The New South Wales gaming regulator has warned it will push for sports betting operators who flout advertising laws to be fined the maximum after more than AU$100,000 (US$70,000) in fines were handed out over the past week.
Liquor & Gaming NSW, the government agency in charge of monitoring such activities in conjunction with the NSW Independent Liquor & Gaming Authority, revealed it issued a AU$70,000 (US$49,000) fine to online betting provider BetDeluxe for publishing illegal gambling inducements while PointsBet was fined AU$35,000 (US$24,500), having previously been fined AU$20,000 (US$14,000) for the same offence in 2019.
Hospitality and Racing CEO Anthony Keon said it was unacceptable that seven bookmakers have been prosecuted on multiple occasions since 2018.
“Liquor & Gaming NSW will continue to actively pursue operators for illegal advertisements and advocate for the courts to issue higher penalties,” he said.
“In 2018 the NSW Government introduced new laws to significantly increase penalties for wagering operators who are found guilty of promoting inducements to gamble, with maximum fines now set at AU$110,000 (US$76,500) per offence for a corporation.
“Clearly some of these operators think gambling inducements are just the cost of doing business, but they are wrong, and they are pushing their luck. We will continue to bring these matters before the courts and seek higher penalties that reflect community expectations.”
The agency revealed that BetDeluxe pleaded guilty to five offences during a court hearing this week, including 21 Facebook promotions for bonus bets on sports games and enhanced odds on horse racing.
PointsBet pleaded guilty to two advertisements that included an Instagram promotion to receive $50 back in bonus bets, similar to those it offered in 2019 on the Apple App Store, promising $100 cash back on certain bets.
“Prohibitions on gambling inducements are an important harm minimization measure and the increase in maximum penalties, along with our continued prosecution action, should send a clear message to wagering operators about how seriously we view these matters,” Keon said.
“Reoffenders run the risk of the higher range penalties, and more scrutiny, so let me be clear that patterns of poor compliance are not worth the trouble.
“We hope this is the first and last time we see BetDeluxe in court for gambling inducements.”
Liquor & Gaming NSW has successfully prosecuted 37 matters for prohibited gambling advertising, resulting in over AU$642,500 (AU$447,000) in fines since 2015, the agency said. It added that another nine betting providers are currently before the courts.
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