Acma Blocks Further 12 Illegal Gambling Websites

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Australia is a country with a large number of gamblers and a bustling online betting market. The occurrence of the Covid-19 pandemic does not make players from this country falter in their betting decisions, but on the contrary, the parameters show that the percentage of players returning to betting sites has an increasing trend in the past year.

In light of that situation, the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) has done its part to protect players by excluding gambling sites operating without the permission of the government of this country. Specifically, they have announced to block 12 betting sites with signs of fraud since their research article was formed.

The Increasing Rate Of Betting Online In Australia Reported In Early February

The Australian Media and Communications Authority (ACMA) has presented its latest research findings with a remarkable figure that at least one in ten Australians made an online bet at least once within the last half-year, until June 2021. Compared to the same period in 2020, this rate has nearly quadrupled, signaling a solid return of the gambling industry in the country of kangaroos after the Covid-19 pandemic.

Also, in the report, the gambling frequency of players is clearly shown. Nearly half of those interviewed said they gamble less than once a month, while the rest do it more often. In particular, only 2% of players claim that they play multiple times in a day.

If comparing the two times before and after the pandemic, the results from the research institute imply that the Covid-19 pandemic has not changed the habits of the majority of Australian gamblers. Only 16% of players feel more inclined to gamble, and 6% the opposite.

The appeal of traditional sports still proves to be superior when it owns an impressive bettors ratio. More than half of those who took the survey said they mainly bet on these sports. Besides, horse racing is also a trendy subject in this country with many punters. The remaining areas, such as eSports, virtual sports, and other events, do not account for more than 6% of the total bets placed.

In the study published by the Agency, illegal platforms proved to be far inferior to transparent sites with their meager number of players. Specifically, only one in ten players under the age of 45 registers at such platforms, while the proportion drops dramatically for players aged 45 and over, with just one in fifty. As a whole, almost 90% of those surveyed said they only bet on platforms with valid licenses.

In conclusion, experts from the Agency said that the Covid pandemic taking place since 2019 could boost the frequency of participation in gambling activities in Australia. While the change is insignificant, it does highlight the boom in technology and the pervasiveness of gambling promotions that are said to be on the rise in times of social distancing. . Besides, the great excitement of everyone when seeing the return of sports events is also part of the reason for the sudden increase in bets on sports matches in this Oceania country.

Acma Blocks Further 12 Websites In Illegal Gambling In Response To The Increasing Percentage Of Betting Online

Faced with the increasingly complex and sophisticated situation of illegal forms of online gambling, ACMA has officially announced the exclusion of 12 platforms that they have reason to believe these online betting sites operate without transparency and take advantage of loopholes in the 2001 Interactive Gambling Act enacted by the government of this country.

The list of blocked platforms includes:

• 7 Reels Casino
• Zebet Casino
• Arlekin Casino
• Zeturf Casino
• Slots Vibe Casino
• Tangiers Casino
• Johnnie Kash Kings Casino
• Lucky Star Casino
• Winward Casino
• Thebes Casino
• 21 Dukes
• Horus Casino

After a months-long investigation, Australian internet service providers have been asked by ACMA to block all requests to access these online casino sites. That is not the first time they have done this, as, since the end of 2019, nearly 400 other unlicensed gambling sites have also had to accept similar penalties issued by this legal authority.

The ACMA representative said that their work to investigate and remove illegal platforms is the most apparent warning to gamblers of the danger these sites can pose. In fact, their work has shown significant effect as, since 2017, almost 200 fraudulent betting sites have stopped providing their services in the Australian market to avoid legal troubles.

As mentioned above, the remarkable increase in the percentage of players returning to online casinos in Australia after the pandemic is the root cause of the blocking orders. While most bettors opt for reputable platforms, the remaining 5% admit they signed up at unlicensed sites, which displeased the ACMA authorities.

Following events relating to ACMA's attempt to curb the gambling boom, they fined Sportsbet, a brand managed by Flutter Entertainment, by forcing the company to pay a record sum of money, up to AU $3.7 million, for spamming customers for marketing purposes. This figure is made up of an AU $2.5 million penalty for breaching the general regulations on the promotion of gambling and AU$1.2 million in compensation for damages that users of this platform must bear.

The ACMA's intense investigation resulted in Sportsbet being forced to admit to earlier allegations against the company, alleging that the operator had consistently sent more than 150,000 marketing messages via text and email to their 40,000 customers, who are trying to unsubscribe in search of a platform with better service quality.