2026-11-01 · iGaming field notes

Hong Kong-listed International Entertainment Corp (IEC) disclosed on 31 October that its Manila integrated resort, LaVie Resort & Casino in Malate, will launch its own online gaming platform in mid-to-late November, serving domestic customers in the Philippines. The platform, LaVie Resort & Casino Manila, is the group's Phase Two online business: Phase One went live earlier this year in partnership with Philippine online leader DigiPlus. Phase Two is solely owned — the group develops, controls, operates and maintains the software systems, games, technologies and the platform itself, right down to the tables, machines and equipment.

One detail stands out: a designated area inside the casino opens physical tables and machines to remote play, with human dealers on camera while players join from outside. Remote table games include Commission Baccarat, Super 6 Baccarat and Tiger Baccarat; the RNG side spans online slots, table games, poker, bingo and arcade titles. Certification goes through GLI or other laboratories accredited by PAGCOR, with licensing held by subsidiary New Coast Leisure.

Among Manila peers the choice looks even clearer. Most land-based operators go outside for their online arm: Newport World Resorts, Okada Manila, Hann and NUSTAR all launched with platform provider PhilWeb. Only Solaire and now LaVie keep the entire stack in-house. The two routes have different cost structures — borrowing a platform is fast, but data, release cadence and revenue share sit with someone else; self-build costs more up front and buys full control of the chassis.

For teams running turnkey builds, the case reads in reverse: a traditional casino with no online DNA still dares to hold the full stack, which says the barrier to in-house platform work is dropping. What a white-label package saves you is precisely the development, operations and certification work IEC chose to carry itself. The game API layer and the remote-table live architecture are the parts most worth borrowing.