How Australia protects players from gambling harm?

Gambling in Australia – Latest Facts & Figures

• 80% of Australians gamble.
• Aussies spend close to $24 billion every year on gambling.
• The Australian government earns billions of dollars in tax revenue every year.
• 20% of the world's electronic gambling machines are in Australia.
• The country has 200,000+ pokies: slot machine games.
• Australia has more high-loss pokie machines than any other country.
• Australians have been playing at online casinos since 1994.
• Aristocrat Leisure Limited, an Australian company, bears the credit for developing the world's first pokie.

Gambling is easily available in Australia considering the fact that it has 20 licensed land-based casinos. Pokies are also available in clubs, hotels, and pubs all over the country.

Let us have a look at the numbers:

State/Territory	No. of Gaming Machines	Casinos
Australian Capital Territory (ACT)	5,200	-
Northern Territory	2,195	Lasseters, Sky City
SNew South Wales	100,500	Star Casino
Queensland	50,000	Treasury Casino
South Australia	13,113	Adelaide Casino
Tasmania	3,680	Country Club Casino, Wrest Point Casino
Victoria	30,000	Crown Melbourne Casino
Western Australia	1,750	Crown Perth Casino

Important Regulatory Bodies in Australia

Australia doesn't have one gambling law that applies to all gambling activities within the country. Also, it doesn't have one gambling authority. Instead, gambling in Australia is regulated by the federal as well as the state/territorial governments.

Let us have a look at the various gambling authorities in Australia:

State	Regulatory Body
Victoria	Victorian Commission for Liquor and Gambling Regulation
New South Wales	Liquor and Gaming New South Wales of the NSW Department of Customer Service
Queensland	Queensland Office of Liquor and Gaming Regulation (QOLGR)
Australian Capital Territory (ACT)	Gambling and Racing Commission
South Australia	Consumer and Business Services in the Department of the Attorney General; Lotteries Commission of South Australia in the Auditor General's Department
Tasmania	Tasmanian Liquor and Gaming Commission in the Department of Treasury and Finance
Western Australia	Western Australian Department of Racing, Gaming, and Liquor
Northern Territory	NTRC, Licensing NT

The federal government of Australia has the power to govern and regulate money, telecommunications, and trade within territories and states. It uses these powers to enact laws to regulate online gambling, combat terrorism and money laundering, protect consumers, and maintain healthy competition among businesses.

The following are the federal-level regulatory bodies:

Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA)

The ACMA is responsible for regulating media and communications all over Australia. Also, it supervises gambling activities conducted over the phone and online and ensures that businesses comply with interactive gambling laws.

Australian Transaction and Analysis Centre (Austrac)

This regulatory body prevents terrorism financing and money laundering. The Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Act, which Australia enacted in 2006, classifies certain gambling activities as "designated services." Licensed gambling operators are required to comply with this law by reporting certain financial transactions to Austrac.

Australian Consumer and Competition Commission (ACCC)

This body enforces consumer protection laws throughout Australia. It ensures that licensed gambling operators implement required measures to maintain safe, secure, and fair gambling environments.

Latest Developments - Changes to the Interactive Gambling Act

In 2017, Australia amended the Interactive Gambling Act to curb illegal online gambling sites targeting Australian residents. These amendments gave the ACMA the following powers:

• Publish a register of online gambling companies holding an Australian license
• Prevent operators from enabling or offering lines of credit to Aussie players
• Develop new tools that force people to comply with gambling laws
• Refer directors of non-compliant companies to the Australian Border Force

The amendments also gave the ACMA the power to direct AU ISPs to block certain offshore online casinos targeting Australian players. Ever since the ACMA started enforcing the new rules, more than 100 illegal gambling sites withdrew from the Australian market.

The ACMA invites residents to complain about an illegal site so that it can conduct the required investigations and direct ISPs to block it. You can view a list of blocked websites here.