The Philippines has become one of the most important regulated online gaming markets in Asia, and Paul Fox believes other countries in the region can learn from how the market has developed.

Paul, Founder of Claymore Solutions, speaks with Surya about why the Philippines has become a natural base for gaming operations and back-office teams, particularly for larger and publicly listed companies that need to operate carefully around regulation.

The conversation also looks at where online gaming in Asia could go next. Paul describes the Philippines as a regional trailblazer, pointing to the growth of licensed online gaming alongside the country's established land-based casino market.

For markets such as Thailand, he believes the Philippines offers a more relevant comparison than Europe or the United States because of the similarities within the region. Malaysia and Indonesia may face more complicated paths because of religious and cultural factors.

Paul's wider argument is that gambling demand already exists across Asia, whether it is legal or not. His preference is for clear legislation that allows governments to regulate the activity properly, create safer operating conditions and collect tax revenue.

Asia's iGaming market has changed significantly over the years, but entering the region is not as simple as treating Asia as one market.

In Episode 83 of iGaming Real Talk, recorded at SiGMA Asia in Manila, our host Surya Palli sits down with Pierre Wuu, Board Advisor at SiGMA Group, to discuss the development of the Philippine market, regulatory stability and what international companies need to consider before entering Asia.

Pierre explains why stability from regulators is important for companies investing in the region, and why the Philippines has been able to build a stronger regulated online market than many other countries in Southeast Asia.

The conversation also looks at Thailand, Cambodia, Singapore and the UAE, including why some markets have struggled to put clear regulatory frameworks in place and what Thailand needs to do before it can fully develop its gaming opportunity.

Pierre also talks about why international operators need to get closer to the markets they want to enter. For him, having people on the ground and understanding local marketing, payments and compliance is essential.

The discussion ends with a simple point: Asia is not one market. Japan, Thailand, the Philippines and other countries all have their own rules, habits and opportunities.

The Philippines has one of Asia's most developed gaming markets, but Joe from Jade Entertainment believes licensed operators are still competing for only a fraction of the total opportunity.

Speaking with Surya at SiGMA Asia, Joe looks back at a career in gaming that started in 1988 and covers the market's move from land-based casinos into sports betting, remote gaming and today's growing online sector. His view is that online gaming has now surpassed land-based gaming, creating a new challenge for traditional casinos: how to bring the online and physical experience together.

A major part of the conversation is channelisation. Joe says legal gaming in the Philippines represents only 22% of revenue, with the rest going elsewhere. For him, licensed operators should not see each other as the main competition. The bigger challenge is moving players away from illegal and grey-market alternatives.

The discussion then widens to Asia and other emerging markets. Joe sees further potential in Sri Lanka, East Africa, Vietnam and Malaysia, while remaining much more cautious about markets such as Thailand. He also argues that governments should consider regulation not only as a source of tax revenue, but as a way to introduce player protection, responsible gambling and KYC.

Surya and Joe also discuss crypto casinos, tax structures and the importance of making regulated products competitive. Joe's wider point throughout the conversation is consistent: demand for gaming does not disappear because legal options are removed. If regulated gaming is not available, illegal alternatives will continue to exist.

Trust between affiliates and operators is becoming harder to maintain, and John Wright believes better access to data could force both sides to become more accountable.

John, Co-founder of Nousviz, returns to iGaming Real Talk to speak with Surya about affiliate shaving, aggressive commercial deals, traffic quality and why the problem is not always one-sided. He argues that operators can lack transparency, but affiliates can also take advantage of operators through deals or placements that do not deliver what was promised.

A large part of the conversation looks at whether industry-wide benchmarking could help. John explains how anonymised affiliate data could be used to show conversion rates, player value and operator performance more clearly. His view is that once affiliates can compare where their traffic actually performs best, operators will have more pressure to fix weak CRM, VIP programmes, payments and other parts of the player experience.

They also discuss the technology behind affiliate management. John talks about fragmented APIs, the StatsDrone Affiliate Software Report, the number of affiliate platforms in the market and why standardised data is still missing. Nousviz is being built around bringing information from different systems into one place rather than trying to replace every individual tool.

The final part turns to AI agents. John sees 2026 as the year agents become more important, particularly for companies that want better data, customer support and analysis without building large BI or engineering teams. But AI also creates a new problem for SaaS companies: if software becomes easier to build, every product needs a clearer moat and stronger reason for customers to stay.

Affiliates can spend time and money bringing in players, but what happens after that traffic reaches the operator?

Surya speaks with iGaming Marketing Executive Paul Puolakka about the changing affiliate and operator relationship, especially as traffic becomes more expensive and player retention becomes harder.

Paul explains that affiliates currently have limited control once they deliver the click. If the operator fails to retain the player, the value of that traffic is also lost for the affiliate. He believes this could lead to closer cooperation around CRM, retargeting, reactivation and the wider player lifecycle.

The conversation also looks at the future of CPA, RevShare and hybrid deals, along with how affiliation may move beyond traditional SEO. Paul expects affiliates to work more like media businesses across different channels, while AI becomes part of areas such as testing, tracking and retargeting.

Sports betting in the Philippines is growing, but Eric Su believes the next phase cannot simply be about chasing faster revenue.

In Episode 79, Joining Surya on iGaming Real Talk, the former Head of ArenaPlus at DigiPlus explains why the market needs to move towards more sustainable growth, stronger compliance and responsible gambling without making the regulated product so restrictive that players move elsewhere.

Eric argues that banning or heavily restricting betting does not remove demand. Black market operators are already present, and overregulation can give them a stronger position if legal operators become less attractive or harder to access.

The conversation also looks at the large gap between sports fans and sports bettors in the Philippines. Eric explains why education and better fan engagement matter, and how ArenaPlus used its NBA partnership to connect betting content with the way people already follow basketball.

Surya and Eric also discuss prediction markets, micro betting and the future of sportsbooks. Eric does not expect prediction markets to replace traditional sportsbooks, but believes different products could increasingly overlap as technology and player behaviour continue to change.

In Episode 78 of iGaming Real Talk, Surya speaks with Prash Patel, Founder of DMR Strategic, about how the relationship between operators and affiliates needs to change as acquiring players becomes harder and more expensive.

Prash has experience on both sides of the relationship. He previously built and sold an affiliate business and has also worked on the operator side. One of the biggest mistakes he sees is operators treating every affiliate and traffic source in the same way. SEO, PPC, social, streamers and communities all work differently, with their own costs, audiences and business models.

The conversation also questions the industry's focus on cheap CPA. Prash argues that acquiring a player for less money does not automatically make that player more valuable. An affiliate that looks expensive initially may deliver players who generate far more value over the following months. For him, operators need to decide whether they are building around short-term acquisition costs or longer-term player value.

Another major topic is communication. Prash says affiliates are often treated simply as traffic sources, with little personalization or understanding of how their businesses work. He believes stronger operator and affiliate relationships will become increasingly important as quality traffic gets harder to find.

The episode then moves into AI and what it means for affiliates. Prash believes AI has made it much easier to launch websites and produce content, but that also makes it harder to stand out. His view is that trust, brand, personality and community will become more important, while the strongest affiliates will use AI for localization, personalization and translation rather than simply generating more content.

In Episode 77 of iGaming Real Talk, Surya speaks with David Khutsishvili, CMO at FortuneJack, about why chasing bigger acquisition numbers does not always create a stronger casino business.

FortuneJack has been operating since 2014 in a crypto casino market where new brands continue to appear. David says trust has been one of the main reasons the company has been able to keep players over time. The team focuses on player relationships, VIP management, loyalty programmes and creating an experience that encourages customers to stay rather than simply acquiring more users.

The conversation also looks closely at streamers and affiliate traffic. David explains why views and screenshots cannot always be taken at face value. Fake views, bots and recycled promotional funds make verification important. FortuneJack uses a dedicated streamer management team, research tools and manual checks before deciding whether a partnership makes sense.

For David, audience size is also not enough. A successful streamer still needs to fit the positioning of the brand. FortuneJack prefers longer-term streamer partnerships and looks at the audience, market and promotional approach before building a deal.

The episode closes with the future of affiliate relationships. David does not believe CPA and RevShare will disappear, but he thinks the relationship between operators and affiliates needs to move beyond individual transactions. His view is that operators should understand the a