Tech giants weigh in on Australia gambling review
Facebook, Google and Twitter warn against proposals to use web filtering as a means for reducing offshore wagering
Online technology giants including Facebook, Twitter and Google have warned the Australian government that any plans to block offshore sites would be unworkable.
In a submission to the federal government’s Review of the Impact of Illegal Offshore Wagering, seen by the Sydney Morning Herald, the internet companies said they would be against website filtering and told authorities to not look to the digital sector to provide assistance.
“We consider there to be fundamental flaws and significant practical difficulties with any attempts to filter the internet such that it may not be possible to automatically block content,” the submission read.
“Who would determine whether a service is illegal and would entire websites be blocked if there are both legal and illegal services on the website?” it added.
The joint submission to the review was made under the Digital Industry Group association which includes Facebook, Google, Twitter, Yahoo7 and Microsoft.
The federal government’s review, which will report to the Minister of Social Services and the Minister of Communications in two weeks’ time, was first announced on 7 September by the former minister Scott Morrison and is being led by the former premier of New South Wales Barry O’Farrell.
According to Morrison, wagering via unlicensed websites from outside Australia now accounts for 60% of the total AU$1.6bn (£730m) online gambling market and consists of approximately 2,000 websites beyond regulatory control.