Pagcor expects lower revenue from online gambling by yearend
Metro Manila, Philippines - The Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (Pagcor) is expecting a lower revenue from online gambling by yearend following a move to limit the activity.
Based on Pagcor’s projection, the expected gaming revenue for this year is P60 billion. It only generated P40.5 billion from January to September.
“Starting po ng [last] August 2025, nakaramdam po kami ng [we felt a] sharp decline po ng [of] income, up to 49 percent,” Pagcor Assistant Vice President Jessa Mariz Fernandez told the House committee on games and amusements on Wednesday, Oct. 22.
“So, we are expecting po na baka po bumaba ang kikitain po namin [that our income will plummet] by the end of 2025,” she said.
Pagcor attributed the income decline to the delinking of online gaming platforms from e-wallets and a “slight” decrease in new players.
READ: Online betting via e-wallets skirts gambling ban - DICT
According to Fernandez, 25 percent of gross gaming revenue goes to Pagcor, 5 percent to the Bureau of Internal Revenue for franchise tax, and the rest goes to operators.
More sites blocked
Pagcor said more illegal gaming sites have been blocked. From 74 percent in August, the National Telecommunications Commission (NTC) has taken down 93.8 percent to date.
Since Sept. 2022, the NTC blocked 12,562 out of 13,399 illegal gaming sites that Pagcor flagged.
Pagcor Senior Vice President Raul Villanueva said they are using an artificial intelligence (AI) monitoring platform, a “homegrown program developed by Pagcor,” to check illegal sites.
Villanueva explained the AI monitoring platform can provide at least one illegal site per second, enabling Pagcor to report 500 illegal sites per week from 100.
The Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center, meanwhile, has its own dashboard that automates the reporting system.
“We would like to cut off the blocking time from within 48 hours to 24 hours,” Villanueva said.
The House committee on games and amusements has been conducting an inquiry on either the total ban or regulation of online gambling amid its impact to the society including addiction and criminal offenses.
