From 138 to approximately 75
In 2016, Philippine gaming company Leisure and Resorts World licensed some 138 online gaming enterprises through its First Cayagan Leisure and Resorts Corp. Today, the company has between 70 and 80, says Francis Hernando, the company’s chief operating officer, according to the Philippine Star.
“We lost about 60. Those 60 transferred to POGO,” or the state-run Philippines Offline Gaming Operators, established by the Philippine Gaming and Amusement Corp., said Hernando.
According to the Asia Gaming Brief, prior to POGO, which was created by the government regulator in 2016, FCLRC issued licenses for international online gaming sites operating inside the Cagayan Economic Zone.
Before POGO, FCLRC issued licenses for international online gaming sites operating inside the Cagayan Economic Zone. With POGO siphoning off its client base, LRWC is now looking to redevelop its 10-hectare (25-acre) “cyber-estate” to attract new companies.
“We’re re-launching this thing,” said Hernando.
The parent company is developing the Cagayan North International Airport in a P5 billion (US$99.2 million) project in partnership with the Cagayan Economic Zone Authority. “We have no choice but to start putting in investments in Cagayan,” said Hernando. “An international airport is key.”
