ACMA IP blocks 8 more offshore gambling sites

The Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) has gone after another eight offshore gambling sites that have been operating across the country without a license. The media regulator, which has added hundreds of websites to its list, and now has more than 945 such gambling websites, along with affiliates, and even developers blocked, is expanding the blacklist with eight new brands:

• Lucky7even
• 50 Crowns
• Rockwin
• Bitdreams
• Mr Pacho
• Casino Infinity
• Zota Bet
• Spicyjackpots

All of these casinos have been found to be in breach of the Interactive Gambling Act 2001 and are no longer available to access from the country. ACMA has reminded potential wrongdoers that it takes such violations seriously, and outlined the cases where an ISP block may occur.

The regulator said that providers of gambling services to Australian customers without the necessary licenses are prohibited. Furthermore, online casinos are not regulated in the country and by default not available.

The same ISP blocking may apply to services that provide sports betting products without the necessary license. Not least, ACMA has been clever to go after the so-called affiliate websites that may continue to promote such brands, and just change their brands once their existing partners have been blocked.

ACMA though is taking out affiliates as well, making it much harder for offshore businesses to operate in the country. The regulator is also hoping to raise awareness among consumers who should be wary of illegitimate services that may appear regulated or as if they were registered in the country.

With close to 1,000 websites now blocked, ACMA has become one of the world’s leading authorities in ISP blocking, a hotly debated topic that other jurisdictions have mostly steered clear of to avoid getting other websites hit in the crossfire.

Australia though has not hesitated. The list started in November 2019, with many sceptical of its success, mostly because of the significant effort necessary to make it work. Fast forward to 2024 and there have been hundreds of websites now blocked from the market, disrupting their model.

This is not to say that offshore gambling has been cut completely, as Australians continue to spend both with regulated and offshore casinos and sports betting sites. In the meantime, there is a significant change to the gambling laws makeup in the country, prioritizing player safety, with an ads ban now debated, and a credit card ban due to take effect.

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