Australian debate heats up as media warns over potential gambling ad ban

Australia’s long-running argument over gambling advertising has moved up a gear. A major commercial broadcaster has told shareholders that if Canberra eventually pulls the plug on betting ads, it will look for compensation to cover the gap. The message lands at a time when ministers are still weighing how far to go on reform and how to handle the financial shock for sports, media, and digital platforms that rely on those marketing budgets.

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Gambling ads are only one part of the picture. They sit alongside the products people truly use: betting apps, live odds, and casino-style games. Genuine reviews on Australian online pokies tend to focus on basics such as return-to-player percentages, volatility bands, and game types, so people can see how stable or swingy a title really is. Those exact directions usually walk through licensing, external audits, and RNG checks, and highlight which operators clear those standards. The policy discussion now mirrors that kind of breakdown, with lawmakers looking separately at how often ads appear, where they run, and which platforms should carry the most responsibility.

At the broadcaster’s annual general meeting, the chair explained that gambling advertising still represents a meaningful slice of revenue. If a future law removed that category overnight, the company would ask for either direct compensation or some kind of tax or fee relief to balance the books. Just as important in their view is consistency. Any clampdown, they argued, should apply not only to traditional TV and radio but also to global tech and streaming platforms that capture a growing share of ad spend. That call for “fair across the board” rules has already turned into a slogan for industry groups. 

The policy backdrop is the Peta Murphy report, “You win some, you lose more,” which laid out 31 steps to reduce gambling harm. Its headline suggestion was a three-year phase-out of online gambling advertising across all media, designed to give broadcasters and sports bodies time to replace sponsorships while still winding back exposure. A detailed summary of that inquiry on a 2023 parliamentary-focused report describes staged restrictions, starting with inducements and social media promotions and building towards a full ban after three years. The current government has adopted some safer-ad messaging and other smaller measures but has not committed to the full program.

Fresh data keeps the issue on the agenda. Analysis from the Australian Gambling Research Centre and partner agencies indicates that roughly two-thirds of Australian adults gambled in 2024, with a meaningful minority experiencing or being at risk of harm. At the same time, official figures put the industry’s gross profit at around AU$32 billion from more than AU$240 billion in turnover, with online gambling accounting for as much as a quarter of that total. Those numbers explain why advertising rules carry such weight: they touch everyday viewing habits, state tax receipts, and company earnings all at once.

For now, the conversation sits in a holding pattern. Broadcasters want predictability and a level playing field, public health groups push for stronger curbs, and the federal government tries to avoid sudden shocks to either budgets or business. Any final deal is likely to involve phased timelines, sharper standards for how gambling is promoted, and closer attention to online channels, rather than a simple on-off switch.

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