Back in January, the Australian Communications and Media Authority gained new powers that allow it to issue bans against online gambling sites. Australian ISPs must actively block any site that the ACMA deems illegal. As such, many of you are now unable to access some of your favorite Australian online casinos.
The ACMA is at it again. Earlier this month, the organization revealed its latest witch hunt list. This list targets ten additional casinos, including multiple trusted brands in the gambling community.
Raging Bull Casino and BoVegas Among Casinos Blacklisted
The ACMA appears to have very little to do during the pandemic. As such, they have begun the latest culling of online gambling sites in Australia. Earlier this month, the organization released a list of 10 casinos that ISPs must now block.
The list of casinos to be blocked are:
- Raging Bull Casino
- BoVegas
- Two Up Casino
- Slots Empire
- Wild Joker
- Grand Fortune Casino
- Cherry Gold Casino
- Red Dog Casino
- True Blue Casino
- Free Spin
As has been the norm, the ACMA has issued that they “have received 30 complaints” about the casinos that are available to online casino players. You’ll probably recognize multiple names on this list, particularly Raging Bull Casino and BoVegas. Both casinos have a solid reputation amongst the gambling community and are top-ranked casinos.
Soon, players will no longer be able to access Raging Bull Casino,
The nature of the complaints received against the casinos was not revealed to the public. You will not find a single online casino that does not have a complaint against it. Often, these complaints are made by players who have violated the terms of service or tried to defraud the casino. If a casino is truly fraudulent, the number of complaints will generally be overwhelming. Without greater transparency, the number just seems arbitrary.
35 Sites and Counting
The latest additions to the block list bring the total to 35 since November 2019. According to the ACMA website, the casinos are in violation of the Interactive Gambling Act 2001. Granted, this act bars all forms of online casino gambling from being offered within Australia to Aussie players. However, it does little to block offshore casinos.
The ACMA is blocking sites despite high demand in Australia.
The ACMA claims that over 100 illegal gambling services have ceased operating in Australia since 2017. This includes online casinos and online poker sites. Many top online gambling companies such as PokerStars and 888 Casino no longer offers services to Australians.
ACMA Bans Continue Despite Demand for iGaming
The humorous part about this story is the fact that Australians are proving that they want to gamble online. Since the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic, online gambling is up over 67 percent throughout the nation. Players clearly want to gamble online, yet organizations like the ACMA are doing everything they can to prevent it.
The real question here is who is the ACMA protecting? The people are speaking with their dollars, which is probably a big reason why the government is balking at offshore gambling. Offshore sites are not taxed, and the government is not getting their cut of the pie. Rather than create online gambling regulations to bring those tax dollars into Australia, they are working to keep those dollars flowing out.
The saddest part about this is that online gambling would be a boon for the casino industry in Australia. With many casinos either shut down or operating at reduced capacity, online gambling would have been a way for casinos to still bring in revenue. That 67 percent increase could have largely gone towards strengthening the Australian economy. Instead, the government decided that they were going to protect players, further hurt the gambling industry, and keep the country in the virtual dark ages as it pertains to online gambling.