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a consultant for the NOVOMATIC Group
on July 1.
TAB Confirms Talks
with Australia’s Tabcorp
New Zealand Racing Board spokeswoman
Kate Gourdie said the state-owned bet-
ting agency is in discussions with three
organizations, including Tabcorp, about
“automating” its fixed-odds betting busi-
ness. The NZ Racing Board runs the TAB
which has a monopoly over sports betting.
Tabcorp is a based in Australia, where is it
is valued at A$3.6 billion, and employs more
than 3000 staff. The Australian Financial
Review reported it was looking at New
Zealand’s TAB after the failure of several
deals at home. A partnership could see
it take over the management of the TAB’s
fixed-odds betting business. Tabcorp’s “vast
experience” in fixed-odds could make it
a strong partner for the TAB which was “well
run but ripe for innovation,” the AFR re-
ported. The Racing Board cautioned in its
2016 “statement of intent” that its costs were
rising faster than its revenues as customers
switched to less profitable, online, fixed-odds
betting, and that was “not sustainable.” It
explicitly opened the door to “outsourcing
or partnering,” saying that could lower costs
and enhance its service. The Government
has been tightening laws to discourage Kiwis
from using overseas online betting services
and that
“showed pretty clearly the Govern-
ment’s intention,”
he said.
Thailand: New Lottery Bill
to Introduce Online Lottery and
Sales Licenses for Vendors
Danske Spil’s CEO HC Madsen
Stepping Down in April 2017
OPAP Splits Chairman
& CEO Positions
Mr. Ziegler will continue to serve as Execu-
tive Chairman of the Board of Directors.
Mr. Damian Cope is new CEO
Regulated Online Poker Delayed in
Portugal Until at Least November
Cyprus Appoints Experts to Advise on
Possible State Lottery Privatisation
Major Events, Lifting of OnLine
Restrictions Expected
to Fuel Chinese Sports Lottery
2016 is the year of the monkey in the
Chinese zodiac. It also may be the year of
sports gambling. Fueled by major global
sports events such as the UEFA European
Football Championship, the Copa America
Centenario, and the Rio Summer Olympics,
China’s sports lottery business is expected to
experience significant growth.
“We expect sports lotteries to deliver sustained
high growth driven by frequent sporting events
in the near term and the prosperity of China’s
sports industry over the longer term,”
said Yan
Peng, an analyst from Citic Securities.
The 2014 FIFA World Cup in Brazil showed
how a sports event can enhance China’s
sports lottery business. China’s total sports
lottery sales reached an all-time high in 2014
to 176.4 billion yuan. Sales in 2015 declined
nearly six percent for two reasons: there were
no major sports events and online lottery
sales were banned in February of that year.
Online lottery sales accounted for 22 per
cent of all Chinese lottery sales before the
ban. Market watchers say they have noticed
signals from Chinese authorities that they
may start online lottery sales again this year.
The tender by the China Welfare Lottery
Centre for its telephone and online lottery
marketing project was a sign that the govern-
ment may be preparing for the reinstatement
of online lottery sales.
New Chinese Civil Law Draft
Classifies Bitcoin as Property
China may soon have a set of laws offer-
ing legal status to Bitcoin and other digital
currencies in the country. The laws offering
rights to virtual property and data is part
of the recently released draft of the People’s
Republic of China General Principles of
Civil Law. If implemented into the statute,
the new draft will automatically consider
bitcoin and other digital currency hold-
ings as private property, making the owner
eligible for legal protection against fraud and
theft. So far, digital currencies did not have
any legal status in the country, which was
exploited by criminals and confidence men
to create elaborate investment programs and
pyramid schemes. The new draft law is a sign
that China is coming to terms with Bitcoin
being an alternative currency and a medium
of exchange of value.
Macau Ramps up to Penalize
Operators for Gaming Violations
Macau’s government plans to introduce
penalties for violations in its $30 billion
gaming industry, as it plugs gaps in outdated
laws including one banning phone-betting
at casinos.
High rollers are continuing to violate a
ban on using mobile phones at betting
tables. Macau has been trying to reign in an
industry that’s 4.5 times larger than the Strip
amid China’s campaign against corruption,
which has included clampdowns on illegal
money laundering and outflows from China
to Macau. That crackdown led to a two-year
gaming revenue slump as mainland gamblers
avoided Macau, hurting profits for casinos.
Phone betting helps gamblers skirt China’s
currency controls, as promoters conduct card
games via wireless earpieces connected to
mobile phones for high-stakes VIP clients.
While a 2001 Macau law banned the prac-
tice, it doesn’t come with sanctions. There
was no enforcement as long as operators
reported the bets and the identities of the
gamblers to the regulator. By comparison,
Singapore’s prohibition against phone bet-
ting, which took effect last year, calls for
a fine of up to S$5,000 ($3,700) and six
months in jail for the gambler and as much
as S$200,000 and up to five years in jail for
those who facilitate remote gambling.
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