CTV News
Date: December 16, 2018

Women playing a claw crane machine in Taipei. Sam YEH / AFP

As Taiwan’s economy stagnates, claw crane arcades where customers lower a grabber to try to pick up a prize from a glass box are booming as affordable entertainment, while operators see them as a way to make a fast buck.

According to official figures, there is one claw crane outlet for every two convenience stores in Taiwan, with the number more than doubling last year to become the fourth largest tax income source in the entertainment industry.

The concept is simple — for as little as TW$10 (C$0.43), customers manually lower a metal claw into a pile of prizes, which are usually soft toys, but can also include electronic gadgets and fashion accessories.    [FULL  STORY]