Korean Online Casinos Win Big
SOUTH KOREA – As reported by the Dong-A Ilbo: "HanGame, Netmarble, Pmang, and Mgame, local Internet sites providing online gambling games, recorded a 234.3 billion won revenue last year, from a mere 82.4 billion won in 2002.
"Traditional gambling industry represented by horseracing, motorboat-racing, Kangwon Land Casino, on the other hand, saw its revenue last year decline by 25 percent to record 7.92 trillion won.
"The growth of Internet gambling sites has been spurred by the explosive increase of users in their 20s and 30s and female users. The number of registered users for four gambling major sites amounts to between 15 million to 24 million, an increase of 1~2 million per year. Sixty percent of users are in their 20s and 30s, and female users account for 40 percent of total users.
"…The gaming sites` main source of income is from selling cyber items or avatars (one`s characterized self on the Internet) which give cyber money.
"…According to the Korea Media Rating Board, 196 games with varying degrees of gambling element were newly released last year, twice that of the number released in 2003…"