Aussies Set to Close Online Gambling Loopholes

Australian lawmakers are mulling over a review of the Interactive Gambling Act of 2001 that includes a broad set of recommendations that, if enacted into law, would radically change the face of Down Under online gambling.
The review includes 19 recommendations for changes to existing laws governing the way Aussies access online gambling sites. According to a report on CalvinAyre.com, the Australian Government has already suggested that its willing to act on at least 18 of those recommendations.
Under current Australian gaming law, operators can only accept in-play wagers in person or over the phone. That rule worked pretty well until last year when William Hill Australia opened a loophole in it large enough to drive a truck through.
William Hill’s end run involved a voice-recognition app that allowed Aussie players to place voice bets via their smart phones.
Surprisingly, that was not among the recommendations for change. That’s because many lawmakers think the entire act needs to be overhauled, rather than focusing on a few minor parts.Though they did recommend that lawmakers close the loophole, they weren’t specific about how that should happen.
The Aussie government is also focusing its gaze on offshore, grey market operators that have served the country’s punters with impunity for years. To do so, they’re threatening to regularly publish a list of Australian-facing grey market operators.
A list of this nature could present real problems for big time operators who are looking to serve regulated markets, including the US, where a bad actor tag is absolute poison.
So far, there’s no word on when the Aussie regulators and lawmakers will put the review committee’s recommendations into practice.