Author: Olivia Cole

Australian politician Andrew Wilkie and Baptist minister Timothy Costello insist on the launch of a royal commission to tackle the local gambling industry, including the sports betting sector. Wilkie is also of the opinion a nationwide regulator should be introduced to properly oversee gambling operations Down Under. This comes after an investigation conducted by the country’s national broadcaster ABC. It revealed one of the biggest online sportsbooks Down Under, bet365, could be using underhanded tactics to drive in more revenue from punters and gain an advantage over rival bookmakers. As…

The sports betting business is not always as fair and transparent as it claims to be, as new allegations regarding bet365 Australia reveal. According to a former employer of the popular online betting platform, the operator’s practices were dishonest and unethical, to say the least, and probably even illegal. The bookmaker, which is originally based in the United Kingdom but is also present in Australia and regulated by Australia’s Northern Territory Government, is said to have blocked access to punters who regularly won from their bets on the website. Bettors…

The Government of the State of South Australia has proposed changes to the current gambling legislation, according to which slot machines or pokies, as they are known in Australia, will accept not only coins but also banknotes. Recent research from the Australia Institute, however, reveals that the vast majority of people reject the Government’s plans, believing that the changes would only increase the issue with problem gambling. The findings come as a result of an online survey of 503 South Australians who were asked whether poker machines should be allowed…

On-course bookmakers across Ireland are faced with a grim situation following last week’s disputes between the Irish National Professional Bookmakers Association (INPBA), Horse Racing Ireland (HRI), and the Association of Irish Racecourses (AIR). Things escalated to such an extent that the INPBA warned its members may skip on attending last week’s fixture in Punchestown and other scheduled races in the future. The parties concerned are expected to meet again tomorrow for further negotiations. On-course bookies are under threat of turning into an endangered species as their off-track brethren are now…

British online gambling industry’s gross gambling yield suffered a decline of 0.3% year-on-year, reaching £14.36 billion in the year that ended on March 31st, 2019. According to new figures provided by the UK Gambling Commission (UKGC), the revenue of the British remote gambling sector fell by 0.6% to £5.3 billion even though higher stakes were reported. Yesterday, the UK gambling regulatory body posted its annual industry statistics report where the figures were included. According to records, this has been the first-ever annual decline registered for the online gambling sector that…

One of the leading gambling charities in Ireland has urged the Government to eliminate the existing period of time it takes for gambling operators to check the age of a certain player. Currently, in Ireland, online gambling operators take up to 72 hours to check the age of a user trying to cash out their winnings to make sure they are at least 18 years old. In comparison, this time period has been recently eliminated in the UK. Problem Gamblers’ boss, Barry Grant, shared that there are practically no limitations…

Earlier today, SkyCity Entertainment Group revealed that its insurers have confirmed they would cover the damage which a fire caused to the company’s Auckland-based convention centre and adjacent hotel that is currently under construction. The New Zealand gaming and entertainment operator issued an exchange filing to reveal that its third party liability insurance policy would review the claims of the company. Fletcher Building that is engaged with the construction of the project is insured both under a third party liability insurance policy and its contract works insurance policy. On October…

The British multinational venture capital company Virgin Group Ltd. is expected to officially announce its interest to become the National Lottery operator for the third time in two decades and a half. Reportedly, the company, under the lead of its founder Sir Richard Branson, has been preparing to once again make an effort and replace Camelot Group as the sole operator of the state lottery. As revealed by The Times, Virgin Group’s team is willing to see the firm as the organiser of the UK National Lottery. After mid-January 2020,…

British bookmaker William Hill has unveiled its financial results for the four months since it reported its first-half results and confirmed that it was a higher demand for online gambling services and its rapid expansion on the US market that helped. In the light of stricter regulatory regime in its home market, where the British Government reduced the maximum stake permitted on fixed-odds betting terminals (FOBTs) from £100 to £2, William Hill is now focusing on its online gambling operations. As a result of the maximum stake reduction, the British…

Most recently, the New Zealand gambling operator SkyCity has described its plan to boost the number of pokie machines in its Hamilton casino as modest. Previously, the company has revealed that it is willing to increase the number of electronic gaming terminals to 400 and says that this is what customers want. The hearing of the Gambling Commission into SkyCity’s offer to increase the number of pokies available at its casino in Hamilton has already started. Graeme Reeves, the Chief Gambling Commissioner, has explained that the hearing is aimed at…