Australia Now Facing Its Own Black-Friday Scenario

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Monday, December 12th, 2016 | Written by Charles Washington

Many countries are currently revisiting their gambling laws, and either making reforms to their online gambling sectors or legalizing it for the very first time. Australia is an exception to the rule, as its proposed legislation would restrict access to online poker rather than make the game available to more players Down Under. While it isn’t clear if the proposed rules will be adopted, online operators are already issuing statements that they plan to comply if the proposed reforms go ahead.

In the meantime, online bookmakers are attempting to position themselves within any new structure by forming a new industry body called Responsible Wagering Australia, with former Liberal senator Richard Colbeck (photo) having now taken up position as the organization’s chairman. As he stated after his appointment was announced:

“I’m looking forward to working closely and co-cooperatively with the Australian government on their consumer protection agenda. We share their objectives and are determined to engage constructively to make it work.”

Current iGambling Laws

Online gambling is bit complicated in Australia, and while online sports betting is legal, the 15-year-old Australian online gambling law that is currently in place does not make any mention of online poker and other forms of online casino games. It simply says that foreign operators may not advertise online gambling in Australia, although the language has been dubbed “the gray area” and has therefore made it possible for international operators like PokerStars to provide online poker to players under the radar.

Those days may soon come to an end, though, as Australia’s Minister for Communications Mitch Fifield and Australia’s Minister for Human Services, Alan Tudge, are both pushing for the gray area to be brought firmly into the light. They are calling on Australian lawmakers to amend the current gambling law and state specifically that online casino games and online poker on sites run by foreign operators are illegal.

Sports Betting Brought Issue to Focus

Although sports betting is legal in Australia, it was actually the actions of online sportsbooks that seems to have brought Fifield and Tudge’s attention to online poker and other online casino games. Earlier this year, the government issued a strong warning to online sportsbooks to stop the illegal practice of accepting what is known as in-play bets, or wagers on sporting events that are already in progress. In-play betting was already illegal in Australia, but some online sportsbooks had introduced apps that circumvented the rules, and made such wagering possible.

Gambling Addiction Concerns

Fifield and Tudge feel that there is not enough currently being done to protect Australians who may suffer from gambling addiction. Australia ranks number one in gambling dollars spent per person at $866, and naturally online sports betting sites all want to be in the market as a result. In fact, some have already demonstrated that they are willing to push the rules as far as they can in order to secure a foothold in the market.

For operators that are currently offering legal sports betting and casino games under the gray area of the law, the solution will be to suspend casino games and focus only on sports betting if the rules are adopted. PokerStars does not have a strong sports betting presence in the country, so this would not be an option for them. Concerned about the potential to miss out on licensing in opportunities in other countries and in U.S. states like California, Amaya, the company that owns PokerStars, has already gone on the record as saying that if the rules are changed, its sites will block players from Australia entirely.

Responsible Wagering Australia

With major developments about to transform the Australian online gambling market, international online bookmakers have banded together to form an industry body representing their interests. Companies such as Betfair, bet365, CrownBet, Sportsbet and Unibet have been instrumental in setting up ‘Responsible Wagering Australia’, with the newly formed body stating that it was committed to ensuring the integrity of sports, and that it would also support government regulatory efforts to reduce television advertising during live sports, as well as phasing out the controversial credit betting option for customers. Commenting on the RWA’s position, its chairman Richard Colbeck explained:

“Responsible wagering lies at the heart of many Australians’ enjoyment of their racing and sporting interests. Responsible Wagering Australia is committed to meeting that need with the highest standards of consumer protection, integrity and harm minimization.”