Australia would gradually stop advertising for online gambling in three years according to the recommendation made on Wednesday by a parliamentary committee of inquiry.
This is being done as the nation strives to reduce the “havoc” it generated in one of the biggest betting markets in the world.
The committee issued 31 suggestions on how to regulate internet gambling, which it claimed was altering the culture of the sport, and how to assist Australians who are battling with addiction.
Peta Murphy, the committee’s chair, claimed in the study titled “You win some, you lose more” that Australians spend more money than people in every other nation on online gambling.
Murphy claimed that “this is wreaking havoc in our communities.” According to Murphy, internet gambling corporations carefully and purposefully advertise alongside sports, which has normalised it as a lighthearted, safe, and social pastime.
The panel argued that all gambling advertising on broadcast and online media should be completely banned over time with no possibility for exception.
It suggested that the ban be implemented gradually over a three-year period to provide athletic organisations and broadcasters adequate time to discover substitute sources of ad revenue.
The ban would be a significant setback for online gambling businesses like the London-listed Flutter Entertainment PLC, which operates Australia’s most well-known betting app.
Prime Minister Anthony Albanese assured that his administration would take the suggestions into consideration.