Lack of regulations criticized in Costa Rica, Latin America online gambling reports

As the online gambling industry continues to grow in Latin America, some new reports are being released to help online businesses better prepare for the emerging market there.
That market is very enthusiastic about sports betting, as we reported earlier at CAP, but as yet doesn’t have access to the major online gambling brands that most of the rest of the world does.
The Costa Rica Gaming and Gambling 2011 Report
Nonetheless, some of the countries in this market do rank on the international online gambling scale. In Costa Rica, Latin America’s third-largest market, some 500 online gaming operators have set up shop, generating $14.5 billion in yearly revenue, per a recent Research and Markets study.
“Amongst the largest international gambling players already present in Latin America we can find groups such as CODERE, CIRSA, Thunderbird, Winner, Enjoy, Unidelca, Caliente, Fischer, Casinos Austria, Pinnacle Entertainment, Crown Casinos, Latin Gaming, Sun International., GTECH, INTRALOT, Televisa and many more,” the report adds.
But legal and regulatory issues are preventing the Costa Rican market itself from becoming a major earner in online gambling, the report indicates.
“Because of the absence of legislation dealing with online gambling, the businesses and operations of Costa Rica-based gaming companies are not subject to the regulations, monitoring, and testing to which most offshore governments subject their licensees,” explains online-casinos.com. “Most operators are self-regulated and because there is no official regulatory body to document license holders, and there is no betting or gaming tax. Companies operate under a ‘data processing’ license.”
“It is believed that if both the legal and illegal gaming activities were combined in Latin America it is likely that the region would generate over US$150 billion a year,” the Research and Markets report continues. “The twelve principle gambling countries in this region generate combined revenues of over US$33 billion.”
The Latin American Gaming & Gambling Report 2011
A companion report from Research and Markets tackles the Latin American online gambling sector as a whole.
In the “comprehensive country-by-country analysis,” the research firm puts each nation’s location, population, political environment, legal framework, tech infrastructure, and general gambling market together to determine the big picture regarding igaming potential.
“With all the changes around the world restricting gaming and gambling, Latin America presents growing opportunities for investors, operators, equipment and technology suppliers and many more within the gaming and gambling industry,” Research and Market reps stated.
Just how big is that opportunity? Latin America, taken together, has 33 countries and about 569 million people — and they dedicate “a large proportion of their income to gambling.” On average, “each inhabitant in this region spends US$250 a year,” the report continues.
The report also discusses Internet and phone penetration. The full list of countries covered includes, alphabetically, Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Costa Rica, Mexico, Panama, Peru and Venezuela. The report also discusses “smaller gaming and gambling markets” in Nicaragua, Paraguay, and Uruguay.
Affiliate angle
If knowledge is power, this kind of info is gold. Gaining a better understanding of the market for online gambling internationally can give forward-thinking online entrepreneurs a definite advantage in long-term success.