Asia Pac

The Australian Parliament has passed the Interactive Gambling Amendment (Gambling Reform) Bill 2026, changing how gambling advertisements are displayed across media platforms in the country.

The bill from the Albanese government was finally passed earlier this week after months of debate, following a 2023 Peta Murphy-led inquiry into gambling advertising in the country which called for a complete ban.

However, the 2026 gambling reform bill has stopped short of going that far. Wagering advertising across television, radio and online will now be reduced as part of goals to form stronger protections for minors and those most at risk of gambling harm.

Three years on from its introduction, reforms have also been introduced for BetStop, Australia’s self-exclusion programme, based on the outcomes of a recent statutory review.

Several components of the announced bill will be enforced by the country’s gambling regulator, the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA).

Australia ..

Philippine Senator Francis ‘Chiz’ Escudero believes a countrywide ban on gambling advertising across all media platforms would be the ‘first step in a broader effort to reduce gambling‑related harm’, helping to lay the groundwork for future regulation.

Escudero proposed Senate Bill No. 2347, which calls for ‘firm, legally enforceable limits on how gambling platforms promote themselves’, banning their promotion on TV, radio, print, websites and on social media platforms.

Bill No. 2347 would prohibit gambling advertisements and promotions, ban the use of celebrity endorsers and influencers, disallow bonus incentives that encourage betting, and bar the placement of gambling content across online, electronic, and physical media.

Escudero mentioned on his ‘Chiz Wiz! Usapang May Laman’ podcast this weekend that the legislation will help to prevent problem gambling and protect vulnerable citizens, stating: “What is needed is a law on advertising because you need to regulate private compani..

The Australian government continues to hash out the logistics of its gambling advertising legislation, but progress is fraught by politicial divisions amongst key players on the regulation.

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese has been holding talks with opposition leader Angus Taylor to negotiate the legislation, with potential points discussed including betting inducement restrictions, cutting back TV advertising, and streaming rules adjustments.

The Labor government has been in conversation with both the Coalition – Liberal and National – and the Greens in a desperate bid to end the logjam and push the gambling advertising bill through the Senate.

Such legislation has been on the table for the past three years since initially proposed by the late Peta Murphy in her parliamentary inquiry into online gambling.

However, according to The Guardian, the Coalition was split on the direction of the legislation during a party room discussion, with nine MPs making their voices heard.

Five M..

Tabcorp (TAB) has been issued a second penalty in just over a year by the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) in relation to spam law breaches.

The Australian regulator announced that TAB has paid over AUS$2.7m (approximately €1.7m) in penalties after multiple spam and telemarketing law breaches were discovered following an investigation.

An ACMA investigation found that between February 2024 and June 2025, TAB made ‘telemarketing calls to VIP customers that included 351 calls to numbers on the Do Not Call Register without consent, 82 calls outside permitted hours, and nearly 4,000 calls without properly identifying itself as the caller and/or the purpose of the call’.

In addition, the operator self-reported that it sent over 217,000 marketing emails and SMS over a 16-day period to customers who had unsubscribed from specific marketing channels.

“The scale and range of these breaches point to serious weaknesses in TAB’s compliance systems.”

ACMA member Samantha Yo..

The Supreme Court of India has upheld constitutional rights for states of the union to govern gaming activities on individual terms.

The judgment comes as the federal government implements the first phase of the Promotion and Regulation of Online Gaming Rules (PROGA) 2026, authorised on 1 May 2026.

Due to PROGA’s adoption, the governments of Tamil Nadu and Karnataka had asked the Supreme Court to provide clarity on whether the new federal framework superseded individual states’ autonomy to set and control gaming laws.

The states urged transparency on interpretations of PROGA relating to gaming categories such as rummy, poker and other skill-based games, arguing that state authorities should retain the power to intervene where gaming activities are deemed detrimental to public welfare.

In its ruling, the Supreme Court determined that states continue to hold legislative authority to regulate, restrict or prohibit online gaming activities where measures are enacted in the interests of..

The New Zealand government’s Department of Internal Affairs (DIA) has published its Online Casino Gambling Regulations 2026, providing a clearer roadmap to the opening of the market.

After much anticipation, the new framework is set to open on 3 July 2026, with the expression of interest stage of the licensing process set to begin in the second half of next month.
Up to 15 online casino gambling licences will be up for auction ahead of a scheduled market launch on 1 December 2026. From 1 June 2027, only operators that hold a licence will be permitted to operate.

Through its extensive guide, the DIA has provided little room for error in mapping out its detailed compliance requirements for license holders in its upcoming regulated online casino market.

Of note, the regulations specifically provided guidelines on harm prevention and minimisation, consumer protection and record-keeping, advertising and marketing, as well as fees, levies and charges.

Trina Lowry, Programme Director – O..

Hefty regulatory scrutiny has once more come in the direction of The Star Entertainment Group from the New South Wales (NSW) Independent Casino Commission (NICC) in Australia.

The Star Sydney has been slapped with fines totalling A$10m (approximately €6.2m) and an enforceable undertaking to set a further $5m aside to bolster its financial crime risk management operations technology.

A release from the NICC stated that thousands of breaches at The Star Sydney were investigated by the Liquor & Gaming NSW (L&GNSW) last year, resulting in four separate disciplinary matters that led to the casino regulator issuing the following orders:

$1.5m penalty – For allowing customers to continuously gamble without a break longer than the prescribed time limits between May 2024 and April 2025.

$3m penalty – For allowing the conversion of casino reward points to cash involving at least 1,898 patrons between December 2018 and November 2023.

$500,000 penalty – For the failure to prevent entry by an ..

Authorities in Bangladesh are seeking to crack down on gambling by replacing a law that has previously stood for over 150 years.

As reported by local outlet BSS News, Bangladesh’s Home Minister Salahuddin Ahmed has confirmed an initiative to replace the outdated Gambling Act of 1867 with a new law aimed at preventing both land-based and online gambling.

Ahmed told reporters that the decision has been made in recognition of the rising popularity of online betting and gaming, which now requires a more technology-oriented legal framework.

He confirmed to reporters at the Bangladesh Secretariat Reporters Forum that the new law is currently in the final stages of drafting and will be presented to the country’s parliament during its next sitting.

The Home Minister provided few details on how the new legislation will go beyond the country’s Gambling Act, given that it already prohibits almost all forms of gambling.

Anyone found operating or promoting online gambling can be sentenced to ..

State of Origin 2026 kicks off this morning for UK viewers, but it could be the last series before sweeping changes and reforms to advertising and sponsorships.

The New South Wales Blues take on the Queensland Maroons in the 45th renewal of the annual best-of-three series, with game one kicking off at Accor Stadium in Sydney at 8:05pm local time (11:05am UK time).

Many are once again discussing the top State of Origin matchups – Tedesco vs Ponga, Cleary vs Walker, Robson vs Grant – but a wider ongoing discussion has been at the centre of debate in Australia in recent months: gambling reform advocates vs the gambling industry.

Last month, PM Anthony Albanese stated that the Labor government will look to implement “strong and decisive actions” to stem the proliferation of gambling advertising.

The proposed widespread 2027 changes

From 1 January 2027, the Australian government will implement these five measures:

Broadcast TV limits: Maximum of three gambling ads per hour between ..