How the IGA affects Australian gambling

The Interactive Gambling Act (IGA) was supposedly introduced to protect Australians from the harmful effects of gambling.
Australians have always been enthusiastic gamblers, and it is to be pondered as to whether such an act was necessary.
Most people are sensible gamblers, for whom it is a pastime like any other.  They may gamble because they enjoy a particular sport and like to bet on the result, or because they enjoy a session on the pokies, bingo or the huge variety of games available on the internet.
The IGA set out to target companies who were providing interactive gambling, and not the people who actually wanted to take part.  It is not, and never has been, illegal for Australian residents to play poker or any other casino game online.
On the other hand, a provider of these services may be prosecuted if they operate the service within Australian borders.  However, there are numerous foreign based operators offering online gambling.  The internet being what it is makes this an easy option.
Sports betting online is completely legal in Australia and there are many State Government licenced Sportsbooks available.  These Sportsbooks offer ways to make bets over the internet on the results of sporting events.  The most common and popular way to make such a bet is the fixed-odds bet.
Australians are also great sporting fanatics so it would follow that this is one of the most popular forms of online gambling in the country.
If the Australian Government were to look again at the gambling habits of their citizens they may find that the IGA was an unecessary precaution, and that no matter what laws are in place, Australians who wish to make a bet, either at a land-based operation or online will always do so.  Long may that freedom continue.

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