Philweb sees banner year, allots P100 million for 2011 capex

MANILA, Philippines -  Ongpin-led Philweb Corp. is allocating about P100 million for capital expenditures this year as as it plans to add a minimum of 100 Pagcor e-Games (PEGS) cafes and further expand its business overseas.   

Philweb said it is also looking at 2011 as a banner year with overseas expansion and additional gaming cafes driving revenue growth.   

“I think 2011 will be a record year for Philweb,” company president Dennis Valdez said on the sidelines of yesterday’s stockholders’ meeting.       

Additional PEGS cafes, which resulted from a new contract signed in December with the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp. (Pagcor), will boost Philweb’s revenues as this business segment is still the firm’s biggest revenue contributor.    “Almost every business is growing. PEGS business is growing while other businesses continue to grow,” Valdez said.   

He also said ongoing projects in Cambodia, Laos, Vietnam, Nepal, India, Sri Lanka, Guam, Saipan, Palau and Timor Leste will level up this year. These projects range from setting up variations of Internet gaming cafes to running lotteries and other gaming products.   

“I think within the next three to five years, international business will be half or larger of our business in terms of revenues,” Valdez said.   

Philweb’s revenues in the first three months of the year grew 15 percent to P273.8 million while cost and expenses likewise grew 17 percent to P108.1 million during the period.   

This has led to a profit of P173.7 million in the first quarter of 2011, almost 16 percent higher than P150.2 million recorded a year ago.   

Meanwhile, Valdez said Philweb is in talks with TV5 to develop a game show that will be aired in the TV network.   

Philweb will provide the game content, prizes, game engines, back-end and mobile infrastructure, while TV5 will provide production and airtime.   

“That is still in the works since TV is not an easy landscape to enter. TV5 is growing very well and the downside of it is that there is a very little airtime in which you can take a look at,” Valdez said.