How will cashless pokies affect Australian players and how will they help or hinder the government’s plans to improve its gambling industry? (Photo by Gerd Altmann on Pixabay)
As part of Australia’s latest gambling reform, the NSW government announced that if reelected all pokies and other gambling cabinets with virtual tables and arcade-style betting machines will become cashless by 2028.
Another area of its gambling policy the Australian government is strictly enforcing is banning black market online casinos and sport betting websites. These are mostly cryptocurrency websites and those accept Australian Dollars. The Interactive Gambling Act 2001 (IGA) is a federal law in Australia that regulates online gambling and at this time, any website advertising to Australian citizens could find its way onto the country’s blacklist.
Pokies turning cashless and banning overseas online gambling sites are all part of what is set to become the most widespread implementation of gambling reform in the country.
Australia’s New South Wales (NSW) is one of the first places that will see the new laws come into effect. Already gambling advertising laws coming into force have seen large companies such as Entain break sponsorship ties with sports teams.
On top of this, casinos and land-based video slot arcades are in the process of installing facial recognition software, as reported in my Australia Gambling Gossip report in November last year. The news story also mentions cashless gambling cards and the introduction of new responsible gambling taglines to be used by operators.
New responsible gambling tag lines: Some of the taglines will read “What are you prepared to lose today? Set a deposit limit”, “What’s gambling really costing you?”, “Chances are, you’re about to lose”, and “Think. Is this a bet you really want to place?” amongst other messages.
Cashless Pokies – What are the proposed rules and features?
Some of the key reasons the government has decided to implement a law to turn the entire land-based pokie industry into cashless slots are as follows:
- AML: Pokies are no longer a source of money laundering for criminal organisations
- Players can set limits: Players can set limits on the amount they can gamble. These limits will take 7 days for a player to change them.
- Ban on credit cards: The cashless machines, I assume, will have a mechanism in place with the banks that stop players from using money that came via credit cards into their bank account.
- Privacy: All machines will adhere to Australia’s strict privacy laws. The government or industry supplier cannot access this data. However, law enforcement can access data under special circumstances. Once again, an assumption from me, I would say this means access via a court-issued warrant.
- Buy Back Scheme: The government is offering venues to take part in a buyback scheme in which the government target is to buy back up to 2,000 cash-enabled pokie machines.
Cashless machines are mandatory: The law means that all cash pokies and gambling machines will be phased out of Australia by 31 December 2028. Gambling venues can purchase only cashless machines starting at the beginning of 2024.
What are some of the dangers of implementing cashless pokies?
Even though many pokie players are not happy about the new rule, the government is not overly fussed. There is also some backlash because cashless machines will mean job losses too. Cash collection services that have contracts with land-based gambling venues will also lose their contracts.
- Most players will be unaware: Few players will be aware that the proposed change will be part of the country’s gambling reform and will likely quit playing land-based pokies thinking the pokie manufacturers have gone too far by implementing undesirable tech. This is not a concern because the government is likely happy to reduce the number of players spending money on land-based gaming machines as it reduces the risk of problem gambling thus helps their stats.
- Money Laundering: Cashless machines put an end to pokie businesses used for money laundering. An issue that has long plagued governments whereby land-based pokie venues are legal.
- Encourages Online Gambling: A severe downside is that players will likely turn to mobile pokies available via the growing number of black-market online casinos offering video slots online. What’s more, these players may prefer online pokies as they offer a far higher RTP (Return to Player) versus their land-based counterparts. Many of the slots found on Australian online casinos have an average RTP of 96%+, while land-based slots generally come with an 80% to 90% RTP.
- Reduction in Pokie Tax Revenue: No online gambling site licensed in Australia can host online pokies. Players may instead play on black market sites. This results in more Australian Dollars leaving the country and no taxes paid by the businesses offering these services. In fact, by not having an online casino regulatory authority available, there is already a huge issue at hand by which Australians that want to play online are playing at overseas online casinos.
Read the full story: All pokies cashless by 2028 if Coalition wins NSW election.
Australia Bans 6 Offshore Online Casinos
To fight back against the availability of overseas iGaming and affiliate websites advertising online casino games, the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) regularly requests that ISPs block these domains. In the accompanying box, you will find the latest websites blocked.
However, most Australian citizens simply access these casinos via VPNs, and many of the casinos are advertising that they are VPN-friendly for this reason. Other countries that also attempt to block these overseas gambling sites include Malaysia, Indonesia, and the USA, but players still find a way through. Yet, it is still a deterrent and one that works to some extent.
Close to 1,000 Sites Blocked: Since the ACMA began blocking these overseas websites, 686 black market online gambling sites have now been struck off the country’s ISP’s DNS lists and the IPs of these online established banned.
Latest iGaming Sites Blocked Down Under
- Boomerang Casino
- 24 Casino
- Olympia Casino
- Pokie Surf
- Rock n Reels
- Stellar Spins
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