Thailand’s Ministry of Digital Economy and Society is said to be placing its focus on passage of a new Promotion of the Game Industry Act that will, among other things, provide a vehicle for identifying social and video games that contain hidden gambling elements.
According to a report by The Nation, the Act is currently in draft stage but has been endorsed by the revolving fund committee of the Comptroller General’s Department and has received budgetary allocation from the National Broadcasting and Telecommunications Commission (NBTC). It is expected to be submitted to the Cabinet for consideration in the near future.
The draft law would establish a central regulatory framework for Thailand’s gaming industry, providing a vehicle to identify and take action against games offering randomized reward systems, prize draws or point-accumulation games redeemable for rewards.
The Nation observed that there is currently no such agency with the power to monitor or block such games. The Act will also provide the Cyber Crime Investigation Bureau with the power to audit operators and suspend unregistered game.
The Act has been described as an effort to ensure the games industry is fair and sustainable for all involved and is not intended to restrict competition.
This follows the recent collapse of the former Shinawatra government and with it any chance in the short term of Thailand legalizing casino gaming within large-scale integrated resorts.
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