AUSTRALIA Law and Practice Contributed by: Jamie Nettleton, Samuel Gauci and James Dommett, Addisons
In NSW, for example, the maximum penalty prescribed for an online betting operator that publishes a gam- bling advertisement in contravention of the Betting and Racing Act is AUD11,000 for an individual and AUD110,000 for a corporation. At the federal level, contraventions of the provisions relating to advertising in the IGA may result in fines of up to AUD59,400 for an individual and AUD297,000 for a corporation. A penalty notice scheme was introduced in NSW ena- bling the LGNSW to issue a criminal penalty notice, which requires the payment of a fine if a breach occurs. This differs from the previous scheme, under which penalties would only be imposed by the regu- lator through action in court proceedings. A similar scheme has been introduced in Victoria. This sup- plements the procedure under which penalties were only imposed by the regulator through action in court proceedings. On 14 April 2023, the LGNSW announced that wager- ing operator Betr had been fined AUD210,000 in rela- tion to odds offered and advertised during major sporting and racing events in October 2022, in breach of the NSW gambling law prohibitions on the advertis- ing of inducements to participate in gambling activity – including inducements to open a betting account. The fine against Betr was the first time that the LGNSW’s power to issue a penalty notice had been used. In May 2023, Betchoice (trading as Unibet) was fined AUD60,000 by a Sydney court for promotions that contained inducements to participate in gambling activity and to open a betting account in breach of NSW gambling law. In June 2024, the ACMA announced that it had issued a remedial direction to Hubbl Pty Limited (Hubbl) Kayo due to the presentation of gambling advertisement during live sports events outside the permitted times. If Hubbl fails to comply with the ACMA’s remedial direction, it may be ordered by the Federal Court to pay penalties of up to AUD626,000 per day. On 12 August 2024, PlayUp Interactive was ordered by the NSW Local Court to pay a fine of AUD586,000
for offering free bets and inducements to open a bet- ting account. This amount was reduced on appeal to AUD296,351 plus the LGNSW’s costs. On 19 February 2025, the ACMA announced that Net- work Ten (Sydney) Pty Limited had breached broad- casting gambling advertising rules by airing four gambling advertisements at prohibited times during the Australian Formula 1 Grand Prix in March 2024. This was the first breach of the Code by Network 10, who argued that its non-compliance was the result of “human error”. The broadcaster agreed to volun- tarily improve its systems relating to ad scheduling, undertake staff training and provide a written progress report to the ACMA. On 7 March 2025, Foxtel Cable Television Pty Limited was found by the ACMA to have breached gambling advertising rules, by failing to include an adequate responsible gambling message during an Australian Football League (AFL) broadcast. The ACMA noted that an 18+ logo on its own is not sufficient to qualify as an adequate responsible gambling message. On 1 April 2025, LGNSW announced that wagering operator Ryman Racing Pty Ltd (trading as Colossal- bet) had been fined AUD60,000 by a magistrate at Downing Centre Local Court for posting adverts on Facebook and Instagram that failed to meet decency standards. This was the first time a wagering opera- tor has been fined for publishing adverts found to be offensive to standards of “decency, dignity and good taste”. 10. Acquisitions and Changes of Control 10.1 Disclosure Requirements The disclosure requirements for acquisitions of an interest and/or a change of control in respect of a gambling operator vary from one jurisdiction to anoth- er. Accordingly, it is necessary to refer to the provi- sions of the relevant legislation in the state or territory in which the relevant entity holds a licence. Land-based casino licences cannot be transferred. Another company may, however, acquire shares in the
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