–CSR coherence and elucidates the mediating role authenticity plays in the CSR implementation process. Practical implications for gaming operators are provided, and remedies that casino hotels can use to lessen the negative consequences of stigmatization are suggested.

AN INTERVIEW WITH MICHIGAN REPRESENTATIVE BRANDT IDEN WHO HAS SPEARHEADED THE STATE'S RECENT EFFORTS TO LEGALIZE ONLINE GAMING AND SPORTS BETTING

AN INTERVIEW WITH MICHIGAN REPRESENTATIVE BRANDT IDEN WHO HAS SPEARHEADED THE STATE'S RECENT EFFORTS TO LEGALIZE ONLINE GAMING AND SPORTS BETTING

The Future of Gaming Disorder Research and Player Protection: What Role Should the Video Gaming Industry and Researchers Play?

In May 2019, the World Health Organization (WHO) officially included gaming disorder (GD) in the eleventh revised edition of the International Classification of Diseases. Although the video game industry does not accept the WHO’s decision to class GD as a genuine mental disorder, there is now arguably an onus on the video game industry to develop and undertake responsible gaming initiatives aimed at player protection and harm minimization. The present paper argues that the gaming industry does not have to “reinvent the wheel” as there are many responsible gaming tools and initiatives used by the gambling industry that they could implement (e.g., limit-setting, self-exclusions, personalized messaging, pop-up reminders). The paper also argues that like the gambling industry, the video game industry has an abundance of high-quality data in the form of player account data (i.e., behavioral tracking data) and that researchers should work collaboratively with the gaming industry to use such data to learn more about the acquisition, development, and maintenance of gaming and GD among its clientele. It is also noted that while there is the need for such cooperation, the integrity of independent research should not be jeopardized nor undermined in this process. In addition to the clear need of establishing a scientific partnership between gaming operators and researchers, the paper also outlines several steps and recommendations to improve the overall quality of research in GD.

The Activities of Customs and Tax Control Service in the Field of Gambling Market

Summary Gambling activity is a multifaceted phenomenon. Gambling is a special field of business. The government authorities ascribe the right to a monopoly of this area of economic activity. The randomness and financial size of gambling foster the development of the grey market. In addition to the economic effect, the moral dimension of this type of activity is an extremely important aspect. The Customs and Tax Control Service supervises the functioning of the gambling market in Poland. Subject and purpose of work: The article is devoted to the issue of gambling. The aim of the research was to present the activities of the Customs and Tax Control Service in the field of legal and illegal gambling. Materials and methods: The study methods used were literature review, legal acts, documents of the Ministry of Finance, statistic data, using quantitive and systems analysis. Results: As a result, the directions of the Customs and Tax Control Service activities were identified in the field of gambling market control. Conclusions: The activities of Customs and Tax Control Service bring results in fighting illegal gambling, protecting players, and raising social awareness of the dangers of using services of illegal gaming operators.

Junket Operation, Macao’s Growing Pains or Stimulants?

Two serious junket incidents happened in Macao in 2014 and 2015 which led to the significant drop in gross gaming revenue lasting for 27 consecutive months. Therefore, this paper intends to investigate the importance of junket operation towards gaming companies’ financial performance and also its interaction with the quality of corporate governance. This study uses regression analysis to investigate the relationships among corporate governance, financial performance, and junket promoters in Macao’s gaming industry as well as the differences between those relationships under different economic conditions. The result reflects that when economy is growing, the corporate governance quality of gaming operators shows a decreasing trend. Under the control of corporate governance, the gaming operators tend to cooperate with junket promoters in a positive manner. In contrast, without the interaction of corporate governance, the junket operation brings negative impact on casino income, especially during booming economic periods. The result is consistent with the actual commission percentage over casino revenue, corporate governance score, and EPS for gaming operators. The extant literature mainly focuses on the relationship between corporate governance and firm’s financial performance. In gaming sector, the importance of junket operation towards casino profit and its interaction with corporate governance leaves much to be explored in the related academia. This study not only fills in the research gap, but also provides constructive suggestions for Macao government to improve the gaming inspection system as well as the rules on junket operations.

The Philippines’ China Pivot: Yield and Risks

Since the beginning of the administration of President Rodrigo Duterte, significant changes have been made to the Philippines’ foreign policy regime. Ties with the Peoples’ Republic of China have strengthened, while traditional allies like the USA and European Union have been antagonized. On a similar note Duterte has also allowed the operation of the Philippine Offshore Gaming Operators (POGOs), where various sources suggest that the majority of Chinese nationals now in the Philippines are presently employed. This analysis aims to provide a general assessment of the economic yield as well as the risks that has resulted from this foreign policy pivot of the Philippines. On one hand, increasing ties with China has resulted in an influx of tourism, investment, and infrastructure financing flows. For instance, based on the NEDA approved projects, China has been granted 12 infrastructure projects, the most awarded to other countries in 2018. However, negative effects have also been evident. In particular, the rising number of Chinese nationals - both legal and illegal - in the country has also raised concerns regarding our national security, both due to their disproportionate impacts on local property markets, and the potential dearth of employment benefits being extended to Filipinos. The balance of these emergent risks and benefits from the China rapprochement raises important questions on the sustainability of the gains from increasing ties with China, and underscore the need for continued monitoring through a combine economic and national security lens.

Determinants of gambling among male students in secondary schools in Imo State, Nigeria

ABSTRACTObjective: To assess the prevalence, pattern and determinants of gambling among students in secondary schools in Imo State, Nigeria.Method: This was a school based descriptive cross sectional survey carried out on 507 students in three male only urban Secondary Schools in Owerri. Data was collected using a pre-tested, semi-structured, self-administered sociodemographic questionnaire.Results: Two hundred and ninety (57.2%) had gambled at least once in their lifetime and out of these 225 (77.6%) had gambled in the last 12 months. Students greater than 18 years of age, (OR:3.12;1.27–7.71), whose friends engage in gambling, (OR:2.96; 1.95–4.49), parents gamble, (OR:4.80; 2.85–8.09, siblings gamble, (OR:3.16; 2.08–4.81), friends accept gambling, (OR:9.81; 4.73–20.37), and had problems on account of gambling (OR:9.81; 4.73–20.37) were more likely to currently practice gambling. Having friends that engage in gambling, gambling to be accepted by friends, parental gambling, problems with authorities on account of gambling were the predictors of current gambling [F = (7, 499) = 82.40, p < 0.05, R2 = 0.54)].Conclusion: Gambling is common among students. It is less likely among students aware of laws on underage gambling. There is an urgent need to implement measures targeted at awareness creation, regulating the activities of gaming centers and on-line gaming operators in the country.

Testing normative and self-appraisal feedback in an online slot-machine pop-up in a real-world setting.

Over the last few years, there have been an increasing number of gaming operators that have incorporated on-screen pop-up messages while gamblers play on slot machines and/or online as one of a range of tools to help encourage responsible gambling. Coupled with this, there has also been an increase in empirical research into whether such pop-up messages are effective, particularly in laboratory settings. However, very few studies have been conducted on the utility of pop-up messages in real-world gambling settings. The present study investigated the effects of normative and self-appraisal feedback in a slot machine pop-up message compared to a simple (non-enhanced) pop-up message. The study was conducted in a real-world gambling environment by comparing the behavioral tracking data of two representative random samples of 800,000 gambling sessions (i.e., 1.6 million sessions in total) across two conditions (i.e., simple pop-up message versus an enhanced pop-up message). The results indicated that the additional normative and self-appraisal content doubled the number of gamblers who stopped playing after they received the enhanced pop-up message (1.39%) compared to the simple pop-up message (0.67%). The data suggest that pop-up messages influence only a small number of gamblers to cease long playing sessions and that enhanced messages are slightly more effective in helping gamblers to stop playing in-session.

Issues and Impacts of Internet Gambling: The Case of Australia

Internet gambling has become of interest in recent years as studies on this craze have shown that it is has the potential to become extremely problematic. This article presents the benefits and disadvantages of Internet gambling to the community, to gaming operators, and to consumers in Australia. The article also demonstrates how other factors such as laws and regulations can affect the community and gaming operators. Research suggests that many of the advantages and disadvantages overlap, and what may be an advantage in one area can be a disadvantage in another. This article contributes to the understanding of the impact of one of the fastest developing gaming and leisure activities worldwide.

With or Without You? Building a Case for Further MICE (Meetings, Incentive Travel, Conventions, Exhibitions) Development in Macao

Macao's gross gaming revenues have increased considerably in the past decade since casino liberalization to more than 6 times that of the Las Vegas Strip (Nevada). Macao's global dominance in gaming revenues is in contrast to Macao's meetings, incentive travel, conventions, and exhibitions (MICE) development. With comparisons to the Las Vegas Strip model of a balance between gaming and conventions, Macao's MICE industry has not advanced in tandem with Macao's casino expansion. Macao's bolstering gaming revenues have presented little incentive for most gaming operators to move beyond, with conventions and exhibitions remaining on the fringes of hospitality offerings as a supporting unit to casino product positioning.As the Cotai Strip enters its second wave of integrated resort construction an increasing number of MICE, as well as other nongaming venues, will be included within the resort designs. A key vision behind casino liberalization, as well as an expressed wish by the Chinese authorities, is for Macao to diversify its tourism portfolio to include more MICE development. Examining Macao's casino tourism growth trajectory, this article suggests this limited growth in MICE could continue. Isolating key limiting factors, strategic actions are presented in the paper as approaches to further involve and potentially advance MICE development along Macao's Cotai Strip.

An Empirical Investigation of Theoretical Loss and Gambling Intensity

Many recent studies of internet gambling-particularly those that have analysed behavioural tracking data-have used variables such 'bet size' and 'number of games played' as proxy measures for 'gambling intensity'. In this paper it is argued that the most stable and reliable measure for 'gambling intensity' is the 'theoretical loss' (a product of total bet size and house advantage). In the long run, the theoretical loss corresponds with the Gross Gaming Revenue generated by commercial gaming operators. For shorter periods of time, theoretical loss is the most stable measure of gambling intensity as it is not distorted by gamblers' occasional wins. Even for single bets, the theoretical loss reflects the amount a player is willing to risk. Using behavioural tracking data of 100,000 players who played online casino, lottery and/or poker games, this paper also demonstrates that bet size does not equate to or explain theoretical loss as it does not take into account the house advantage. This lack of accuracy is shown to be even more pronounced for gamblers who play a variety of games.

Segmenting slot machine players: a factor‐cluster analysis

PurposeSlot machines and other machine gaming generate between 65 percent and 90 percent of a US casino's revenue. This article aims to examine the motivations, behaviors, and preferences of slot machine customers, and to develop market segments.Design/methodology/approachThe study's objectives include: understanding the demographic, gambling motivation, and gambling behavioral characteristics of slot machine players; identifying important reasons for choosing one slot machine game over another; examining player attitudes and behaviors pertaining to progressive machines; and investigating player desire for theme‐based games. This was accomplished through an online survey of slot machine players.FindingsProfiles of slot machine players are developed and the slot players are segmented into four clusters that explain motivations and game preferences.Practical implicationsThis article fills in some of the gaps in understanding the gambling behavior of slot players. This study can help gaming machine manufacturers design new products and features to serve existing machine gaming customers and to attract new customers. Casino and other gaming operators can use this information not only to select the right types of machines to provide on‐site, but also to develop advertising and promotions to attract and retain new and existing customers for slot machines and other types of gaming machines.Originality/valueThis is the first published study that segments slot machine players from a marketing perspective and identifies their preferences, behaviors, and demographic groupings.

Corporate and social performance links in the gaming industry

The study assesses how community stakeholders perceive the gaming industry and individual operator's corporate social performance (CSP) in the world gaming capital, Macao. The study also examines the relationship between CSP and organizational performance. The results show that community stakeholders perceive that the gaming industry as a whole contributes mostly to business and employment opportunities as well as to community development, but least to environmental protection and responsible gambling. The results also show that better performance on these corporate social initiatives leads to better financial performance and more favorable employment choice. The study provides a social responsibility performance model that represents gaming operators' CSP on a ‘radar’ chart. The results may be useful in helping gaming destinations, practitioners, and scholars to gain insights on the current state of CSP both in developing gaming regions and in the fast-growing gaming industry.