Originally based in Atlanta, Georgia, Realtime Gaming is a developer of online gaming applications that operates out of Costa Rica. Its products are among the most popular on the Internet, including the “Real Series” of slot machine-type games. Of the top five software providers, Realtime Gaming alone allows its online casino operators to accept business from players in the USA.
Whether or not Realtime Gaming is a champion of Internet freedom may be open to debate, but there can be little doubt that the company has a shrewd instinct for business. They are willing to gamble that the UIGEA is an unenforceable law. No single country alone—not even the mighty United States—can stop offshore transfers of money via bank wires, checks, Western Union, Money Gram, and prepaid credit cards. Realtime Gaming’s reward for taking a risk with American players has been a disproportionate share of the U.S. online gambling market, still estimated at $5.9 billion per annum despite the UIGEA.
In fact, many believe that the United States’ attempts to outlaw online gambling have actually resulted in a windfall for non-U.S. operators. Competition would be much more fierce if American poker, sports and casino sites were legal. And the industry has not been as greatly hurt by the loss of American players as was originally predicted. The development of new mobile telephone applications and a broader range of games, especially multiplayer poker and live-chat bingo, have broadened the market and filled the void created by loss of U.S. revenue sources.
As an example of how little influence U.S. sanctions have on online gambling growth, consider the Philippines. The country’s casino monopoly known as PAGCOR got into virtual gaming initially by setting up 312 betting stations that would allow Filipinos to wager via the Internet. Then, in March 2005, PAGCOR announced it would use this network to launch the Internet’s first cockfighting system—TeleSabong—to enable betting on bouts held in 1,700 cockpits throughout the archipelago. The monopoly’s revenues have steadily increased since then, from P23 billion in 2005 to P25.4 billion in 2006, P27.8 billion in 2007 and P29.61 billion in 2008, largely on the growth of its Internet-based wagering.
Today, the state-owned firm is the Philippines’ third largest source of government funds, right behind income and customs taxes. Its profits help fund development projects and community services. In conjunction with PhilWeb, the first and largest listed Internet company in the Philippines, PAGCOR is now seeking to extend its reach beyond the country’s shores to the World Wide Web. The Philippines’ leaders understand that “the gaming market is changing and the biggest area of growth is in Europe and Asia.”
This A Matter of Freedom (and Money) Article is exclusive to croupier.com
Croupier.com / Logo is a Registered Trademark ®
Copyright © 2009 Croupier.com – All Rights Reserved.
