Daily Archives: January 7, 2022

VegasSlotsOnline News has provided its gambling industry predictions for 2022, including betting success in Canada and continued challenges in Macau. [Image: Shutterstock.com]

Weve now endured more than two years of the new normal after Wuhan officials first detected coronavirus. Since then, the global gambling industry has changed in many ways. While some firms have struggled with the impact of the virus, others have grown larger than ever before.

Last year provided many highlights for the sector. The US sports betting industry continued to flourish, with states such as Arizona, Louisiana, Connecticut, and (briefly) Florida all opening their doors to legal wagering. At the same time, the rapid recovery of Las Vegas surpassed the expectations of many, while Macau casinos continued to struggle with restrictions on travel.

VegasSlotsOnline News has taken a look into its crystal ball

As we step into the unknown of 2022, VegasSlotsOnline News has taken a look into its crystal ball to provide some industry predictions for the coming 12 months. From sports betting in Canada to the adoption of a digital currency in Macau, the new year certainly poses some interesting possibilities.

One major highlight of 2021 was Canadas decision to open its doors to a multibillion-dollar industry. The nations legislators legalized single-event sports betting in August, officially introducing the vertical for the first time at the end of that month. Prior to this point, the countrys bettors could only place parlay wagers.

Parlay bets must combine three or more events into one wager. As a result, they are more complicated and more difficult to win than their single-event counterpart.

If the rapid growth of the US betting industry is anything to go by, Canadian sportsbooks are in for some major success in 2022. Estimates suggest that Canadians place CA$500m (US$399.5m) worth of legal parlay bets each year, but CA$14.5bn (US$11.6bn) worth of sports wagers overall. This means bettors previously wagered billions through offshore sportsbooks.

With sportsbooks now able to capitalize on this previously inaccessible market, operators are making their moves. In October, Penn National Gaming completed its $2bn acquisition of Toronto-based Score Media and Gaming Inc, owner of the most popular sports media app in Canada. PointsBet has adopted a similar tactic, increasing its Canadian exposure by signing partnerships with The Nation Network and Curling Canada.

With commercial sportsbooks and provincial gambling operators now chomping at the bit, VSO has no doubt that 2022 will be the year for betting to take Canada by storm.

For the past few years, the negative perception of gambling seems to have increased in the UK from both the mainstream media and government officials. As a result, lawmakers have decided to take action by reforming the industrys rules through the Gambling Act 2005.

an analogue law in a digital age.

Speaking in December 2020, secretary of state for Digital, Culture, Media, and Sport (DCMS) Oliver Dowden described the Act as an analogue law in a digital age. The review officially began shortly after he made those comments, but not much has happened since then. The DCMS actually confirmed in February last year that changes wont take effect until 2022, making this year a real moment of truth for the UKs many gambling firms.

Undoubtedly, operators should anticipate some sweeping changes. A ban on front-of-shirt betting sponsorship deals for professional soccer teams is one of the most widely reported incoming reforms. This will have a major impact on the sector and its soccer partners, with nine of the English Premier Leagues 20 clubs boasting front-of-shirt sponsorship deals with betting firms this season.

Other possible rule changes under consideration include staking limits for online casino sites and a ban on controversial loot boxes in video games. The Gambling Commissions role is also currently under review partly as a result of its supposed failings in the collapse of soccer betting firm Football Index.

Whether all of these changes come to fruition is another story altogether, but VSO predicts UK gambling regulation will look very different by the end of 2022.

Casino operators in the global gambling mecca of Macau experienced a difficult 2021. According to figures from the Gaming Inspection Coordination Bureau, gross gaming revenue totaled MOP$83.86bn (US$10.82bn) for the year. While that might represent a 44% improvement from the COVID-stricken 2020, it is still down 70% compared with 2019.

2022 will pose fresh challenges outside of just coronavirus

Those difficulties are certainly not over as we wave goodbye to 2021. Macau is still struggling with the impact of COVID-19, recently announcing an imminent two-week ban on international travel, and 2022 will pose fresh challenges outside of just coronavirus.

The licenses of all six of Macaus casino operators are due to expire in June this year. Reports suggest that officials are prepared to renew those concessions prior to the expiration date, but not before they complete a regulatory overhaul in the gambling hub. Shares in Macaus casino operators plummeted in September when a regulatory consultation began, losing around $14bn in value altogether.

The public considered nine areas in this regulatory consultation. This included the length of gaming concessions, in addition to new employee protections and social responsibility measures. The government has also proposed increasing its supervision of the casino industry. As of yet, officials have not confirmed what reforms they plan to implement.

Something that could spice up life for Macaus casino operators is the possible introduction of digital yuan. In April, Macau chief executive Ho Iat Seng confirmed the government will work with Chinas federal bank to study the feasibility of issuing a digital currency. Although the regions gambling operators are reportedly against the idea, analysts believe the license renewals could force them to accept the governments plans.

With its regulatory overhaul, license renewals, and a new currency in the cards, VSO predicts Macau is in store for another turbulent year in 2022. That said, it is safe to predict that the region will continue to recover, albeit very gradually, from the devastating impact of 2020.

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VSO Analysis: 2022 Global Gambling Industry Predictions - VegasSlotsOnline

The New York Times will acquire sports news website The Athletic, the companies announced Thursday, the latest move by the iconic US newspaper in its diversification drive.

Acquiring The Athletic puts us in a position to be a global leader in sports journalism and offer English speakers around the world another reason to turn to the Times Company to meet their daily news and life needs, New York Times chief Meredith Kopit Levien said in a statement.

The newspaper company will pay $550 million for The Athletic, which has become a leader in sports coverage over the past six years as it took advantage of a tough environment for local media.

The transaction first reported by online technology publication The Information is expected to be finalized in the first quarter.

Levien said the addition will help the Times achieve its goal of more than 10 million subscribers, from eight million currently.

Founded in January 2016 by Alex Mather and Adam Hansmann, The Athletic had about 1.2 million subscribers at the end of 2021, according to the statement.

It has grown at a rapid pace, launching a UK version in 2019 and partnering with Australian television group Optus Sport last year.

Italso has produced numerous podcasts, including The Lead, its most popular. But media reports say it has struggled to reach profitability and was considering a change in strategy.

The New York Times in recent years has used targeted acquisitions to diversify its audience by publishing everything from recipes to podcasts.

In 2016, it bought product-testing and recommendation site Wirecutter, and in June 2020 acquired Serial Productions, the studio behind the hit podcast of the same name.

According to Crunchbase, The Athletic has raised a total of $139.5 million from investors since its inception, and was valued at between $500 million and $1 billion when it last raised funds in January 2020.

The Athletic will become an independent subsidiary of The New York Times, and the founders will stay on as co-presidents, with Mather also serving as general manager and Hansmann as its chief operating officer, the statement said.

They called the deal a thrilling milestone in their goal to bring fans closer to the teams, players and leagues they love through deep, immersive journalism and storytelling.

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New York Times to buy sports news site The Athletic - Macau Business

Asian equities were mixed Friday as investors battled to instigate a recovery after this weeks volatile start to the new year, with the release of key US jobs data later in the day taking centre stage.

News that the Federal Reserve is planning a more aggressive campaign to fight surging inflation rattled global traders, who have enjoyed almost two years of cheap cash that has helped push some markets to record or multi-year highs.

The Feds decision to remove the support put in place at the start of the pandemic comes as the worlds top economy continues to show resilience, with unemployment falling, despite supply chain snarls and rising energy costs that have sent prices racing.

Minutes released Wednesday showed the positive view on the recovery has led the US central bank to start hiking interest rates sooner and quicker than had been expected.

There were also indications officials were considering reducing its massive bond holdings, putting further upward pressure on lending costs Treasury yields are set for their biggest weekly jump since 2020, according to Bloomberg News.

The minutes sent markets plunging around the world, with tech firms among the worst hit as they are more reliant on debt to fuel growth.

And Wall Street extended losses Thursday, though the selling was less severe.

Asia fared a little better, with Hong Kong, Sydney and Seoul rising more than one percent each, while Singapore, Mumbai, Bangkok and Jakarta also rose. Tokyo pared early losses to end flat, with Shanghai, Wellington, Taipei and Manila lower.

We knew coming into 2022 that the Fed was going to be a creator of volatility within the market and were seeing that right out of the gate at the start of the year, Lindsey Bell, at Ally Invest, told Bloomberg News.

The good news is that things seem to be stabilising a little bit after (the initial) knee-jerk reaction.

Eyes are now on the release of the closely watched non-farm payroll figures for December, which could impact the Feds decision on when and how quickly to lift rates.

A figure way above the forecast 447,000 new posts could force officials to take a more hawkish tilt, which would likely weigh further on equities.

Crude markets built on their recent run-up as concerns about the impact of the fast-spreading Omicron Covid variant fade, allowing traders to focus on the demand picture.

While crucial consumer China continues to battle outbreaks by imposing new lockdowns, unrest in producer Kazakhstan and a drop in output from Libya was providing support.

Oil has rallied in recent weeks as financial markets have dismissed Omicron, rightly or wrongly, as a temporary aberration, said OANDAs Jeffrey Halley.

That momentum accelerated this week, despite OPEC+ hiking production, and now we have Kazakhstan and Libya disruptions adding to the bullishness.

Bitcoin was also under pressure, falling for a second day to $41,008, a level not seen since the end of September.

Hong Kong Hang Seng Index: UP 1.5 percent at 23,417.98

Shanghai Composite: DOWN 0.2 percent at 3,579.54 (close)

Dollar/yen: UP at 115.93 yen from 115.89 yen late Thursday

Euro/dollar: UP at $1.1301 from $1.1297

Pound/dollar: UP at $1.3542 from $1.3534

Euro/pound: UP at 83.45 pence from 83.44 pence

West Texas Intermediate: UP 1.0percent at $80.24 per barrel

Brent North Sea crude: UP 1.0percent at $82.79 per barrel

New York DOW: DOWN 0.5percent at 36,236.47 (close)

London FTSE 100: DOWN 0.9 percent at 7,450.37 (close)

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Asian markets mostly up as attention turns to US jobs - Macau Business

Haunted by the spectre of last years crisis, India is bracing for a deluge of Covid-19 cases, with authorities of various megacities bringing in restrictions in a bid to keep infections in check.

Case numbers have yet to match the enormous figures seen last spring, when thousands died each day and the Hindu holy city of Varanasi maintained round-the-clock funeral pyres for the mass cremation of virus victims.

But daily infections nearly tripled over two days this week to more than 90,000, a surge driven by the highly contagious Omicron variant that some experts worry could again see the countrys hospitals overwhelmed.

An overnight curfew has been imposed in the Delhi area that includes the capital,whereweekend movement restrictions will begin on Friday evening, with all non-essential workers asked to stay home.

Tech hub Bangalore has also declared a weekend curfew, while sprawling financial centre Mumbai introduced a night curfew.

Even a small percentage of a large number of cases translates to a largenumber in absolute terms, Gautam Menon, a professor at Indias Ashoka University who has worked on Covid infection modelling, told AFP.

This could potentially stress out health care systems to levels comparable to or worse than the second wave.

Doctors and nurses who spoke to AFP have so far been optimistic, with fewer severe cases among those patients admitted to hospital and with the benefit of experience.

Last year, we didnt know what exactly we were dealing with. I think now, mentally, its a little better, one frontline worker at a Delhi hospital said.

Suresh Kumar, director of Lok Nayak Jai Prakash Hospital in the capital, where cases have quadrupled from a handful at the start of the week to 20, said the rise was not a cause for panic.

Prime Minister Narendra Modis administration has so far shied away from the drastic nationwide lockdown introduced during last years catastrophic outbreak.

But local officials have watched the sharply rising case numbers with alarm and some of Indias biggest urban centres have moved to impose restrictions again.

Earlier virus lockdowns were a hammer blow to the Indian economy and many are worried about the financial impact of new restrictions.

I will be working onlyfor 15 days this month, said Delhi resident Tumul Srivastava, whose office is subject to the 50 percent occupancy limits imposed by the city.

My salary may be deducted. All this is adding to my anxiety.

India appears better placed to weather Omicron than it was ahead of the calamitous Delta wave it suffered last spring, when more than 200,000 people died in a matter of weeks.

Back then, hospitals ran out of oxygen and patients desperately scrambled to source medicine after a run on pharmacies.

In the time since, Indian health workers have injected nearly 1.5 billion vaccine doses, with government data showing nearly two-thirds of the country fully vaccinated.

That campaign, combined with last years Delta sweep of towns and villages around the country, may help lessen the impact of the latest spread.

Though we do not have data, this may give strong hybrid immunity against severe outcomes, University of Michigan epidemiologist Bhramar Mukherjee told AFP.

Preliminary studies have so far suggested the Omicron variant has led to less severe health consequences among those infected, despite its rapid spread.

Mukherjee warned however that an uncontrolled spread of new infections could still pose serious problems for India, even if the direct virus toll is a fraction of that seen last year.

As you are witnessing in the US and UK, a major chunk of the working population being sick is affecting the societal infrastructure and leading to chaos, she said.

I am afraid there may be a period in India when we see the same thing just the sheer volume may make the system crumble.

by Aishwarya KUMAR

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As cases rise, India fears another Covid catastrophe - Macau Business

A jacket equipped with sensors that let wearers feel hugs or even punches in virtual reality was among the innovations giving the metaverse a more realistic edge at the Consumer Electronics Show.

What is the metaverse if you cant feel it? asked Jose Fuertes, founder of the Spain-based startup Owo, which made the jacket. Its just avatars.

The metaverse a parallel universe where human, augmented and virtual realities are supposed to merge was a hot theme at the annual gadget extravaganza in Las Vegas, with startups showing off computers, headsets and other gear promising to enhance time spent in virtual worlds.

Owo touts its jacket as able to immerse wearers, whether in video games or in the metaverse, letting them feel a gunshot, the wind, someone grabbing your arm and even a hug from a loved one.

The tight-fitting jacket features bands that stick to the skin, with sensors that sync to a mobile application. Before donning a virtual reality (VR) headset, the wearer can choose the intensity of each sensation.

Our mission is to turn the virtual into reality with a second skin; to add the sense of touch in the metaverse or video games, Fuertes said as AFP tried out the jacket.

The Owo garb to be priced less than $450 when it hits the market late this year brings to mind the sci-fi novel-turned-film Ready Player One, in which people in a dystopian world live alternate lives in a virtual universe.

The science fiction future seems distant given a lack of full body suits and comfortable headsets for simulated experiences, or ubiquitous high-speed internet service to handle such rich data streams.

Nonetheless, the metaverse has become a popular topic since being endorsed by Facebook chief Mark Zuckerberg so enthusiastically that the technology company was renamed Meta.

While companies such as Meta and HTC have invested heavily in virtual reality headsets, the equipment is still not light and comfortable enough to wear for long periods of time.

Im the biggest sort of augmented and virtual reality nerd, but I dont think we are anywhere close to anything exciting happening in the metaverse, said Paddy Cosgrave, head of Web Summit in Europe.

He expects it to take more than a decade for the metaverse to become real.

Nothing can stop it, Touchcast chief and founder Edo Segal said of the metaverse.

Touchcast showed off a platform for collaboration between companies in virtual reality, complete with .metaverse addresses akin to .com web addresses. But the domains will be registered on a blockchain database, instead of on servers.

In 1999, it was hard to believe people would buy things online, Segal said.

Look where we are today. Humanity is moving in this direction.

Industry trackers report that sales of virtual reality gear were boosted by the pandemic as people relied on the internet for games, work, learning and socializing.

As the year 2020 neared its end, the young Japanese entrepreneur focused on ways someones leg or torso movements can be mirrored by avatars and other ways of making visits to virtual worlds more realistic.

His startup Shiftall, a subsidiary of Panasonic, unveiled lightweight, high-resolution VR glasses at CES.

In the future, some of the special suits like in Ready Player One will contain every system, Takuma said.

Currently, metaverse users need to use different products, like a cyborg.

Israeli start-up Wearable Devices is working on a bracelet that detects the electrical signals sent by the brain to the hand. The wearer can control synced objects with a mere snap of their fingers a function that could prove useful if people use augmented reality glasses and need to select items displayed on the lenses.

But as the metaverse evolves, society will also need to be wary of dangers from online ills such as misinformation, harassment and losing touch with the real world, some experts warned.

Counterfeit goods are going to exist in the metaverse, as well. Counterfeit identities are going to exist in the metaverse, as well, said Dan Guenther, an extended reality specialist at Accenture.

And weve seen in many other evolutions of the internet that many times (there) are the portions of the internet that were uncomfortable with.

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Metaverse gets touch of reality at CES - Macau Business

China will enhance reforms of the market-based allocation of production factors amid efforts to build a high-standard market system, according to a plan released by the General Office of the State Council.

Efforts will be made to fully leverage the decisive role of the market in resource allocation and give better play to the role of government, says the plan, adding that the institutional obstacles that hinder the free flow of factors will be eradicated.

China will promote market-based allocation of production factors including land, labor and capital, while accelerating the development of the technology market and data factors, it said.

The country will support qualified local authorities to explore reform paths that can be replicated and promoted by the nation, it said.

The country will advance pilot programs for reforms of market-based allocation of production factors in urban agglomerations, metropolitan areas and key cities with urgent reform needs, solid foundation and development potential, it said.

Meanwhile, the number and coverage of pilot programs should be controlled, it added.

By the first half of 2022, work related to the layout of pilot areas will be completed and the drawing of the implementation plan will be submitted for approval, it said.

Phased progress will be achieved in advancing pilot programs and significant breakthroughs in market-based allocation of key production factors are expected to be gained by 2023, it noted, adding that the task of advancing pilot programs will be basically completed by 2025.

Considering the varying development foundations and resource endowments in different regions, existing pilot reforms concerning the allocation of production factors can hardly meet the practical needs of pushing ahead with reform in a coordinated and efficient manner, according to the National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC).

The plan will be conducive to mobilizing the initiatives of local governments, further advancing the reform of the market-based allocation of production factors, and making the reform more systematic, holistic and coordinated, the NDRC said.

To ensure the implementation of the plan and the achievement of practical results in pilot programs, efforts will be made to improve the working mechanism to enhance coordination, urge local governments to fulfill their primary responsibilities, tighten supervision, and provide stronger legal guarantee, the NDRC said.

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China to advance reforms on market-based allocation of production factors - Macau Business

Samsung Electronics expects operating profits for the fourth quarter to soar 52.5 percent, the South Korean tech giant said in a statement on Friday, spurred by record sales.

The worlds biggest smartphone maker forecast 2021 fourth-quarter operating profits at around 13.8 trillion won ($11.5 billion), up from 9.05 trillion won in the same quarter last year.

The firm was boosted by record sales in the quarter, estimated at 76 trillion won, up 23.5 percent on-year, according to the statement.

A spokeswoman told AFP annual sales in 2021 were also expected to be the highest ever.

While the coronavirus pandemic has wreaked havoc on the world economy, it has helped many tech companies boom.

Pandemic-driven working from home has boosted demand for devices powered by Samsungs chips, as well as home appliances such as televisions and washing machines.

Analysts had also expected the firm to benefit from the traditionally lucrative holiday season.

Samsung Electronics is the flagship subsidiary of the giant Samsung group, by far the largest of the family-controlled empires known as chaebols that dominate business in South Korea.

The conglomerates overall turnover is equivalent to around one-fifth of South Koreas gross domestic product.

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Samsung Electronics forecasts 52.5% jump in Q4 profits on record sales - Macau Business