The newest sports betting operator in Australia has faced an additional AU$55,000 fine for two violations of gambling rules that have been categorised as “serious” by the industry watchdog.
The monetary penalties were issued by the Northern Territory’s Racing Commission. Currently, most online gambling and sports betting operators in Australia are licensed in the Northern Territory.
Betr, which is currently partly owned by News Corp., started operation in October 2022, right before the Melbourne Cup. According to a decision issued by the Racing Commission in December 2022, the company had already been found to have breached the industry code by contacting individuals who had been on the self-exclusion register.
As Casino Guardian previously reported, the gambling business initially faced a fine worth approximately AU$20,000, but it now faces a total monetary penalty of over AU$75,000 for the three separate violations.
The new decision of the Northern Territory’s Racing Commission is associated with Betr allegedly sending unsolicited direct marketing messages to customers over the first week of its operations. According to regulatory findings, the individuals were approached by phone by both Betr employees and contractors of the company’s affiliates. A text message sent to one person who had previously excluded themselves from gambling was also part of the unsolicited communications sent by the gambling company. None of these customers had given their consent to receive such marketing communications.
Betr Had Targeted Self-Excluded Gamblers with Unsolicited Marketing Communications
The Racing Commission of the Northern Territory imposed a maximum monetary penalty totalling AU$55,080 on the company for the latest two code violations. Furthermore, the regulatory body noted that the repeated offences of the company would make it consider starting other disciplinary action that is currently available under the legislation, such as suspension or cancellation of the company’s operating licence.
As previously reported, Betr started operation in 2022 as a direct rival to the largest sports betting operators in the Australian gambling industry, heating up the already tight competition in the sector.
According to Nielsen Research, sports betting advertising reached AU$287 million in 2021, representing an increase of almost AU$100 million over the advertising on sports betting over the previous decade. Most companies operating in the sector are licensed in the Northern Territory because of its favourable regulatory environment, but there have also been some that threatened to leave the Northern Territory in case the authorities raised taxes as part of a recent reform process.
Although it provides local states and territories with the chance to offer their own licensing and regulation rules and regimes, the Federal Government of Australia has been willing to make sure responsible gambling and customer protection are promoted across the entire country.
Recently, Betr has been having negotiations over the potential takeover of PointsBet’s operations in Australia which are currently estimated at AU$463 million on the Australian Stock Exchange.
- Author
Olivia Cole
