Asia
Japan Minister Says Interest of Foreign Companies Shows Japan’s IRs will be Profitable

Kazuyoshi Akaba, Japan’s Minister of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, has rejected suggestions that the COVID-19 pandemic may render the nation’s IR industry untenable, insisting operators would not submit applications if they did not think IRs would be profitable.
Answering questions over the feasibility of IRs from the Constitutional Democratic Party’s Hiroyuki Moriyama during a House of Representatives budget committee meeting on March 1, Kazuyoshi Akaba said, “The operator will apply as a partner with the local government. If it is decided that there will be no profit at that point, they will [probably] not apply. They will only apply once they have made a full and thorough risk assessment. After that, the government will assess the application.
“Revenue for Japanese travel agents has dropped significantly due to the COVID-19 pandemic and as the IR opening will be in the latter part of the decade, it is difficult to assess the impact. However, I believe the specific risks will be analyzed and then they will make a decision whether to apply or not.”
Akaba also rejected suggestions that IRs would result in Japanese assets being sold to foreign companies for a “quick profit.”
“We are considering not only foreign companies but also domestic companies,” Akaba said. “30% of casino revenue will be paid to national and local governments along with a corporate tax.”
Asia
Kyushu IR Promotion Council Launched

The Kyushu IR Promotion Council, which includes representatives of Kyushu’s major economic organisations and local governments, was launched on Monday with the goal of promoting Nagasaki’s IR bid.
The council will promote business matching between IR operators and local companies by holding seminars and events where they can meet.
Nagasaki Prefecture Governor Nakamura expressed his enthusiasm, stating, “The ripple effect of IR to the local economy and whether or not it can generate effective results is an extremely important issue.”
Nagasaki prefecture is currently conducting a public offering to select an IR operator, and last month named the three candidate operators to have progressed to the second round of bidding. They are Oshidori Consortium comprising Oshidori International Development Ltd and Mohegan Gaming & Entertainment, Casinos Austria International Japan, and NIKI Chyau Fwu (Parkview) Group which brings together Japan’s THE NIKI and Taiwan’s Chyau Fwu (Parkview) Group.
Asia
World Cricket Championship 3 introduces dedicated esports mode with its latest update

Also, one of the only ‘Made in India” game to feature in esports tournaments in the country
World Cricket Championship 3 with its new update introduces a dedicated esports mode titled ‘Esports Lobby’, along with a host of other features. The esports feature will allow users to host friendly tournaments while also facilitating seamless operations for organisers to host professional tournaments. Users will be able to spectate from various camera angles and shoutcast the matches.
WCC3 has featured in some prominent esports tournaments in the country including Redbull M.E.O., Skyesports and LXG WCC tournaments. Being one of the only ‘Made in India’ games to feature in esports tournaments in the country, WCC is looking to make it easier for players and tournament organisers to conduct tournaments on the game with this latest update.
The WCC franchise now stands at more than 155 million downloads. The large fan base of WCC 3 will now have a chance to get a taste of competitive esports experience.
The latest update also includes custom difficulty settings, ability to assign bowling actions alongside 7 new bowling actions, new cutscenes, challenge a friend mode, ability to capture highlights and more.
Says Next Wave Multimedia co-founder and CEO P.R. Rajendran, “Given the exponential growth of esports in the country in the past few years and many requests from our fans, we thought it would be an opportune moment to launch the ‘Esports Lobby’. With the newest update we want to add value to the esports ecosystem with WCC3.”
The custom difficulty setting is aimed at giving players more choices to play around with. The higher the difficulty, the more chances of getting kits and higher league scores. Apart from that, the new bowling actions along with the ability to assign them is aimed at bringing more versatility to the game. With new cut scenes and full camera control to capture highlights, WCC3 will give a further immersive experience.
The World Cricket Championship series has been created by Chennai based Next Wave Multimedia Pvt. Ltd., which is a subsidiary of Nazara Technologies Ltd., a leading India based diversified gaming and sports media platform. Launched in November 2020, the third instalment is the latest in the series and offers new controls, real-time motion capture, as well as Hindi and English commentary from Aakash Chopra and Matthew Hayden respectively. The game has won the Indian Game Developers Conference’s “Studio Game of the Year” award and Google Play Store’s “Users Choice” Award 2020, just within a few months of its launch.
Asia
Kerala High Court Refuses to Stay Ban on Online Rummy

The High Court of Kerala has rejected a petition from online gaming companies to stay the ordinance that makes playing online rummy for stakes a punishable offence.
The state of Kerala is sticking to the online rummy ban introduced in February despite complaints from gaming companies who note that land-based play of rummy is not banned.
Online gaming companies also noted that rummy is a game of skill and the amendment of section 14A of the Kerala Gaming Act of 1960 only covered games of chance, not skill games.
According to local media, although the Kerala High Court stated that it does not agree with the complaint, it asked the Kerala Government to present a statement by May 29.
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