Australia introduced iGaming bill

Australia legislators presented the new online gaming regulations today.

Australia.- The Australian federal government has introduced today the Interactive Gambling Amendment bill 2016 to shut down unauthorised offshore operators. The announcement was made by the communications minister, Mitch Fifield, during the first hours of Thursday’s morning. The House of Representatives will start debating on the bill soon.

Australia has been toughing its gaming laws since the beginning of the year with restrictions such as online in-play betting services ban. Now, the federal government seeks a complete resolution to control the iGaming industry and eliminate illegal operators from the Australian internet service. The bill would also grant licenses to control the sector to the Australian Communications and Media Authority (Acma).

Acma will be able to probe the online gaming operations and issue warnings, infringement notices and injunctions. Furthermore, the organisation would be in charge of setting civil penalties against unauthorised websites. Alan Tudge, the human services minister, commented, “Currently hundreds of illegal gambling services are easily accessible on the internet and we know that people are more likely to get into trouble online – 2.7 percent of interactive gamblers are problem gamblers compared to 0.9 percent of all gamblers.

“We expect online wagering providers to meet community expectations. The tougher laws will seriously disrupt illegal offshore providers from acting unscrupulously or targeting vulnerable Australians. The government is committed to taking tougher action against illegal offshore wagering providers and this bill does exactly that,” concluded the Minister.