Aussies Gambling Ads Double Despite 2013 Live Betting Odds Ban

Live betting odds ban in 2013 in Australia does little to deter gambling advertising, which has since doubled.

Gambling ads are on the rise in Australia. An additional thirty thousand advertisements have been broadcasted on behalf of the gaming industry in 2014. This is in comparison to the 19,953 registered in 2013 by Ebiquity, the Australian-based company that monitors advertisements.

The 205 per cent increase is thought to be an unexpected kickback from the banning of live betting odds during sports events. The intention of this new Australian gambling law was to limit Aussies being tempted to gamble when they watch or tune into a sports coverage.

Bookies were not to be allowed on the sports panels, nor could commentators talk about the betting odds. Also, the betting odds promotions could only be broadcasted 30 minutes before or after the game.

The Australian Communication and Media Authority had seemingly done their research before the introduction of the ban in 2013. Their studies showed that 78% of voters were opposed to the amount of internet betting in Australia. Another 60% of partakers in the poll were not in favor of live betting odds during sporting events.

However ACMA was taken aback, when even broadcasters raked in an additional AUD 419 million, barley a year after the live betting odds ban was introduced.

Charles Livingstone, a senior lecturer at Monash University, blames the Australian government’s lack of foresight and the people’s lack of what he terms “self-regulation”.

There have been recent attempts to lessen the impact caused by the backfire of the 2013 Australian gambling law. Melbourne Cricket Ground for example recently vowed that there will be no further gambling ads from its scoreboards as of next season.