South Korea has been taking a harder look at illegal gambling operations, holding players and operators accountable for either participating or hosting such activities. In its latest bust, South Korea’s National Office of Investigation (NOI) reported that it had been able to arrest 2,925 people connected with illegal gambling.

Droves of South Korean Teenagers Are Gambling Illegally

All of these arrests had been effectuated over a six-month period prior to NOI’s report, and the country is now launching a second six-month campaign in May, that will seek to arrest more people connected with facilitating illegal gambling.

In the latest bust, some 1,035 teenagers were arrested, indicating that there is a strong proliferation of illegal gambling services among youngsters who tend to be the most vulnerable when it comes to games of chance. Despite the risks, youths have been partial to gambling in South Korea, and have mostly been nonplussed by its illegal status in the country.

NOI said that 566 teenagers had been sent for counseling, as young people need to be set on a recovery path right away. However, leniency has not been shown to all. A total of 12 teenagers were actually apprehended on suspicion of having operated online gambling platforms themselves, and at least six teenagers are said to have promoted these websites, whether through affiliates or in some other way.

A total of $44.9 million had been seized from illegal gambling businesses and players during the course of the six-month operation. NOI also said that peer influence played a huge role in helping illegal gambling websites proliferate, as teenagers saw and embraced gambling from their peers or at school, although social media does have a part to play.

The majority of teenagers arrested were actually interested in baccarat rather than online casinos. For example, 41.9% prefer this specific card game against just 17.1% for those favoring online casinos. At least 19.8% of those gambling gambled on sports, and another 14.7% enjoyed online slots.

Young People Affected by Gambling – But by How Much?

The data revealed by NOI is worrying as it points to a very high incidence of gambling participation among young people in the country, but it’s also a solid basis to address and further direct resources to help protect youths.

Studies from all over the world have shown that regulating gambling has generally made it easier to track the rate of gambling participation among young people. Bringing more gambling options may have prompted some youths to gamble more, but it has also made it much simpler to track their participation and inform public debate and political action.

 South Korea does not allow any form of online gambling, which has made players seek alternatives such as offshore or illegal gambling sites. Those, however, may be contributing to a gambling problem that is festering. According to a study conducted in 2022, the level of gambling addiction in the country was 5.5% but the actual numbers could be much higher.

Last year, the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family began offering 12-day rehabilitation programs to help young addicts recover.

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South Korea’s government has unveiled a massive expansion of its Kangwon Land casino resort. The state-owned property will be remodeled to triple the area of its casino floor, allowing it to welcome more guests.

The Kangwon Land gaming area, which covers 167,000 square feet currently, will be expanded to cover approximately 533,000 square feet. In addition to that, the $1.85 billion expansion will see a new hotel and a new convention space constructed, allowing Kangwon Land to accommodate more visitors and host international gatherings.

The expansion will also include the creation of a new wellness center in the nearby forest, as well as the launch of new local attractions.

The expansion comes as more Asian countries rise to challenge South Korea’s casino industry. Kangwon Land and the country’s foreigner-only casinos enjoyed a period of calm during the temporary decline of Macau gaming and the crackdown on the special administrative region’s junket operators. However, Japan’s upcoming resort and Thailand’s desire to launch casino gaming are likely to cause fiercer competition.

South Korea Is Wary of Japan’s Upcoming Integrated Resort

Situated in its namesake Kangwon Province, Kangwon Land is the only casino in South Korea that accepts local players. The property boasts some 1,000 slots and 100 gaming tables, allowing hundreds of players to enjoy gambling at the same time. In addition, Kangwon Land has some 700 hotel rooms for guests. Despite that, finding a seat has been increasingly difficult the last few years.

While Kangwon Land, originally founded in 1998, is the only casino in South Korea that locals can visit, the launch of MGM Resorts’ resort in Osaka will likely upset the power balance. Considering Japan’s proximity to Korea, local customers might be tempted to visit the Osaka casino instead.

The expansion of Kangwon Land is, according to the government, a precautionary measure that seeks to ensure the property’s appeal to local consumers. Since MGM’s resort in Japan will not open earlier than 2029, the South Korean operator has ample time to reinforce its offering.

Still, the renovations envisioned by the government are also likely to take several years. Because of that, until the construction of the extra facilities starts, the government will open a temporary expanded casino.

 The $1.85 billion investment is notably the largest investment in the property since its opening.

In addition to casinos in other Asian countries, Kangwon Land will also have to compete with the Mohegan Inspire Entertainment Resort which recently onboarded new solutions that will allow it to understand guests at an individual level.

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The leading supplier of betting services catering to gambling operators across the globe, Sports Information Services (SIS), announced a new partnership, allowing it to significantly grow its horse racing offering. On Wednesday, the company released details regarding its new deal with Korea Racing Authority, growing its live racing content with the addition of premium horse racing fixtures from Korea.

Per the new agreement, SIS will gain access to more than 200 fixtures annually from Seoul as well as Busan. This will grant access to 1,800 races, significantly expanding the company’s Asian content offering. Thanks to the new collaboration, SIS will not only expand its live racing content but leverage the access to premium horse racing fixtures.

This, in turn, can help create new opportunities for the company with operators across the globe. SIS explained that the new deal with the Korea Racing Authority complements the growth of its offering. Recently, the company completed a similar expansion on an international level, bringing content from South Africa and Australia.

The latest deal comes after another important change was announced by SIS recently. At the end of 2023, the company confirmed it stepped back from its greyhound simulcast operations in the United States.

The Partnership Is Expected to Create New Betting Opportunities

SuHyeong Lee, the Korea Racing Authority’s head of international races and relations, spoke about the strong position SIS holds by offering racing content from across the globe. The head of international races and relations added that the Authority is excited to join forces with the leading supplier of betting services and content. “We firmly believe this will successfully widen the popularity of horse racing from Korea and are sure that our offering will be well received globally,” explained Lee in conclusion.

“SIS is renowned throughout the industry for delivering the best international racing content and we are thrilled to be able to expand the visibility of our racing through this deal.“

SuHyeong Lee, head of international races and relations, at the Korea Racing Authority

Conall McSorley, SIS’ head of international horse racing, EMEA, highlighted the importance of offering quality racing fixtures from Korea. He added that the new deal boosts the company’s offering while at the same time, creating new betting opportunities. Finally, McSorley predicted that the new product would be well received by bettors, as well as operators in different markets.

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South Korea is seeing a concerning rise in gambling among teenagers. While iGaming is strictly prohibited in the country, young players often find ways to circumvent the rules and restrictions.

Unfortunately, the rise of online gambling among younger players also means that addiction treatment institutions are struggling to provide services to all affected players. In fact, the National Center for Youth Internet Addiction Treatment is the only establishment that offers such programs.

The center is run by the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family and offers 12-day rehabilitation programs for people struggling with gambling addiction. To help patients cope with the absence of gambling and overcome their addiction, the program offers a variety of activities, including sports and playing music. However, the program fails to hold the attention of many younger participants.

Shim Yong-chool, the center’s director, told The Korea Herald that despite the short duration of the program, many teenagers fail to complete it and quit early. For example, he noted that only 12 of the 17 recently admitted teens managed to complete the entire program.

This shows that the center, which opened in 2015, is struggling to help the increasing number of problem players.

Young Players Are More Prone to Becoming Addicted

Shim noted that many young addicts fail to resist their urges. In addition, the proliferation of online gambling continues to highlight the need to reinforce South Korea’s capacity to deal with gambling harm.

Data shows that the number of teenagers being treated for gambling addiction has skyrocketed by 75% in just four years. In addition, the National Police Agency’s recent crackdown on online gambling saw 353 people arrested, 39 of whom were juveniles. Survey shows that some 28,838 are at risk of developing gambling problems.

According to Lee Hae-kook, a professor from the Catholic University of Korea College of Medicine’s Department of Psychiatry, teenagers are a very vulnerable demographic because they are already immersed in the digital sector. Internet access from an early age increases their chance of coming across gambling content and starting to gamble themselves.

According to Lee Byung-chul, a professor from Hallym University College of Medicine’s Department of Neurology, gambling addiction, even if treated fairly quickly, can cause serious problems in young people’s neurological development. According to him, the state needs to fund systems that connect schools, mental health institutions and youth facilities.

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South Korea’s tourism and casino industries anticipate a significant boost with the return of Chinese group tours, suggests a recent report by NH Investment & Securities Co Ltd.

This move follows China’s August announcement about easing travel restrictions for its citizens and allowing group travel to more destinations, including Japan and South Korea, as part of the post-Covid-19 measures.

According to sources, the South Korean government is further incentivising group tourism by waiving processing fees, which were “currently set at KRW18,000 [about US$13.60] for visitors arriving in groups” until the end of this year.

NH Investment’s analyst Hazell Lee commented on this resurgence, declaring it likely to have a positive impact on South Korea’s casinos.

MORE: CHINESE ONLINE CASINOS

“The expansion of Chinese inbound traffic following the resumption of group tours to [South] Korea should eventually lead to a sharp recovery in the number of casino visitors, especially mass visitors,” she said.

The relationship between China and South Korea’s tourism sectors has been strained in recent years. It began with tensions over Seoul’s deployment of a U.S. missile defence system in 2017. While China didn’t publicly admit to restricting group tours to South Korea, the situation was further exacerbated in 2020 when China implemented a broad ban on outbound group tours due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

However, Ms. Lee provided a word of caution, noting that while mass-market tourism is expected to see a resurgence, VIP gaming segments might still lag.

Recent policy shifts in China underscore a negative sentiment towards high stakes casino players. In the past few years, Chinese authorities have cracked down on citizens traveling abroad for casino play or participating in online betting activities, which they term as “cross-border gambling”. China further solidified this stance by amending its criminal code in March 2021, making it illegal for anyone to facilitate such activities.

In conclusion, Ms. Lee particularly highlighted the potential benefits for South Korea’s foreigner-only casino operator, Paradise Co Ltd. She believes that both the gaming and non-gaming sectors of the company stand to “benefit significantly” from the revival of Chinese group tours. Specifically, she emphasized that the amenities and accessibility of Paradise City, the company’s casino resort complex in Incheon, should be particularly appealing to group visitors and casino enthusiasts.

As per the Korea Casino Association, South Korea boasts 17 casinos, 16 of which are exclusively open to foreign visitors.

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R&F Korea, local subsidiary of Hong Kong-listed Guangzhou R&F Properties Co Ltd, has confirmed plans to extend the construction deadline of its Midan City Resort Complex in the Incheon Free Economic Zone by 12 months due to its intentions to scale down the project.

The current deadline, approved by the Korean Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, is March 17 this year. 

The company disclose that since last year the company has been looking to sell off some of its land to fund its casino scheme. It has already succeeded in selling its third phase – 89,385 square metres (962,132 sq. feet).

R&F has also confirmed plans to sell off its second phase, measuring 50,805 square metres. If the company finds a buyer, it will forego intentions of having a second scheme. 

If it gets approved, this extension would be the fourth modification in five years to the approved launch schedule.

A representative of the company told GGRAsia the firm intends to outline to the ministry what progress it had made to meet the conditions for a further timetable extension.

The last time it asked for an extension, the conditions stated included finding a new gaming-operator partner after buying off Caesars Entertainment; resuming construction of the then-paused first phase; and clarifying the financing plan.



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The Encourage Korea IR developed by Mohegan Gaming & Leisure ought to be capable to open forward of its unique schedule, and a non-gaming providing ought to already be accessible earlier than the tip of 2023, the corporate confirmed throughout its newest earnings name, summing up the outcomes for the fourth quarter.

Tourism Massive Focus of Upcoming Undertaking

Despite the fact that development needed to be put briefly on maintain for a couple of months, it restarted in the beginning of February, with executives assured within the imminent success of the mission and its well timed completion.

Whereas non-gaming operations are because of begin earlier than the tip of the 12 months, the corporate continues to be not clear on when gaming operations will comply with swimsuit. Mohegan CEO Ray Pineault assured that his firm is urgent on with the mission in order to supply well timed gaming and non-gaming supply as quickly as attainable.

When it comes to how briskly that is occurring, Pineault estimates that the mission is already about 4.5% forward of its unique schedule. The chief stated that 43.5% of the mission has been accomplished as of January, including:

Following a complete evaluation of Mohegan Encourage, we anticipate making further fairness investments to fund a wide range of gadgets associated to the mission.

Mohegan CEO Ray Pineault

Mohegan may also transfer on with the enlargement of lodge rooms, conference, and assembly rooms, together with different recognized priorities, Pineault defined. An enormous a part of that is targeted on the non-gaming phase, which Pineault motivates with a shifting development in South Korean customers who’re on the lookout for “staycation” choices.

Huge Funding for an Bold Undertaking

This is the reason the facilities that transcend the gaming ground are equally vital – if not much more so – to the group. As an entire, Mohegan Encourage is a powerful mission that’s going to value $5 billion. The Encourage mission may also embrace a foreign-only on line casino and give attention to catering to vacationers regionally and internationally.

The mission is deliberate with three lodge towers, a 15,000-seat enviornment, and quite a lot of eating and leisure choices that make the keep worthwhile to friends and customers. Upon completion, Mohegan Encourage would be the second built-in resort accessible in Incheon, after Paradise Metropolis. The mission can be pushing in opposition to native competitors from Macau and shortly – Japan, the place new built-in tasks are additionally underway.

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