Entain fined AU$13k for accepting in-play bets online

Entain was penalised for illegal online in-play betting on the LIV golf tournament in Australia.

Australia.- The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) has fined Entain AU$13,320 for accepting illegal in-play bets during the LIV golf tournament in Bangkok in October 2022. The regulator found that two of Entain’s subsidiaries, Ladbrokes and Neds, had accepted 78 bets on the final day of the tournament in breach of the Interactive Gambling Act 2001.

ACMA chair Nerida O’Loughlin said the ban on online in-play betting laws was in place to protect vulnerable people because the market’s fast outcomes risked frequent betting.

“Online in-play betting increases the risk for those people experiencing gambling harm as it provides fast outcomes and allows for a higher frequency of bets,” O’Loughlin said.

Entain self-reported the breaches to the ACMA, stating that it had input the wrong start time for the event into its systems. As a result, 59 bets were accepted via Ladbrokes and 19 via Neds after the event had begun. Entain only became aware of the error when alerted by a customer three hours after play had started. The bets were later voided

O’Loughlin noted that Entain is an experienced wagering operator and said it was disappointing that the company did not have internal procedures in place to prevent or detect the error. She added that the ACMA had made clear to the industry last year the need for robust systems to prevent online in-play bets from being made available or accepted. Entain has updated its in-play compliance policy to prevent future errors.