gambling reform & gambling harm awareness
Victorian gamblers spent $2.571 billion on poker machines in the 2014/15 financial year. That’s up by over $67 million on the previous year and shows that the gambling industry is going from strength to strength.
But where did the money come from? Who’s spending more, and who’s kicking the habit?
Victoria’s addiction to poker machines continues. The state with the third-highest number of pokies in the country has just seen yearly losses jump by the highest amount in six years.
“YourPlay” is shaping up to be the worst thing to happen to Victorian gamblers since poker machines were introduced to the state over 20 years ago.
And by “worst”, I don’t mean it’s going to stop them gambling. Indeed, that’s the whole point.
A loophole in Australia’s state and territory gambling legislation is being exploited by the poker machine industry, and our governments are turning a blind eye.
On July 1 2014, the Queensland Coalition state government’s “red tape reduction” program for the gaming machine industry came into effect.
It’s been a full year since these changes were introduced, and the cost is clear to see.
Before you cast your vote in the 2014 Victorian state election, take a look at the $100 million bonus the Victorian state government is handing out to establish a “frequent gambler” pre-commitment program that has already failed internationally.
Clubs Australia, the governing body behind this country’s registered clubs movement and indirectly responsible for over 100,000 poker machines, has been caught out lying about poker machine reform… again.
You’d think they’d have learned by now.
It’s official. The door is now wide open for gambling companies to advertise in any way they like, without worrying about getting in trouble.
In 2008, sports betting companies won a constitutional challenge in the Federal court, allowing them to advertise their services interstate. Following this, in 2009 Victoria repealed local advertising restrictions on interstate sports betting companies and the gambling floodgates opened.
The Victorian Responsible Gambling Foundation (VRGF) has a new campaign called BetRegret. The idea is that “BetRegret” is the feeling you get when you’ve spent too much on gambling.
A number of ads for the Victorian TAB, placed in their sponsored section of News Ltd’s Herald Sun website, appear to have broken a key Victorian gambling law that regulates warning messages in gambling advertising.
Tonight, I received an email from the Advertising Standards Bureau (ASB) in response to a formal complaint I had lodged against the TAB.
Victoria’s poker machines are moving to the country. VCGLR figures show that in the past two years, the number of poker machines in regional Victoria has grown by over 6%, compared to less than 0.5% for metropolitan Melbourne.
A couple of days ago, I wrote about the TAB’s latest ad campaign re-branding gambling as shopping and showcasing unsafe gambling practices. I also mentioned that I had lodged a formal complaint about the campaign with the Advertising Standards Bureau.
Do you like red trams and spam?
