Australia’s Northern Territory issues second warning to halt in-play betting offers

Australia’s popular Northern Territory gambling licensing jurisdiction has again warned operators which it licenses that they must within 28 days cease offering in-play betting.

Northern Territory Racing Commission (NTRC) chairman John McBride this week sent written confirmation of the forthcoming ban, which operators were warned about almost eight weeks ago (see previous report).

The operators involved in the very lucrative in-play sector include William Hill, Ladbrokes and Sportsbet.

McBride is complying with a directive from the provincial government Racing and Gaming minister Peter Styles, who is himself under pressure from the federal government to put an end to in-play betting.

Australia’s national government Human Services Minister Alan Tudge is firmly against in-play betting following the recommendations of the O’Farrell review of the Interactive Gaming Act, which released its conclusions earlier this year.

In their ongoing feud with establishment betting group Tabcorp, online operators have pointed out that if in-play betting is banned, the relevant legislation should include measures to stop Tabcorp and Ubet retail stores from offering in-play betting via touch screen terminals, which they claim represents essentially the same betting experience as using an app on a smart phone or tablet.

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