SBC News Voice of the Sports Betting Industry
Tabcorp has been hit by a AU$4m (€2.3m) penalty for breaching Australian spam laws while also facing political scrutiny for a recent plan to shake up how it works with the country’s pub industry.
The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) issued the penalty after Tabcorp sent 5,700 marketing messages to its VIP programme customers, something which the regulator states broke Australian spam laws.
Australia’s Spam Act 2023 requires businesses to have customer consent before sending out any marketing messages. The ACMA states that enforcing this requirement is one of its key priorities, having issued AU$16.9m (€9.6m) worth of penalties for breaches of the Act over the past 18 months.
The ACMA’s investigation found that 2,598 SMS and WhatsApp messages sent to VIP customers between 1 February-1 May 2024 did not have an option to unsubscribe, 3,148 other messages did not contain ‘adequate sender information’, and 11 SMS messages sent between 15 February-29 April 2024 were also sent without consent.
“This is the first time the ACMA has investigated and found spam breaches in a gambling VIP programme,” said Authority Member Samantha Yorke.
“These programmes often involve personalised messages offering incentives such as bonus bets, deposit matching, rebates and offers of tickets to sporting and other events.
“The gambling industry needs to understand that spam laws apply to all direct marketing — whether it’s generic campaigns or personalised messages.”
Pub plans get political
Tabcorp is also facing pressure from the political scene, although the most vocal political voice around its newly unveiled plans to change how it works with the Australian pub industry is a key gambling law reform proponent – so his comments are not anything new.
Quoted in an article in The Guardian, which he shared on X, independent Australian Senator and former member of the Australian national rugby union team, Dave Pocock, argued that gaming firms have been ‘emboldened’ by government inaction.
He was referring to Tabcorp’s plans to replace payments made to Australian pubs and hotels which include its gaming machines in their venues with a promotions scheme designed to attract more customers to said venues.
“The Albanese Govt’s failure to act almost 2 yrs after the Murphy review’s 31 reccs were released means companies like Tabcorp are emboldened & exploiting regulatory loopholes on things that cause huge harm like gambling inducements,” Pocock wrote on X, adding that these inducements are ‘hurting’ Australians.
The Albanese Govt’s failure to act almost 2 yrs after the Murphy review’s 31 reccs were released means companies like Tabcorp are emboldened & exploiting regulatory loopholes on things that cause huge harm like gambling inducements, hurting more 🇦🇺shttps://t.co/tsYZPuNbvJ
— David Pocock (@DavidPocock) June 15, 2025
The Murphy review cited by Pocock was, as its name suggests, a review of Austrian gambling regulations and legislation conducted by the late Peta Murphy MP, also a proponent of gaming law reform. This review made 31 recommendations, including a ban on inducements.
However, the government of Prime Minister Anthony Albanese temporarily shelved the review’s recommendations ahead of the May general election. Some commentators believed this was due to the government not wanting to risk a potential public showdown with the industry prior to voters going to the polls.
With the Albanese government now firmly back in the driving seat, having won the election with 34.5% of the vote, reform proponents now want to see real change at the federal level around how Australia regulates betting marketing, promotions and player protection.
Pocock summarised a viewpoint held by many politicians: “Research shows inducements have contributed enormously to children and young people believing that gambling is a risk-free and normal part of enjoying sport, which is the exact association we should be working to break.”
