CANBERRA, WILLEMSTAD - The media watchdog has continually urged authorities in Curaçao to cease the targeting of Australian consumers by online casinos as it expands its blacklist of operators.
Offshore gambling entities are now prohibited from directing their services towards Australians. A significant portion of the nearly 1,000 websites restricted by the watchdog were licensed in Curaçao, which has emerged as a hotspot for online casinos due to lax oversight.
According to a spokesperson from the Australian Communications and Media Authority (Acma), the agency has been in discussions about its investigations into individual services licensed in Curaçao since a meeting held in June with the regulator to establish contact. The spokesperson emphasized that Acma engages with overseas regulatory bodies to aid in enforcing and disrupting illegal services.
The June meeting was prompted by a complaint from Acma to Curaçao’s finance minister, Javier Silvania, regarding approximately 90 online casinos allegedly continuing to target Australian consumers despite warnings of legal breaches. Since then, Acma has added over two dozen gambling websites, also based in Curaçao, to its blacklist. Despite this, some of these websites remain operational, promoting themselves as the "best Australian online casino website" and offering lucrative "welcome bonuses" of up to $2,650.
Curaçao currently has four master gambling license holders that grant sub-licenses to numerous offshore operators. However, there is limited oversight of this process, and transparency regarding the ownership of sub-licenses and their physical locations is lacking. Acma believes these companies are not being held accountable.
In response to Acma's concerns, Curaçao is undergoing reforms in the online gambling industry. A new entity, the Curaçao Gaming Authority, will soon issue licenses based on a company's track record, and master license holders will no longer be permitted to sub-license for a fee.
The Curaçao Gaming Control Board has expressed willingness to collaborate with the Australian regulator and has assured that it takes breaches seriously and will take necessary actions to halt them. The regulator will assume greater control and oversight of licenses from March 31, according to an update provided to the online gambling industry earlier this month.
The Curaçao Gaming Control Board aims to maintain a crime-free remote gaming industry, ensure license holders operate fairly and transparently, and protect vulnerable players, including minors. Applicants and license holders are expected to make reasonable efforts to comply with the law and financial sanctions guidelines in the countries where their services are accessed.
Source: www.theguardian.com
