The end of all POGOs. That’s the objective of Philippine Senator Sherwin Gatchalian. Speaking to AGB, the official says that just ending POGOs is not enough to restore the country’s reputation, also calling for a complete restructuring of the regulatory body – confining PAGCOR to only be an operator, while setting up a new regulator – the opposite of PAGCOR’s current divestment plans.

Macau’s operators continue to struggle with vastly reduced revenue and visitation levels as China pushes on with its zero-Covid policy. In today’s podcast, we speak with Morningstar analyst Jennifer Song, who has recently cut her forecasts for Macau this year. We also discuss China’s efforts to discourage its citizens from traveling overseas and the concerning reports that Beijing may be denying visas to frequent gamers to Macau.

Earlier this month, Asia Gaming Brief reached out to two skill-based slot manufacturers to understand what happened to skill-based slots after all the hype that surrounded them in 2019. In today’s Face-to-Face interview, Asia Gaming Brief editor Felix Ng further explores some of the issues raised in the article with Michael Darley, CEO of Next Gaming.

Dr. Jaeyeon Choe, a lecturer at Swansea University and expert on Korean outbound travel trends chats with Asia Gaming Brief editor Felix Ng about the South Korean outbound tourist and how they've changed post-pandemic. We also discuss top tips for catering to this tourist at your integrated resort.

Brendan Bussman, managing partner of B Global, discusses what next in Japan after only two bids were put forward for one of the three licenses on offer in what was predicted to be the golden goose for gaming in Asia. He also discusses opportunities in Thailand and the recovery around the region.

The recent lockdowns in Shanghai and Guangdong are unmistakable signs that China will not be backing down from its zero-Covid policy, at least for the rest of 2022. In Today’s Face-to-Face interview, Professor Wolfgang Arlt, Founder, and CEO of the China Outbound Tourism Research Institute (COTRI) discuss whether these lockdowns have pushed back his expected China reopening timeline. He also discusses the significance of the upcoming 20th National Congress of the Chinese Community Party in October and what this means for China’s hardline policy stances, such as that of zero-covid.

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Simon Fraser, senior vice president of international at XB Net speaks to Asia Gaming Brief managing director about developments in India's horse racing gambling scene and wider issues in global racing.

Hai Ng, partner of Neomancer talks with Asia Gaming Brief about an emerging video game genre called "gashapon games", and how it uses a mix of RNG, great content and captivating gameplay to keep players engaged, and how we can apply this to the real money gambling space.

Experts have recently argued the importance of messaging to take the social stigma out of Responsible Gaming. We speak to Dr. Anastasia Hronis, clinical psychologist and founder of the Australian Institute for Human Wellness and an expert in mental health and addiction. We discuss where the stigma comes from, particularly amongst Asian cultures, and how operators can better deal with this on the gaming floor.

Gary Bowerman, director of Check-in Asia, talks with Asia Gaming Brief about the challenges of rebooting tourism, the potential impact of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and reopening without the giant China market.