Emerging trends in online gambling within Australia

centre for gambling education & research

Dr. Sally Gainsbury

Victorian Responsible Gambling Awareness

Week Forum

May 23, 2011

Centre for Gambling Education & Research

Current global state of Internet gambling and sports

betting

Australian Internet sports betting

Online sports betting and problem gambling

Future trends, developments and recommendations



2,319 Internet gambling sites available in March

2011

92% of English-language sites accept play from

Australia

199 different forms of payment

Internet gambling is highly accessible


32%

21%

18%

4%

17%

2% 1%

Casino PokerSports/race book LotteryBingo Skill gameBetting exchange


Of the 79 jurisdictions the major providers – and #

of sites - are:1. Malta – 460

2. Netherlands Antilles – 299

3. Gibraltar – 291

4. Costa Rica - 202

5. Kahnawake – 183

6. United Kingdom – 117

7. Alderney – 104

8. Antigua & Barbuda - 65

9. Cyprus - 62

10. Italy 62

11. Isle of Man – 44

12.Panama - 38

13.Australia -32

14.United States - 29

13th largest

provider

worldwide


Annual growth of10-20%

Sports betting estimated to be 41% of total online market

Internet gambling represents 5-10% of global gambling market

0

5,000

10,000

15,000

20,000

25,000

30,000

35,000

40,000

45,000

2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013

Gross Gaming yield (US$ million)


Bookmaker

◦ Fixed odds on bets

◦ spreadline & moneyline

Pari-mutuel betting

◦ Proportional distribution of winning bets (less commission)

Exchange betting

◦ Players match each others bets (less commission)

Gamblers transfer funds using credit card or electronic payment to an account used to place bets



Interactive Gambling Act (2001)

Interactive wagering & lotteries legal

State-based policy & regulation

Productivity Commission recommended legalisation

Ongoing issues for regulatory consideration


1-4% Australians gamble online each year

30% of those with Internet access

Sports betting is the fastest growing form of gambling


Example: Tabcorp

AUD$678 million expenditure in Q1&2 2009

18% annual increase

10% of the value of all bets wagered in 2010


Industry estimates $968 million spent on

offshore casino, poker and bingo sites in 2010

◦ 1/3 on poker sites

$611 million spent on online sports betting 2011

◦ Increase of 230% from 2006

Considerable amounts are likely being spent on

offshore sports wagering sites


Preliminary Results



95% male

67% married or living with partner

26% completed high school

29% completed 1 or more university degrees

65% employed full time

16% earn >$150,000

74.3% have placed sports bets online (n=903)

6.0%

17.6%

34.8% 34.4%

9.6%

0%

5%

10%

15%

20%

25%

30%

35%

40%

18-24 25-34 35-49 50-64 65+

Preliminary Results


29%

75%

22%

11%

1%

0% 20% 40% 60% 80%

land-based

Internet - computer

Internet - mobile

telephone

interactive tv

Preliminary Results


More likely to be male than non-Internet sports bettors (87% vs. 67%)

In the general population, men are 3 times more likely to have placed a bet online than women (3.8% vs. 1.3%)

Roy Morgan Research

Preliminary Results


More likely to earn >$150,000

Preliminary Results


81% gamble from home

8.5%

61.6%

28.7%

1.2%0%

10%

20%

30%

40%

50%

60%

70%

6am –

12pm

12pm –

6pm

6pm -

midnight

midnight

– 6am

Preliminary Results


Preliminary Results


Preliminary Results


Factor Percentage

general reputation 35

payout rates 33

monetary deposits safe and wins paid out

in timely fashion

30

bonuses/provision of monetary incentives

to play

13

legality 13

better game experience/interface 12

country the site is based in 12

recommendation from friend(s) 10

software used 10

fairness of games 6

larger range of games 6

Preliminary Results


Factor Percentage

don't have to drive anywhere or leave the house 62

24 hour availability/convenience 54

no crowds 35

greater privacy/anonymity 33

no unpleasant people 33

more physically comfortable 32

higher payout rates (better odds, lower potential

losses)

27

less noise 22

interesting/exciting games) 21

less smoke 14

better game experience (higher speed of play, more

leisurely speed of play, more

12

able to smoke 7

land-based gambling unavailable or illegal 2

Preliminary Results


Factors Percentage

too convenient 38

easier to spend more money 34

poorer social atmosphere (no crowds, too isolating) 20

more addictive 17

worry about monetary deposits being safe and/or having

wins paid out in timely fashion

13

poorer physical atmosphere (lacks the lights and noise of

a real casino, etc.)

12

poorer game experience (not as fun, etc.) 11

difficulty verifying fairness of games 11

lack of face-to-face contact makes betting more difficult 7

difficulty excluding underage gamblers 4

Illegality 3

Preliminary Results



Research shows higher rates of problem gambling among Internet gamblers

Increasing number of Internet gamblers and sports bettors presenting for treatment

Features that lead to problem gambling

◦ Accessibility and convenience

◦ Comfort

◦ Solitary play

◦ Affordability

◦ Anonymity

◦ Immersive interface

◦ Electronic payments


Preliminary Results


Wood & Williams (2009)


Internet sports gamblers more likely to report problems with Internet gambling

◦ 33% of Internet gamblers

Non-Internet gamblers more likely to report problems with land-based gambling

◦ 52% of non-Internet gamblers

◦ 23% of Internet gamblersPreliminary Results


21% admitted gambling problems

68% had problems before gambling online

16% had disrupted sleep

10% had disrupted eating

19% spent more $ using electronic means (credit cards, bank transfers)

Preliminary Results



consolidation

more non-traditional gambling brands entering

the market

more land-based gaming brands entering the

market

more targeting of growth markets

greater efforts to hold onto existing players

more innovation/production of offerings and

formats


more sports and types of bets

better security

increasing use of social media

increasing relationship with television

increasing use of sponsorship

investment in better systems and platforms


Further research required

Collaboration between industry, government and researchers

Responsible gambling strategies should be developed and promoted

Education of Australian public about potential harm from online gambling


Menzies Foundation for supporting research

Roy Morgan Research for sharing data

Wood & Williams for use of online survey

Ethel Harris (University of Sydney) for

modifications to online survey

Prof. Alex Blaszczynski, Prof. Nerilee Hing & Dr.

Robert Wood for collaboration

Participating organisations that host links to

survey


Dr. Sally Gainsbury

Post Doctoral Research Fellow


Southern Cross University

Email: [email protected]

Website: http://works.bepress.com/sally_gainsbury/

mailto:[email protected]

http://works.bepress.com/sally_gainsbury/