ENTERTAINMENT ASIA ON THE BRINK ASIA & OCEANIA GAMING NEWS G3Newswire
With a threat from NASQ over its low share price, a bleak first quarter could spell difficult times ahead for EGA Cambodia - Operations
Entertainment Gaming Asia has reported first quarter of revenue of US$4.9m, a decrease of 29 per cent compared to $6.9m in the first quarter of 2013 due to declines in both the gaming operations and gaming products divisions.
Gaming operations revenue, which comprised slot and casino operations, came in at $4.1m for the first quarter of 2014, down 25 per cent from $5.5m in the first quarter of 2013. The company recorded $3.9m in revenue from slot operations in the first quarter of 2014, down 12 per cent from $4.4m in the first quarter of 2013. The decline in slot opera- tions revenue was primarily due to lower average daily net wins from NagaWorld and the Philippines. This decline was partially offset by incremental revenue from Dreamworld Poipet, which officially opened in May 2013, and improvement in average daily net wins from Thansur Bokor.
Dreamworld Pailin contributed $216,000 to total gaming operations revenue in the first quarter of 2014 compared to $1.1m in the prior year period. The decline was due to the company’s decision to stop using high-cost tour group promoters and to begin operating under a lower-cost leasing model for its table games during the third quarter of 2013.
Revenue from gaming products was $811,000 in the first quarter of 2014, a decrease of 43 per cent
compared to $1.4m in the first quarter of 2013. This included a $2.2m net loss from discontinued oper- ations related to the March 2013 sale of the portion of its subsidiary Dolphin Products.
Clarence Chung, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Entertainment Gaming Asia, said: “The decrease in gaming operations revenue for the first quarter of 2014 was largely due to the decline in revenue from Dreamworld Pailin. While Dreamworld Pailin posted lower revenue, it also experienced reduced operating losses in the quar- ter. The decline in gaming operations revenue was also due to lower player traffic and average daily net wins in NagaWorld as a result of protests in Phnom Penh following the July 2013 elections and in the Philippines due to increased competition in the market.
“Our gaming operations benefited from incremen- tal revenue from Dreamworld Poipet. While per- formance for this property was dampened due to the political unrest in Thailand, we continue to implement targeted marketing programs which have resulted in improvements in the quality of our player base.”
Snoqualmie quits One Hundred Sands project over note default
FIJI The American Indian Snoqualmie tribe that had invested in a project to build Fiji's first casino, says it has pulled out of the deal because of issues with the developer, One Hundred Sands. Jaime Martin, the communications and public rela- tions officer for the Snoqualmie Tribe, said the developer was granted an exclusive licence to build and operate casinos in the country, had defaulted on pay- ments due to the tribe, which resulted in their decision to end their involvement in the project.
"Since 2011, the Snoqualmie Indian Tribe invested with One Hundred Sands to develop a casino experi- ence that would provide first-class entertainment and provide a posi- tive economic impact for the peo- ple of Fiji," he said.
"Unfortunately, One Hundred
Sands has defaulted on a $US1.5m ($F2.73m) note which was due to the tribe in February 2014. The Snoqualmie Indian Tribe has been patient and co-operative through- out this project," he continued. "We have reached out to One Hundred Sands seeking repay- ment of this loan, but have yet to receive payment. We wish the people of Fiji and the project much success."
One Hundred Sands Chairman Larry Claunch said after the deal with the Snoqualmie Tribe fell through, he has managed to secure funding through other means. We have secured other investors through Tim Manning from New Zealand," he said. "Tim Manning is One Hundred Sands investment partner, President and CEO and the project is moving forward quickly,” he said.
Nepal Having finally lost patience with its gaming sector, the Nepal government has now made all 10 casinos illegal ordering them to close immediately after failing to heed several warnings to pay licensing and royalty fees. According to the Ministry of Culture, Tourism and Civil Aviation, the Nepalese government is owed a total of US$10m. It had repeatedly asked seven casinos and three electronic, mini casinos to pay for new operating licences. It stated: “The ministry didn’t renew licenses of the 10 casinos operating in the premises of different five-star hotels in the country as some didn’t apply for renewal within the given time-frame and applications of others were filed without fulfilling due process.
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PHILIPPINES – PAGCOR CUTS LICENCE FEES State-owned operator and regulator Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (Pagcor) has agreed to reduce license fees for the four casino operators in Entertainment City as it looks to counter tax concerns.
Pagcor and the four casino licensees said they signed an agreement reducing license fees, as a percentage of gross gaming revenues, by 10 per cent.
All those involved said that the agreement was ‘a mutually beneficial and practical solution to address the additional exposure to corporate income tax brought about revenue cir- cular issued by the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR).’
“Such a solution not only preserves for the Philippine govern- ment the financial benefits that it already derives from the provisional licenses but also validates Pagcor’s commitment to uphold and abide by the terms of the provisional licenses,” they stated.
The four operators include Travellers International Hotel Group owned by Andrew Tan, Bloomberry Resorts and Hotels owned by Enrique Razon, Melco Crown Entertainment of the SM group, and Tiger Resorts Leisure owned by Kazuo Okada.
“The parties agreed to revert to the original license fee struc- ture under the provisional licenses in the event the BIR action is permanently restrained, corrected or withdrawn,” the oper- ators stated. “Pagcor and the licensees also agreed that the 10 per cent license fee adjustment is not an admission of the validity of BIR RMC No. 33-2013 and it is not a waiver of any of their remedies against any assessment/s by the BIR for income tax on their gaming revenue.”
Pagcor licensees will also now pay the 30 per cent corporate income tax on net taxable income instead of the five per cent franchise tax on gross gaming revenue.
Clarence Chung, Chairman of Melco Crown Philippines, said: “We welcome this initiative and express our sincerest grati- tude to the government of the Republic of the Philippines and Pagcor for their continuous support in helping us realise our gaming, leisure and entertainment complex in Manila. The development of City of Dreams Manila is progressing well and we firmly believe our integrated leisure and entertain- ment destination resort will play a key role in furthering the ambitions of the Philippines in establishing the country as a major leisure and tourism destination in the region.”
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