New South Wales’ gambling regulator, the Liquor & Gaming NSW (L&GNSW), continues to crack down on the promotion of gambling and has imposed online sportsbooks with more than AU$1.1 million in fines for non-legal gambling ads since 2016. That’s not all, just this week the agency sentenced and fined one more sportsbook.

The NSW Betting and Racing Act:

The NSW Betting and Racing Act says it is “an offence to publish a gambling advertisement that includes any inducement to participate, or participate frequently, in any gambling activity.”

Those companies that violated the act and were subsequently prosecuted in court are responsible for paying a fine of AU$ 830,000 and a total of AU$ 270,000 in penalty infringement notices issued by L&GNSW.

The newest one to violate the act is IRPSX PTY LTD, trading as Bet Right, and must pay a fine of AU$20,000 for “illegally offering boosted odds.” The sentence was given on August 7 in Sydney’s Downing Center Local Court, after the regulator’s investigation “into its promotions.” However, the sportsbook was found not guilty of the three other indictments.

Importantly, the court “may impose a maximum penalty of $110,000 (per offence) for a corporation and $11,000 for an individual who publishes a prohibited gambling advertisement, while each penalty notice carries a fine of $15,000.”

According to Jane Lin, L&GNSW Executive Director of Regulatory Operations, the regulator “has a zero-tolerance approach to the publication of illegal gambling inducements.” 

In this regard, Ms Lin added: “L&GNSW has actively engaged with online bookmakers and provided guidance on their compliance obligations, so there is simply no excuse for wagering companies to advertise inducements and they can be assured that the risk of being caught and prosecuted is extremely high.

“In April, we issued 14 penalty infringement notices totaling $210,000 to wagering company, Betr, which represents the largest ever fine issued to a wagering operator for offering inducements in NSW history. We will continue to monitor television, print and social media for this illegal advertising and advocate for the courts to issue higher penalties.”

Other convictions:

In terms of other recent sentences, there is a fine of AU$40,000 for SportsChamps in addition to an “order to pay AU$14,000 in costs for breaching NSW gaming laws.” However, this is the third penalty issued to SportChamps, with previous fines of AU$2000 in 2018 and AU$2500 in 2019.

In 2021, Australia’s biggest online betting company, Sportsbet, was fined AU$135,000 and AU$22,000 for “gambling advertising breaches twice.”

About:

Liquor and Gaming NSW is responsible for the “development, implementation and integrity of the regulatory framework for liquor sales, licensed clubs, gaming activities and casino regulation in the New South Wales, Australia.”