Taiwanese company Astro to provide the Philippine market

Astro has made efforts to win product certification from Philippine Amusement & Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR), the parent company of Oriental Pearl, and consequently struck the deal, Astro pointed out. Oriental Pearl will operate such casino machines at casinos in the Philippines and Astro will share the operating profit based on a formula specified in the contract, Astro indicated. However, Astro declined to reveal the formula.

Astro will initially ship a small volume of casino machines to Orient Pearl by the end of this month for a trial run, with the results of the tests used for implementing any hardware and/or software modification, Astro pointed out. The remaining casino machines will be delivered in early 2008, Astro indicated. During the contract period of over nine years, Astro will update the game content for the 520 casino machines to maximize the attraction of the machine, Astro noted.

If the profit-sharing business model proves to be successful, Astro may provide more casino machines for operation in the Philippine market, the company said.

In related news, Astro’s new models of gaming machines featuring an Internet connection are in the process of certification by Gaming Laboratories International (GLI), according to the company.