Macau govt “still studying” online gaming
Chief Executive says the government is looking as ways of diversifying Macau’s economy with online gambling under consideration.
Macau.- Online gaming is illegal in Macau but the government is considering legalising the activity as part of a diversifying plan for the SAR’s economy.
“The previous mid-term review about the gaming industry had already mentioned online gaming, we are still studying about it,” Macau Chief Executive, Ho Iat Seng, said in a press conference this week.
In the mid-term review released in 2016, online gaming activities are primarily classified as illicit operations used by junket operators, such as “using Internet or telephone to remote control gambling, which allows gamblers to participate in gaming by passing the supervision of Macau’s regulations.”
The Chief Executive is monitoring the impact of Covid-19 on the Macau economy, particularly when it comes to tourism and gambling.
“We should be soberly aware of the problems and challenges facing the development of Macau. [The Coronavirus has] fully exposed the vulnerability and huge risks of the Macau economy’s over-reliance on gaming tourism”, he said during a session in the Legislative Assembly.
