The British gambling and sports betting giant Entain has faced a fine in the Northern Territory of Australia after being found to have violated the region’s gambling laws. It was the online sportsbook platform of the gambling giant – Neds – that was responsible for the violation of the regulatory rules in the Northern Territory, the local gambling watchdog said.
As revealed by the Northern Territory Racing Commission, Entain became subject to a fine worth AU$26,690 for advertising sign-up bonuses to players that have just created their accounts. For the time being, gambling operators are suspended from offering such marketing promotions under the Code of Practice for Responsible Service of Online Gambling of Australia’s Northern Territory.
Under the provisions of the Code, online gambling companies are banned from offering any rewards, credits, or vouchers to a customer to open a betting account. The operators of online gambling services are also not allowed to offer such incentives to players to refer other persons to open a betting account.
The Racing Commission of the Northern Territory explained that the illegal promotion was detected by one of its inspectors while they attended an event at the Fannie Bay Racecourse at the end of July 2021. As reported by the regulatory agency, its associate received a Neds business card featuring a QR code that offered bonus cash to the person in case they register a new account with the online gambling and sports betting company.
After scanning the QR code, the agency’s associate received three bonus cash alternatives. According to a list obtained by the Racing Commission’s member, more than twelve other players who registered new accounts with Neds received such QR codes and scanned them to receive a sign-up bonus.
Gambling Operators in the Northern Territory Banned from Making Sign-Up Promotions
The Australian online gambling company responded to the inquiries of the commission, blaming its affiliates, which are known in Australia as Business Development Managers (BDM), for issuing such deposit promotions for new customers. As explained by Neds, its affiliate operatives only matched deposits after a new player had entered the account and gambled, which is believed to have circumvented the ban on so-called first-deposit enticements.
The gambling company shared that the BDMs of Neds offered and provided the operator’s existing customers with matched deposit bonuses but only in case they had confirmed to Customer Support that they had been existing customers of Neds.
However, the provided explanation was not accepted by the Northern Territory’s Racing Commission. The regulator concluded that the affiliate operatives were essentially violating the ban on new player account incentives, even if the so-called deposit matches were made days or weeks following the establishment of the customer’s account.
After taking into consideration the presented evidence, including the number of new customer accounts that have been created with Neds by using the QR code, the Northern Territory’s Racing Commission confirmed that the affiliates of the online sportsbook platform offered a credit, voucher, or reward to a person as an incentive to open a gambling account with the company. The regulator explained that the QR codes printed on the cards that had been handed out by the Business Development Managers of Neds had been aimed at luring potential customers to open an account with the gambling operator.
The AU$26,690 fine, however, is not expected to cause much trouble to Entain. Reportedly, the British gambling giant is currently working on another acquisition attempt, as it seeks to expand its European footprint through the takeover of the Baltic betting group Olympic Entertainment.
- Author
Olivia Cole
