Australia approves lotto-betting ban
Lottoland Australia CEO Luke Brill insists the firm will remain a major provider of online gaming products after being ordered to cease operations
Australian parliament has approved landmark laws prohibiting online lottery betting in the country, essentially requiring the likes of Lottoland to cease operations within six months.
The Australian Senate passed the Interactive Gambling Amendment (Lottery Betting) Bill 2018 without amendment last night, after just one opposition senator voted against the proposals.
The bill confirms that secondary lottery providers and keno betting operators must cease operations within six months, with January 2019 likely to become the official deadline.
The legislation is a significant blow to online betting operators in the country including Lottoland, which has been working hard to reach a revenue sharing agreement with local newsagents.
But Lottoland Australia CEO Luke Brill remained defiant, insisting the firm will still be a major provider of online gaming products in the country.
Lottoland Australia CEO Luke Brill
“As you would expect, Lottoland Australia is well advanced in looking at other ways we can continue to deliver choice to the 700,000 Australians who have registered with us over the past two years.
“It is a great pity that the Senate did not give due consideration of the unintended consequences the new laws will have – not just on our customers, but on competition and innovation.
“As we have said from the very beginning, the legislation is bad news for Australian newsagents, too, which will now be at the mercy of a huge, money-hungry monopoly in the form of Tatts Group.
“But this decision does not mean the end of Lottoland Australia – far from it,” he added.
Tabcorp-owned Tatts Group spent nearly AU$5m last year on its campaign to try and shut down Lottoland according to the Australian firm’s H2 results.
Tabcorp chief David Attenborough issued a strong rebuke to Lottoland in a speech earlier this week.
He said: “The Victorian lottery delivers over AU$400m for the funding of hospitals, and over AU$100m to the newsagents and convenience stores that sell lottery tickets, and that’s what the lottery is about.
“The lottery is not there to make oodles of money for the operator, it’s there to drive returns to the community as well, but Lottoland paid zero tax and actually gave nothing back to the Victorian community at all.”