- December 06, 2022
Online Gambling in the Philippines: Impact of Gambling on Filipinos
Online Gambling allows people all over the world to gamble anytime and anywhere. Online Gambling games provide a way to entertain people by allowing them to earn money. All of these can be enjoyed in the comfort of one’s home or anywhere one wants. Back then, the online gambling industry was prohibited in various countries worldwide. However, online gambling has been accepted and legalized as the years go by. For instance, online betting and physical casinos are legal in Southeast Asian countries, such as China, Singapore, Malaysia, Cambodia, and the Philippines. It is worth noting that at some point, gambling, whether online or offline, was prohibited in the aforementioned countries. Fortunately, online and offline gambling has now been legalized by each of those countries’ governments. As a result, many companies are emerging one by one to provide online gambling entertainment for the citizens of their country. Take the Philippines as an example. Gambling was not always legal in the Philippines. As a result, online gambling has not been around in the country for that long. It was only in the year 2016 that online gambling in the Philippines was made legal by its government. In fact, a government body oversees and regulates all these online and offline casinos in the Philippines. Now online Gambling has been rampant in the Philippines, especially since the pandemic started. People have got nothing to do. They shifted their focus to playing and gambling online rather than getting bored at home because of the quarantine procedure. However, online gambling can be a dangerous activity if one gets caught up in it. They can easily lose everything they have. Additionally, if the players play at a platform or company that does not have a license to legally open and operate an online gambling platform, they could get in trouble as well. Now the real question is, will the Philippines be the next online hot gambling market in the world? Despite being legalized by the government, is there any chance that the government itself will prevent the online gambling industry from flourishing? Allow TC-GAMING to answer all those questions and take you on a tour about the online gambling in the Philippines.
Gambling Over the Internet
Online Gambling refers to the process of playing casino games, such as lottery, slot machines, and roulette, online. Players bet real money in hopes of gaining it back, along with gaining more than what they have paid for. Online Gambling is known to start in the mid-90s, mainly because the Internet was invented just a few years earlier. After all, the Internet is the foundation of online gambling. Hence, the name “Internet Gambling.” Ever since then, online gambling has been a great activity alternative for those who do not want to make an extra effort to go to a physical casino and play for money. Additionally, online gambling is a great option now because of the ongoing pandemic. Those that do not want to risk getting the virus by going to a place full of people can opt to play at a safer place, like their home, by just using a mobile phone or a personal computer. Just like physical gambling platforms, online gambling platforms are regulated by their own country to ensure a just and fair game for everyone.
Online Gambling in The Philippines
The Philippines is one of few countries where online gambling is rampant. Other countries where online gambling is popular are the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Germany, Sweden, Mexico, Spain, and Malta. It was known that online gambling started in the Philippines during the 16th century when China used to travel to the Philippines. It was said that the Chinese were the ones who introduced the concept of “gambling” to the Filipinos during that time. However, not all Filipinos are allowed to gamble. Only those that are 18 and above are allowed to enter both offline and online gambling in the Philippines. Now, online gambling has become more rampant in the Philippines. It was legalized by the law of the Philippines. Therefore, people are getting more involved with online gambling. In fact, there are about 100 million people, including the players itself, in the Philippines that are part of the online gambling industry.
The Legality of Online Gambling in the Philippines
When we hear the word “gambling,” it is often followed by the word “illegal.” Generally, we always get the notion that gambling is an illegal activity. Well, the answer to that is both yes and no. Depending on the country where online gambling is being operated, online gambling can be both illegal and legal. For example, gambling is illegal in countries like Afghanistan, Cambodia, North Korea, and Japan. On the other hand, just like what is mentioned before, there are other countries where gambling and online gambling are legal. Take the United States as an example. Back then, Nevada was the online state in the United States where gambling was legal. That is why Las Vegas, Nevada, was known to be the country's gambling capital. However, it is now legal anywhere in the United States to Gamble. Another example is the Philippines. Just like in the United States, gambling used to be illegal in the country. As a result, the Philippine Gambling Industry, through the years, has gone through ups and downs. However, due to the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR), businesses can now obtain business licenses to establish and operate casinos in the Philippines legally. The casinos allow people in the country to play both in-person and online gambling games. Therefore, it is both yes and no if the question being asked is the legality of online gambling in the Philippines. A business that does not have a business license given by PAGCOR cannot open a casino. Otherwise, their business will be flagged as illegal.
Impact of Gambling on Filipinos
The most common and obvious impact of Gambling on Filipinos is addiction. Gambling cannot guarantee players that they are going to win. In fact, the result of playing, whether offline or online gambling, is solely based on luck. There is no certain way to guarantee a win every time, unlike any other games in the world. Whether it is online or offline gambling, it is still addictive. Even during the pandemic, players can still gamble anywhere they want because online gambling has become more rampant nowadays. Gambling is addictive in a way that people always hope that they can get their money back or make easy money. Indeed, gambling is an easy way to get a huge amount of money, that is if you win. Therefore, people take the risk by investing time and money in gambling, hoping that they, too, would be lucky enough to win in gambling. The risk of gambling and getting addicted to it is that players have a high possibility of experiencing bankruptcy. They might end up losing more than what they gain, or worse, losing all their money without gaining anything.
Types of Online Gambling in the Philippines
Listed below are different types of Online Gambling in the Philippines.Sports Betting is a type of gambling wherein those watching a certain sports event are betting on the event's outcome. They predict the results of the sports event, and those who guess right win the gamble. One of the most popular and common examples of Sports Betting is Horse Racing. Various horses ridden by their jockeys will race with one another in an open space. Generally, sports are broadcasted over the television for other people to watch. The horses are wearing a number that the audience uses to place their bet. They place their bet on the number of the horse they think will win the competition. However, there are different kinds of bets in horse racing. The basics are win, place, show, in the money, and across the board. First, a winning bet is betting on the horse you are sure finishes first. Second, a place bet is betting on a horse you think either finishes first or second. Third, a show bet is betting on a horse that you think finishes first, second, or third. Lastly, across the board is betting on all win, place, and show. Therefore, the bettor can win once, twice, or thrice. Now, sports betting can be done online since broadcasting sports events can also be done online.
Online casino, known as a virtual casino, is the Internet version of a traditional casino. It allows players all over the world to experience a real casino environment anytime and anywhere they want. Players will have to deposit their bets online and withdraw their winnings through online payment platforms as well. In addition, players can easily play casino games on their mobile phones. One example of an online casino game that Filipinos can play is Baccarat. Players are going to guess whose cards have a higher amount. Is it the Banker or the Player? Other than getting money from gambling, players are entitled to receive bonuses as well.
Daily Fantasy is like the Sports Betting Gamble. The online difference is that Daily Fantasy is only limited to one sport, FIFA World Cup. Bettors will gamble on the players in the game that they think will do well in their team. It does matter which team will win. What matters the most is the individual score of each member of the team. The team member who does well in the game wins. Therefore, the bettor who bets on that player wins the gamble as well.
Online Poker is one of the classic casino games. Back then, old computers had an already installed poker game that could be played offline. Now, poker games, such as Texas Hold'Em, Poker Legends, Blackjack, and Five-card Draw, are available to play on a computer or mobile phone.
Online Lotto: Online Lotto allows bettors to provide a combination of numbers as their guess of the winning number combination. Lotto or Lottery is considered to be a local Philippine online gambling. There are local lotteries in the Philippines, such as 2 Lotto Lottery, 6/45 Super Enalotto Lottery, Swertres Lotto, EZ2 Lotto, and 4D Lotto Lottery. The known corporation for handling lotteries in the Philippines is the Philippine Charity Sweepstakes Office (PCSO). They are responsible for generating a random number combination and presenting them on the draw day for the public to know whether they won the jackpot prize.
The Philippines as the next online gambling hot market
With various online gambling games emerging in the Philippines, it is only natural to see the country be the next online gambling hot market in the world. Many physical places in the country, such as Newport Mall, Resorts World Manila, Solaire Resort and Casino, and Okada Manila Resort & Casino, are already legally allowed to operate their own casinos in the country physically. It is only a matter of time to see more and more legal online gambling platforms that people all over the country can play anytime and anywhere they want. There was rapid growth in the Philippine economy when online gambling platforms were legalized. Additionally, the pandemic made it a bit easier for online gambling platforms to make their names in the industry. They already gained popularity in no time as soon as the government legalized them in the Philippines. TC-GAMING does not directly provide services in the local Philippine online gaming market. Instead, TC-GAMING is a consultant and technology company providing technology and marketing services for hopeful businessmen. With its 15 years of experience in the online gaming industry, TC-GAMING provides market information and market analysis because of its deep understanding of the online gaming industry. We provide gaming platform services in different countries, except for the Philippines. Additionally, we have a market vision for the online gaming market. As a result, TC-GAMING aids in improving a company's professionalism in the online gaming market.