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China Spends $75 Billion Every Year in Online Casino Sites |
| An article suggesting that China loses US$ 75 billion annually to online casino sites raised an almost violent in some cases argument among the online casino sites observers. The article appeared this week in Global Gaming News and other online casino sites. However, these numbers may seem to be significantly exaggerated in comparison to the more conventional estimates of respected Western research firms like Christiansen Capital Advisers. Their latest statistics shows only around $12 billion a year, with the potential to rise to $24 billion a year by the year 2010. Gambling in online casino sites has recently become a real trend in China, even though it is illegal there. The trend expanded so much, that, according to sources in Beijing, the authorities have been forced to initiate repeated clearouts in order to stop the steady loss of nearly US$ 75 billion in such activities every year. Peking University's China Public Interest Lottery Research Institute has found that around 600 billion yuan (US$ 75 billion) is drawn every year out of the country through various online casino gambling activities. The sum spent in online casino sites is 15 times bigger than the amount issued by the China Lottery and the China Sports Lottery in 2003, and is identical the total amount of national tourist revenue in 2004. Since online gambling usually involves large sums of money, it can easily extend into criminal activities and be an even bigger safety threat, says The Ministry of Public Security. |
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