Australian regulations force 33 sites out of market

Thirty-three international egaming sites have withdrawn from the Australian market in the 12 months since the amended Interactive Gambling Act 2001 came into force, according to the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA).

Detailing its progress over the last year, the ACMA confirmed 33 of the “most popular offshore wagering sites” and 33 of the “most popular gaming sites” withdrew from the market.

It also said 62 investigations were completed during the period, with 38 firms proving to be in breach of the act. A further 15 investigations are still underway.

A total of 237 separate public contacts were made to the ACMA concerning the conduct of media providers, of which 126 were complaints by members of the public.

These yielded 90 separate breaches, with more than half (54) by operators providing a prohibited interactive gaming service to customers in Australia.

During the year the ACMA established an interactive gambling taskforce which aims to use education, engagement and enforcement action to deter unlicensed offshore gambling services.

The ACMA also confirmed in the report that it would escalate its enforcement activities over the next 12 months, including the application of civil penalty orders against non-compliant services and/or individuals knowingly concerned in their operation.

It also said it aimed to continue disrupting advertising and promotional activities of unlicensed online operators over the next 12 months.