Despite the Chinese people’s traditional fondness for games of chance, gambling is illegal under the Communist government with the exception of the Macau Province, which enjoys a degree of autonomy outside the mainland’s strict economic system. This is the first time, however, that anyone has been prosecuted in Shanghai for running an online gambling service.

Meanwhile, in Taiwan, where gambling is also illegal, a husband and wife have been arrested for operating a Macau-based website taking bets on the Island’s forthcoming presidential elections. Officers also raided six addresses in cities around the island as part of a renewed operation to deter the illegal betting industry that is largely run by the island's criminal gangs.