No Internet future for TABCorp ‘Trackside’
The Victorian government’s gambling regulators are clever people.
They didn’t stop ASX listed gaming giant - TABCorp – from offering Victorian punters the option of betting on a new ‘simulated’ racing game, called Trackside.
But they guaranteed Trackside would never become popular.
And now they've almost certainly ruled out any Internet future for wagering on simulated horse-racing games like Trackside.
How? By making rules that ‘Trackside’ bets can only be made by cheque or in cash and winnings likewise only paid by cheque or in cash.
Even so, the Victorian regulators are having to work hard to keep their rules up to date with the new developments.
That’s clear from looking at the 25 pages of clarifications the Victorian government released late last month following its earlier announcement
of a tender to decide who will get the state’s wagering licence in 2012.
TABCorp currently holds the licence and probably asked the question on page 16 of whether the new license will allow ‘simulated racing games’
like Trackside to be provided over the Internet.
But its also possible that the question was asked by one of the many other possible bidders.
Just who those bidders are won’t be known until after registrations of interest close on January 16th.
And even after that its likely there’ll be relatively little information available about the progress of the tender.
It appears that the Victorian minister for racing will choose from amongst the registrants who he will invite to bid.
But when that might happen, and under what rules, remains to be seen.
The regulatory landscape for wagering in Australia has been changing rapidly in recent times with one highly visible example being an end
to bans in NSW and Victoria on bookmakers advertising.
(Typically, the rules remain different in the two states with bookmakers continuing to be barred from advertising free bets in NSW.)
Victoria is also changing its main gambling law, at least partly because its new wagering license includes a betting exchange like Betfair.
An exposure draft of the new bill has been published online and can be downloaded from the Victorian department of Justice web site.
Go to
http://www.justice.vic.gov.au/wps/wcm/connect/DOJ+Internet/Home/Gambling+and+Racing/Gaming/JUSTICE+-+Gambling+Regulation+Exposure+Draft+Bill
For more information on Victorian wagering regulation and links to the tender clarification documents go to the Office of Gaming and Racing site.
Go to
http://www.justice.vic.gov.au/wps/wcm/connect/DOJ+Internet/Home/About+Us/Our+Organisation/Business+Area+Profiles/JUSTICE+-+Office+of+Gaming+and+Racing
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