“AI is very important for online gambling. So far, Macau should consider legalizing this vertical, otherwise it will be delayed, because other territories, other countries, are developing this area very quickly,” he warned, to conclude that, in this area, “Macau is lagging behind.”
Although Macau is able to offer luxury casinos and hotels, the best in Asia, the academic stressed, today online betting is "a potential threat to the business" for the gambling capital of the world.
"Competition between destinations has become increasingly fierce, increasingly intense" and, therefore, "Macau must distinguish itself (...), it must find a new path," warned the academic, since Macau's land-based casinos may start to be overlooked.
The IPM professor stressed that around the world, online gambling are developing very quickly, especially during the COVID-19 crisis, and that in many countries, Internet betting revenues have doubled.
On the other hand, he maintained, the territory “must invite some high-tech companies, especially in the games sector, software companies,” mainly from the United States and Australia, to come to Macau and use the knowledge [about the consumer] of Macau (…) to develop unique products.”
In Macau, "gambling companies have close contact with customers so that they can learn about customers' behaviors or preferences much better than other locations," he explained.
So the casino capital of the world "must use this knowledge to develop games, slot machines or some other gaming products" for the Asian market, which it knows well, he said.
Finally, Zeng Zhonglu pointed out that Macau has yet to find new ways to attract tourists, as gambling promoters are no longer able to go to mainland China to raise major players, due to a legislative change imposed by Beijing.
Macau is the only place in all of China where casino gambling is legal. In 2019, it obtained revenues of 292.4 billion patacas (approximately 31 billion euros).
However, last year, due to the impact of the pandemic, casinos in Macau ended 2020 with revenues of 60.4 billion patacas (6.4 billion euros), a fall of 79.3% compared to the previous year.
Three operators, Macau Gaming Society, Galaxy and Wynn, and three sub-operators, Venetian (Sands China), MGM and Melco operate casinos in what is dubbed Asia’s Las Vegas, but which has long surpassed casino revenues registered in that city North-American.
Source: Lusa
