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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Light & Wonder will continue to focus on Asian markets in pursuit of its strategic objective of becoming the number one gaming equipment supplier globally, according to the company’s senior vice president and international managing director for EMEA & APAC, Simon Johnson.

Johnson pointed out that the strategic goal to become the world’s number one supplier of gaming equipment and technology was at the center of the company’s Board policy. Johnson spoke to Inside Asian Gaming at this week’s Global Gaming Expo Asia (G2E Asia) Special Edition: Singapore.

Former Aristocrat Execs Key to Asian Growth

Referring to Light & Wonder chairman Jamie Odell and executive vice chair Toni Korsanos, Johnson outlined that the pair had a clear vision of that goal from the beginning, “a track record of having done it once before and a very clear determination to do it again,” and make Light & Wonder “the biggest and the best.”

Former Aristocrat chief executive officer Odell joined Scientific Games as a special advisor to the chairman and the CEO in 2019, while former senior advisor to the Board and CEO of Aristocrat Korsanos joined a year later to serve as SG’s executive vice chair. Scientific Games rebranded to Light & Wonder in March 2022.

Johnson also said that management identified Asia as the market where Light & Wonder is “closest to that number one spot,” even considering that in some aspects performance-wise, the business was “already there,” yet determined to show that it was not just about words but “a true statement of intent.”

Speaking of vice president and managing director, EMEA &APAC, Ken Jolly, and his team, Johnson hailed the “fantastic job” they have done in “driving that growth and really pushing hard to get the maximum results,” while the focus of the business shifted entirely to being “a content platform” after the divestment of its lottery and sports betting businesses.

Targeting Near- and Long-Term Growth

Targeting significant growth in the next two to three years while also ensuring growth sustainability in the long-term, Light & Wonder has “the time and the focus to really invest” in its business in Asia, Johnson outlined, looking forward to upcoming “really exciting developments” about the company’s Asian roadmap.

“We’re very focused on driving this momentum of sequential growth and improving the stability of that performance,” he said, adamant that “building sustainable performance improvement over the long-term is at the heart of what this is.”

Johnson concluded by noting that the evolution of the business and competition may change the “prism of exactly what [being] number one means” but that one should “never lose sight” of its meaning in terms of “improvement in shareholder value and improvement in performance,” so that the cycle of performance driving confidence and confidence driving performance is closed.

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Graton Resort and Casino is a premium entertainment location in Rohnert Park, Sonoma County, California. The casino resort is operated and owned by the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria, a federally recognized Indian Tribe that includes the Southern Pomo Indians and the Coast Miwok Indians.

The go-to casino resort destination offers gambling entertainment such as slot machines, as well as table games. Visitors of the venue can also enjoy plenty of entertainment and dining outlets, making Graton Resort and Casino a perfect entertainment destination.

Currently, the casino resort offers 3,000 slot machines, but that number is expected to increase exponentially, thanks to a new gaming compact. According to the Sonoma County Gazette, the state of California and the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria inked a new gaming compact, that will enable the casino resort to increase the number of its slots.

Per the terms of the new compact, the number of slots is expected to increase from 3,000 to 6,000. Thanks to this gaming compact, the Graton Resort and Casino would be among the venues with the highest number of slot machines in California.

The Change Is Expected to Boost Tourism

The increase in the number of slots at Graton Resort and Casino is expected to impact the venue positively. Having more slots will likely help boost tourism which in turn would help with economic stimulus for the area, as well as the Tribe.

Still, Tribe members have voiced their concerns about a potentially negative environmental impact from an increase in traffic. To address this, the Tribe introduced a traffic management plan that seeks to limit the negative impact on the environment, the recent report points out.

But the new gaming compact is expected to help further the Tribe via the Revenue Sharing Trust Fund. Thanks to the new compact the Tribe would benefit from additional support extending above the $1.1 million annual restriction. Ultimately, the support from the RSTF, as well as an increase in the number of slots are expected to provide an invaluable boost for the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria.

Recently, tribes in California voiced support for a new cardroom memorandum. Per the new proposal, cardrooms would have the option to expand and grow. At the same time, the proposal seeks to restrict the overpopulation of cardrooms by stopping new ones from opening doors.

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