ClubsNSW
Website
ClubsNSW
About
ClubsNSW
ClubsNSW
aims to deliver a range of services and representation
that creates an environment for long-term sustainability,
as well as strengthen industry conditions for the
benefit of those working within the New South Wales
club industry and the local communities they support.
The
Registered Clubs Association of New South Wales (ClubsNSW)
is the Registered Union of Employers for the New South
Wales club industry, holding Audit Certificate No.
100, issued in May, 1926 by the Industrial Arbitration
Commission of New South Wales.
As
the New South Wales club industrys peak representational
body, ClubsNSW employs a team of 45 highly motivated
and well-credentialed staff who together provide the
skills and experience to contribute to both state
and national policy direction and development for
industry-specific legislation through to alcohol,
gambling, taxation, and industrial relations, as well
as actively lobby across a wide range of related issues
for almost 1,400 member clubs.
In
addition, the Association provides services covering
the management of an industry code of practice; national
media relations; member assistance and educational
business services tailored for directors, managers,
and staff; financial and insurance services; industry
and community marketing and communications campaigns;
industry-specific conferences, trade exhibitions,
seminars, and workshops; and, responsible gambling
services through its leading ClubSAFE program.
Furthermore,
the Association maintains close links to the core
sporting and community values of registered clubs
through its partnerships and support of organisations
including the New South Wales Institute of Sport,
Father Chris Rileys Youth Off The Streets, the
New South Wales Volunteer Rescue Association, and
the Talent Development Project.
Through
its relationship with the national association, ClubsAustralia,
ClubsNSW takes a direct role in managing federal issues.
ClubsNSW has also fostered strong working relationships
with affiliate industry organisations including Golf
NSW, RSL & Services Clubs Association, Leagues
Clubs Association of New South Wales, Federation of
Community, Sporting, and Workers Clubs, and Bowls
NSW, whilst many of Australias leading companies
provide valuable long-term support through corporate
partnerships and industry support programs.
About
the Club Industry
There
are approximately 1,500 registered clubs in New South
Wales and over 90% of these clubs are members of ClubsNSW.
The Club Movement is much stronger and more widespread
in NSW than in any other State in Australia and about
40% of club premises in Australia are found in NSW.
The
membership of ClubsNSW is made up of:
34%
bowling clubs
21% RSL / ex-services clubs
18% golf clubs
5% leagues / football clubs
2% community / workers clubs
Approximately 19% other (including other sports, business,
ethnic, religious and social clubs).
Of these clubs:
35%
are located in metropolitan Sydney, with 65% in regional
or rural areas
Over 43,000 people are employed in clubs in NSW
There are over 5.5 million club memberships held in
NSW which is equivalent to one for each adult in NSW
Many Australian entertainers owe their success to
a start in their local club
Club volunteers contribute over 6.3 million hours
to their communities across NSW.
The Club Industry is a strong supporter of sport across
the State:
Sporting
facilities maintained by the Club Industry include
around 1,550 bowling greens, 366 golf courses, 163
playing fields, 80 gyms and 66 swimming pools.
ClubsNSW, as the peak industry body of the Club Industry,
is a major partner of the NSW Institute of Sport (NSWIS),
giving $1 million annually since 1995.
The top five benefits of club membership are:
A
great venue for socialising and meeting with friends
Good quality meals and drinks provided at reasonable
prices
Good entertainment and events
Sport and fitness facilities and support for sporting
teams
Pleasant and safe atmosphere.
Source:
The
Allen Consulting Group, The 2007 Socio-Economic Impact
Study of Clubs in NSW.
ClubsNSW
is the peak body for close to 1400 registered clubs
across NSW and is often called upon to discuss a wide
range of subjects in the media. Common topics include
sport, its facilities and equipment as well as problem
gambling, poker machine tax, alcohol, smoking and
horse racing.
Clubs
exist in every town and city in NSW with a population
of over 400 people. ClubsNSW where possible will always
attempt to be available to all media, regardless of
size and location.
Media
wishing to contact ClubsNSW, its CEO Anthony Ball,
its Chairman Peter Newell OAM or any other staff,
should first contact:
Jeremy
Bath
Media Relations Manager
ClubsNSW / ClubsAustralia
Direct: (02) 9268 3032
Mobile: 0419 267 789
Email: jbath@clubsnsw.com.au
Anita
Balalovski
Media Officer
ClubsNSW / ClubsAustralia
Direct: (02) 9268 3008
Mobile: 0422 390 501
Email: abalalovski@clubsnsw.com.au
Media
Man does not represent Clubs NSW
Profile
Clubs
Australia
Website
Clubs
Australia
PRESS
RELEASE
23rd
March 2011
WILKIES
POKIE REFORMS SET TO FAIL
The
President of ClubsAustralia today said the Tasmanian
Independent MP Andrew Wilkies $3 billion poker
machine reforms have been designed to deter recreational
gamblers and would not stop problem gamblers from
betting.
Addressing
the National Press Club, itself a venue that will
be subject to Wilkies mandatory pre-commitment
technology, Peter Newell said the anti-gambling lobby
was well aware that responsible gamblers will refuse
to register for a license to gamble.
The
Member for Denison is on the record as saying hed
like to see poker machines disappear altogether.
But he admits that his restrictions
his word are a good step along the way
to this ultimate extremist and prohibitionist goal,
he said.
Peter
Newell accused Wilkie and his followers of ignoring
the advice of some of Australias leading gambling
experts and welfare groups who have concluded that
mandatory pre-commitment will not help problem gamblers
stop betting.
The
Australian Government has seen plenty of evidence
only in the last couple of months that this is a flawed
proposal as far as helping problem gamblers is concerned.
Australias leading academic on problem
gambling, Professor Alex Blaszczynski, advised a Parliamentary
Committee chaired by the Member for Denison himself
that pre-commitment is unlikely to have a significant
impact on the majority of problem gamblers, and may
even exacerbate problem gambling.
Common sense tells you hes right, because
problem gamblers are unlikely to set affordable limits
and are likely to set high limits or none at all.
And with regard to the absence of cost-benefit
analysis, isnt this an amazing way to make public
policy on the run announce a wide-ranging measure
impacting on millions of people, and only after that
perhaps look to see what it might cost, Peter
Newell said.
Key
facts:
·
Mandatory pre-commitment has never been trialled in
Australia
·
There are 5,700 clubs and pubs across Australia and
employing 268,000 people directly
·
There are 10.5 million club memberships nationally
·
5 million people play a poker machine each year
·
There are 95,000 problem gamblers in Australia (2%
of poker machine players)
·
The rate of problem gambling has fallen in every state
over the past decade. In NSW, QLD and VIC, the rate
has fallen by an average of 44%
·
Andrew Wilkie has admitted gaming revenue will fall
by up to 40% or $4.8b annually
·
State and Territory governments will lose over $1
billion in gaming tax annually as a result of mandatory
pre-commitment technology
·
The Productivity Commission found that poker machines
make a net positive social contribution of between
$768 million and $5.5 billion a year.
Jeremy Bath
Media Relations Manager
ClubsNSW / ClubsAustralia
Direct: 02 9268 3032
Mobile: 0419 267 789
Email:
jbath@clubsnsw.com.au
Media
Man does not represent Clubs Australia
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Media
Man founder and director Greg Tingle for Australian
Prime Minister
The
Election Video That's Sweeping The Nation
Tingle
For Prime Minister
Websites
Election
2010
Australia
2010
News
Australian
Anti Gambling MP May Cost Labor Election, by Greg
Tingle - 24th March 2011
G'day
punters, casino and gambling millionaires and billionaires,
legal eagles, politicians officials...one and all.
How hot is the gambling debate in Australia? Well,
hot enough to win or loose an election it seems according
to numbers we have obtained, and the Liberal - Nationals
coalition are heavily tipped to smash the Gillard
Labor government. No surprises there, but the giant
margin between the parties is the shock, as well as
some surprised that Labor appears to be sticking by
the man who looks primed to be a key reason for their
upcoming defeat. Media
Man and Gambling911
probe the gambling with politics debate, as Labor
dives head first into what may be one of their most
embarrassing election loses in decades...
Independent MP Andrew Wilkie Anti Gambling Stance
Tipped To Cost Labour Election...
How
much difference can one man - an MP make? Well, that
can cost an election victory Labor is tipped to suffer.
The
clearly bias MP, not independent in his views, has
been cause of much of the political - gambling news
to come out of Australia for well over a year, and
the man many describe as a professional mischief maker
may be soon going back to school, so to speak, as
Gillard and co may ponder what went wrong.
Australia
is estimated to have roughly 100,000 problem gamblers,
if you believe the numbers which get spoken about
(numbers we are skeptical about as their are agenda
driven). MP Wilkie is hell bent to drive forward and
create a national gambling pre-commitment system,
that would allow individuals to set limits on their
addictive behaviour. At least, that's the concept,
but many world leading experts say his plan is doomed
to fails, and just one reason is that gamblers will
always find a way to gamble - finding the loop holes,
be it borrowing a mates card, club swapping, fake
ID, online gambling, illegal Kings Cross gambling
dens and underground poker games in the suburbs of
'Sin City' Sydney and 'Underbelly Mother' Melbourne.
Clubs
Australia king hit Labour and the independents yesterday
at a conference held at the National Press Club in
Canberra,
with president Peter Newell proudly announcing a $20
million marketing campaign against the Wilkie reforms.
Newell
believes that the scheme will not work, pushing pokie
players into buying black market 'smart cards'
the proposed means of tracking users' gambling spend
Australia wide. Clubs Australia believe pokie players
will also leap across to other forms of gambling or
set very high levels of 'pre-commitment' anyway. And,
he says, it will be the death of 11,500 jobs and rape
$800 million or so from the NSW economy.
Wilkie
was pretty pissed off yesterday, holding a long press
conference and here's some of what he had to say "If
Clubs Australia think they can intimidate me with
the nonsense we heard today, then they misjudge me
badly. If anything, I feel more committed to these
reforms than I have ever have."
Senator
Nick Xenophon, another big anti gambling supporter,
tag teamed with Wilkie at the press conference to
sprout off the colourful "The poker machine lobby
reminds me a bit like the slave owners of the 19th
century in the United States, who say their whole
way of life would be ruined if there were any changes
bought about. That's how the industry is behaving."
This
is one hell of a mighty WrestleMania like political
battle. Wilkie achieved support from the Gillard government
to pursue the pre-commitment scheme in return for
helping it form minority government. He also snatched
research from the Productivity Commission, some of
which is heavily disputed from many experts. The PC
reckons that 7 lives of family or friends are seriously
impacted by each problem gambler, with a national
social cost in the region of $4.7 billion a year.
In
the blue corner, introducing 'The Devil'. Just kidding
readers. Clubs Australia is well aware that an avalanche
of clubs, pub and pokie palace closures will send
massive anti-Labor sentiment through the communities
they accommodate. We're talking about clubs like Blacktown
RSL, which held a political debate with Labor coming
off not looking too bad in the 2010 election campaign.
But, Labor did not win in their own right.
Yesterday
Wilkie was pretty fired up at the press conference.
This is his main agenda - get rid of pokies, or all
but close them down. What a life hey. Some believe
he has the numbers to get the bill through the lower
house, and via Nick 'Mr X' (satire) Xenophon will
no longer hold the balance of power in the Senate
by the time the bill arrives, Bob Brown's Greens will
and they are tipped to embrace the push, and
will want to make it one of their own. But Greens
don't like 'Big Brother' type tactics, so they say,
so its a big time 'Art Of War' thing going on here.
$20
million bucks will help show that Labor is making
a massive screw up. That might trigger Gillard screw
over Wilkie.
Wilkie's
may just have the numbers to play "silly buggers"
(mold and manipulate et al) with the Gillard legislative
agenda if he does not get his way, tipped to be the
way of the bible basing brigade.
It's
WrestleMania time both in the U.S and Australia and
Clubs Australia VS the government are our main event.
Is it going to be a steel cage match, a no holds barred
contest for the championship, or will it go to a street
fight 'real life Underbelly' style? Stay tuned fans.
Aussie Punters Bet Labor Will Be History In New South
Wales...
The
bookies have given the kiss of death to NSW Labor.
Deputy Premier Carmel Tebbutt is a rank outsider in
her electorate, as are Verity Firth in Balmain, Frank
Terenzini in Maitland and Jodi McKay in Newcastle.
Centrebet's preliminary odds, published today, show
the bookies are sure Labor is a dead duck in the inner
city and the Hunter. Ms Tebbutt is at $2.25 to $1.58
for Fiona Byrnes of the Greens. Ms Firth is $3.70
against $1.24 for the Greens' Jamie Parker. Ms Firth's
fight for Balmain was spectacularly unsettled on January
28, after her husband Matthew Chesher, the chief-of-staff
to the Roads Minister David Borger, was charged with
buying an ecstasy pill. Mr Terenzini is tipped to
lose his seat, with the Liberal Robyn Parker a favourite
at $1.52 to $2.40. In Newcastle Ms McKay is an outsider
against John Tate, an independent who is also the
lord mayor. Neil Evans of Centrebet
said punters generally showed more nous than pollsters.
"We're
talking about very connected people who are not betting
to lose," he said. "The closer you get to
an election, the more informed the money is. You can
take a snap of 500 people in a poll, but they might
think something one day and something different the
next."
Sportsbet's
odds are even worse news for Labor. It puts a win
by Ms Tebbutt at $4.50 to Ms Byrne's $1.10, and Ms
Firth at $7 to $1.28 for Mr Parker. As for who will
be premier, 90% of Centrebet
punters say Opposition Leader Barry O'Farrell. It
is not all bad news for Labor. Betting agencies say
Kristina Keneally and her predecessor as premier,
Nathan Rees, will both win their seats. Centrebet
has priced a win by Ms Keneally in Heffron at $1.06,
with the Liberal and Greens candidates both long shots
at $8 and $9.50. Mr Rees, who bypassed a rank-and-file
ballot to be endorsed as the candidate by the party's
national executive, appears to have more competition
in Toongabbie - his odds are at $1.74 to $2 for the
Coalition. Sportsbet has already compiled odds for
who will be the Labor leader at the 2015 election,
and it does not look good for Ms Keneally. She is
equal third with Mr Borger, behind Transport Minister
John Robertson and Police Minister Michael Daley.
In the lead-up to the 2010 federal election, Centrebet's
seat-by-seat odds showed a hung parliament, with Labor
holding 75 seats, the Coalition 71, independents three
and the Greens one - pretty close to the actual result
of Labor 72, Coalition 73, independents four and Greens
one. Do Aussie punters know a thing or two about election
betting? Just ask Labor... in about a week. Can we
have mops ready please to clean up the bloody crimson
mass!
Aussie Punter bets $30,000 on NSW coalition win...
One
punter put their money where their mouth is and has
wagered $30,000 on a win for the NSW coalition in
the upcoming state elections. A Centrebet
spokesman said tonight that a client has bet $30,000
on the NSW Coalition at $1.015 to win Saturday's state
election. The person who placed the bet would gain
only $450 if the coalition wins as NSW Labor has drifted
to the high price of $16, according to Centrebet.
"Nearly $250,000 has been bet into the election
- and the money split is 93-7 the coalition's way,"
Centrebet spokesman Neil Evans said. Word of the Aussie
political betting has leaked to the likes of PartyGaming
and Virgin
Games, with both becoming more interested to start
taking bets on Australian elections.
A
Media Man
spokesperson said "The Aussie punter who placed
the wager must know we most of us already know - Labor
is going to cop an almighty beating. The only difference
is that they placed money on it. Overseas betting
agencies have also taken note, always looking at new
ways to expand business. Quite ironic that the anti
gambling brigade has been so vocal in this election.
We prefer slots and tables games over election betting,
but don't let that stop you. Know the odds and have
fun, as they say".
Readers...
er, punters, how did you like our report? Tell us
in the forum.
Take
the time to research and learn games before placing
down money
Media
Man, Casino
News Media and Gambling911 are website portals.
Not casinos as such, however are recognised as world
leading websites that cover the sector and act as
central points to games, news, reviews and more.
If
you have a bet, please bet with your head, not over
it, and for God's sake, have fun.
*Greg
Tingle is a special contributor for Gambling911
*Media
Man is primarily a media, publicity and internet
portal development company. Gaming is just one of
a dozen sectors covered
News
Gambling
And Politics Mix In Australia, by Greg Tingle - 14th
March 2011
Internet
Big Part Of Problem Gambling States Another Expert...
Professor
of psychology Alex Blaszczynski says internet sports
betting is changing the face of problem gamblers seeking
help. He says the image of someone sitting at the
pokies for hours on end is being replaced by young
men gambling on the net. "Today we are seeing
many young men who are losing large sums of money
from betting on sports over the internet," he
said. "They can literally lose a fortune without
leaving the comfort of their own home." Figures
released by the University of Sydney's gambling clinics
show a 70 per cent increase in internet sports betting
clients from 2008-9 to 2010-11. "With more and
more people gaining access to higher internet speeds
and wireless internet via their smart phones, you
can gamble anytime and anywhere," Professor Blaszczynski
said. He says with football season about to start,
he expects an increase in people seeking help for
problem gambling on the net. Clinical psychologist
Christopher Hunt says increased promotion of gambling
through sports media was a concern. "It's difficult
to watch most kinds of sporting matches these days
without being made aware of the prices that various
outlets are giving for bets," he said. He says
it is natural that people with an interest in sport
try their luck gambling. "Unfortunately some
of these people will lose more than they planned to
and become problem gamblers," he said.
Joe
Hockey Favours Welfare Quarantining...
Shadow
treasurer Joe Hockey wants long-term welfare recipients
to have their payments managed. Hockey said the long-term
unemployed and those on disability pensions should
be case managed by Centrelink. "We have to meet
head-on the challenge of growing welfare dependency,"
he told ABC Radio yesterday. Hockey also said people
with drug and gambling problems should have their
welfare payments quarantined. But Australian Council
of Social Service's chief executive Cassandra Goldie
said it was the wrong approach. "There is still
very little evidence to say that compulsory income
management actually makes a difference," she
said. Big Brother stays on the gambling and welfare
spectrum's, but just how big Big Brother is remains
to be seen.
Tasmania:
Greens Party Keen To See Community Take On Casinos...
The
Tasmanian Greens will push for poker machines in the
Federal Group's casinos to be subject to the community
support levy, like those in other gaming venues. Leader
Nick McKim told Parliament that Tasmanians lost $214
million on poker machines last year. He said applying
the community support tax to casino poker machines
would raise $2.6 million a year which could be spent
on programs to treat gambling addicts. McKim denied
his plan would unfairly disadvantage the Federal Group
which runs the state's casinos. "Everyone has
to pay their way in these tough times," he said.
"Secondly Federal Hotels Group have had a very
good ride for a very long, long period of time from
the Tasmanian Government, and from the Tasmanian people,
and it is time as the good corporate citizens they
aspire to be, they chipped in."
News
22nd
January 2009 - Barack Obama is sworn in as the President
of the United States of America
January
2009 - Barack Obama immortalized in pop culture as
he makes the front cover of Marvel
Comics
5th
November 2008 - the president-elect of the United
States is Barack Obama
24th
November 2007 - Kevin Rudd elected new Australian
Prime Minister
Arnold
Schwarzenegger
Greg
Tingle (Media Man director) and The
Hon Wayne Swan
Paul
Keating, Mrs Chang and Kerry
Packer
News
Crown
Casino Teams Up With NRL's Melbourne Storm...
Melbourne
are expecting a cyclone size backlash as the latest
National
Rugby League club to link with a gambling establishment
after confirming Crown Casino as their new major sponsor.
In a massive deal snatcher for a club which last year
was disgraced after being stripped of all points and
two premierships during the salary cap scandal, the
Storm unveiled Crown as their front jersey sponsor
on Friday. Melbourne chief executive Ron Gauci agreed
there would be criticism of the club's link with gambling.
However he defended the arrangement and said Crown
offered a home for Storm supporters, which the club
had not had since it joined the competition in 1998.
All Storm after-match and mid-season functions for
members will be held at Crown. The casino believes
the sponsorship will boost their exposure interstate.
"I think you'll have those that wish to comment
but I think we need to emphasise what it is that we
wanted out of the relationship and that is a home
for our supporter base," Gauci said. "If
you think about what Crown has to offer as an entertainment
complex ... this is a great place to consolidate those
activities." The Storm lost major sponsors Host
Plus and ME Bank in the wake of last season's scandal.
Gauci said the new sponsorship delivered a message
of confidence in the Storm ahead of the 2011 season.
"I think it does deliver us a substantial message
to the marketplace, and for the club it's very important
to have an organisation as big a Melbourne icon as
Crown is to support the club. It delivers a magnificent
message about the confidence the corporate world has
in Melbourne Storm and our future direction."
The Storm joined South
Sydney as the second NRL club to have a gambling
establishment as their major sponsor, while Penrith
have renamed their home ground Centrebet Stadium and
Manly will also have the Centrebet logo on the back
of their jumper. Yes, NRL ramped up links to gambling
are all the rage. A rumour has started that igaming
kings PartyGaming
want into Australia and would accept an NRL jersey,
shorts or even stadium deal. The firm is known for
its well known and respected PartyCasino,
PartyPoker
and World
Poker Tour brands, which have a strong following
in Australia, other parts of the Asia Pacific, such
as New Zealand. Party is also looking to ramp up sports
betting services in the Asia Pacific region. Melbourne's
announcement also comes in the same week as Ryan Tandy,
who left the Storm midway through last season to join
Canterbury, was arrested and charged as a result of
an ongoing police investigation into "irregular
betting" on a match between the Canterbury Bulldogs
and North Queensland Cowboys last August. Dennis Watt,
rugby league general manager with News Limited, who
own the Storm, defended the arrangement between a
gambling establishment and a sport sold as a family
game. "I can speak for Crown as an integrated
entertainment, retail complex. It is very much reflective
of the heart and soul of Melbourne and it's a great
relationship for us to have and I don't see a conflict
for the relationship the Storm have sought here."
He echoed the views recently expressed by NRL chief
executive David Gallop that the association between
sport and gambling "is as old as sport itself".
"Gambling's a part of the Australian way of life,
part of our character and our history," he said.
"We advocate moderation, we know that problem
gambling affects less than half a per cent of the
population. "You've got two million problem drinkers,
four million smokers, over nine million Australians
suffering levels of obesity which are also big social
issues."
A
Media Man
spokesperson said "The Crown Casino - Melbourne
Storm sponsorship deal looks to be a match made in
heaven. Crown has world class facilities and entertainment
is the name of the game. Entertainment takes many
forms, be it football, burlesque, television, rock
bands or slot machines aka one armed bandits. Crown
Casino can do it all. Already this deal has generated
national and international headlines, and yes, we
are helping spread the word to our friends in the
U.S and Canada. Gambling911, CAP, GWPA and Poker News
Daily are just a few outlets that we expect to run
the story. It's balanced and positive coverage all
the way, instead of the agenda driven gaming hater
stuff you read from time to time. Chalk up more browny
points for Crown's James Packer and his world class
team at Crown, and good on the NRL and The Storm for
seeing the golden opportunity and moving it into high
gear. I never thought I would say this again after
last season's scandals, but Go The Storm!"
Australian
Betting Limited 'Bullet Proof' NOT! Says Maker Aristocrat...
A
card-based system forcing pokie players to set betting
limits isn't a "bullet proof" solution to
problem gambling, poker machine maker Aristocrat Leisure
Ltd says. Aristocrat, representing over 60% of the
Australian pokies market, is instead proposing a machine-based
system that lets gamblers set time and/or betting
limits. But the proposal was met with some opposition
when Aristocrat executives appeared before a joint
federal parliamentary committee hearing in Sydney
on Friday. The committee is investigating the idea
of a pre-commitment scheme using smart card or other
technology to force pokie players to set limits on
their gambling. It follows a controversial commitment
from Prime Minister Julia Gillard to Tasmanian "independent"
(so to speak - has seen to be bias and preduduce against
those liking a punt) MP Andrew Wilkie to introduce
such a scheme across the country in return for his
support of her Labor government. "As a company,
we acknowledge that there is a problem out there,"
Aristocrat general manager of corporate affairs Kristene
Reynolds told the hearing. "For us, coming here
today is to come to the table and be part of that
solution." The company's managing director in
Australia and New Zealand, Trevor Croker, said card-based
systems, which have been used in other countries,
can be manipulated by problem gamblers. "It is
not a bullet proof solution. People do swap cards
and have been able to use multiple cards," he
said. "I think finding the complete solution
is going to be a very difficult outcome. "It
should not be something we don't aspire to, but it
will be very difficult, from what we see in those
(other) markets." Aristocrat will soon trial
a new slot machine that features opt-in pre-commitments,
allowing users the option to set themselves spending
or time limits. These machines could be ready for
mass production from the end of 2012, and phased in
as part of the normal machine replacement cycle, Croker
said. But with the average cost of a pokie at $25,000,
Labor MP Stephen Jones questioned the Aristocrat executives
on the cost effectiveness of such a solution. "It
would be good for Aristocrat, I can see that. But
it's a very expensive solution to the problem, isn't
it?", he asked. Aristocrat general manager of
design and development Justin Brown said smaller venues
could be given longer to replace their machines, while
newer models may only require a software upgrade,
at a cost of about $3,000. Mr Wilkie, the committee's
chairman, also questioned the motives of Aristocrat's
proposal. "I can't help feeling an element of
commercial self interest in your advice to the committee
here," he said. Further questioning resulted
in the Aristocrat executives conceding their machine-based
proposal would not prevent problem gamblers from simply
switching machines or venues once they had reached
a pre-committed loss or time limit. The hearings continue
in Canberra and Hobart later this month. In Australia
the machines are often known as pokies or poker machines,
in the U.S - slots, and much of Europe - Fruit Machines
or Fruities!
Queensland's
Sunshine Coast A Big Winner For Lottery Sector; Punters
To Win Homes Via BoysTown Gambling...
It's
steal from the rich to give to the poor! Ok, not exactly,
but read on and you will get the drift soon enough.
The Sunshine Coast has long been regarded as a prize
location by local residents, but now a range of national
and state lottery organisations are taking notice.
BoysTown Lotteries recently unveiled a million-dollar
home in Buderim as its latest prize home offering.
Located at 22 Orme Rd, the home is part of a prize
package worth more than $1.5 million. It is arguably
one of Buderims most beautiful homes, according
to BoysTowns general manager fundraising Keith
Coventry. "Our previous lottery prize home was
in Nerang (Gold Coast) and the one before that was
in Rainbow Bay (Coolangatta). Now we find ourselves
in Buderim on the Sunshine Coast. When deciding on
a prize home, we look at the property itself and then
the desirability of the location and the features
of the area," Coventry said. "I think the
thing about Buderim is that you are close to the beach,
but you also have those great views over the ocean
and the coastline. I guess you get the best of both
worlds. "The Buderim home has been particularly
popular and the retail sales have been very strong."
Yet another contender in the Coasts prize pool
is a home in Mount Coolum, raising funds for the Mater
Foundation as part of the Mater Prize Home Lottery.
Also sporting a million-dollar price tag, the home
is located at 47 Boardwalk Blvd in Coolums Boardwalk
Estate. Twin Waters is the site of Surf Life Saving
Lotterys prize home, which is valued at more
than $750,000. The three-bedroom home at Lot 4 Ameen
Cct comes with $41,832 in furniture and electrical,
along with 12 months paid council rates. Coventry
said funds raised from the BoysTown lottery would
assist the Kids Helpline service, which was in particular
demand since the recent floods. "Kids Helpline
is certainly taking a lot more calls from kids who
are worried about the impacts of the floods, or who
have been affected by the floods. A lot of people
are seeking assistance with the mental health aspects
of this natural disaster, so I think that is certainly
going to be the focus of much of our fundraising over
the coming months." The money raised from Mater
lotteries help funds medical research teams and the
purchase of life-saving medical equipment, as well
as supporting patients and families. Surf Life Saving
lotteries assist Surf Life Saving clubs around the
country. Aussies, feeling lucky. Go on, give them
a go, and you know the money is going to a good place,
if you don't happen to win. Mind you, feel welcome
to check out the slots, poker, bingo and other casino
games showcased on the portal also. BoysTown Lottery
will set you back a bit, while at Media Man partners
like PartyGaming, many games can be played for free
or for money. The choice if yours. Hours of entertainment
for young and old - just kidding, check legalities
but most counties insist you are at least 18 years
old to gamble, and that includes from lottery to poker
to slots, ok crew!
Clubs
Australia VS Productivity Watchdog: Dog Fight; Bark
Worse Than Bite?...
Clubs
Australia will today accuse the nation's productivity
watchdog of making a mathematical error in its claim
that problem gamblers are responsible for 40% of poker
machine revenue. Media Man spokespersons and investigators
have been disputing the "problem gambling"
numbers for almost 2 years! The figure of 40% is being
used by anti-gambling politicians aka "gaming
haters" to try to justify new limits on gambling
the Gillard government has pledged to introduce to
maintain the support of independent MP Andrew Wilkie
in the hung parliament. Clubs Australia is fighting
a mandatory precommitment scheme that would force
pokies players to set a limit on how much they intend
to spend before they start gambling. It claims the
scheme will cost clubs and pubs $2.5 billion nationally
and cost thousands of jobs if it turns off casual
gamblers from having a punt, throwing a couple of
bucks down the throat of an "one armed bandit",
whilst often sinking a cold Aussie beer at the same
time (not that we endorse it). Beer can change ones
thinking, but you likely knew that already Jack! Politicians
backing the reform have seized on a claim in the Productivity
Commission report that problem gamblers contribute
40% of pokie revenue to justify the crackdown. Clubs
Australia president Anthony 'On The Ball' Ball will
tell a parliamentary inquiry in Sydney today the figure
is "highly contentious" and "inaccurate".
In his opening address to the inquiry he will say
that the Productivity Commission claims there are
95,000 problem gamblers who play the pokies and spend
on average $21,000 each year on the machines. When
multiplied together, this comes to a total of $1.995bn,
and this figure represents just 16.8% of the $11.9bn
total expenditure on poker machines. "These are
not our numbers. These are the figures from the commission,"
Ball will say. "Therefore the vast majority of
gambling revenue comes from recreational gamblers."
The Productivity Commission used a range of different
methods to calculate the amount spent by problem gamblers
and found both problem and recreational gamblers underestimated
how much they spent on gambling each year. The 40
per cent figure was not derived from multiplying the
number of problem gamblers by the amount they said
they spent each year but was derived from a range
of surveys that looked at what gamblers actually spent.
Clubs Australia will tell the parliamentary committee
the proposed mandatory precommitment scheme is a "massive
infringement of people's individual rights".
"There's a vast difference between making the
pre-commitment available to any player who wants to
use it, and forcing anybody who wants to play a gaming
machine to register, obtain a device and provide personal
details or fingerprints in order to be able to play,"
Mr Ball plans to tell the inquiry.
Australian
Gambling Enquiry: Traditional Gamblers Heading Online
For Slots, Poker, Roulette Et Al; Problem Gamblers
VS Problem Child Government Policy?...
Using
hi-tech to force pokies players to set betting limits
would drive gambling addicts online in the masses
and divert resources away from helping problem punters,
a Senate inquiry has heard. The inquiry, chaired by
Tasmanian federal independent MP Andrew Wilkie, is
investigating the concept of a pre-commitment scheme
using smart card or other technology to force all
pokies players to set limits on their gambling. Clubs
Australia, the peak body for registered clubs in the
nation, on Friday told the joint parliamentary committee
inquiring into the issue it had reservations about
the proposal in its current form. Clubs Australia
executive director Anthony Ball said more research
was needed on how effective it would be. "There
is very little good research out there about whether
this proposal or any others are going to work,"
he told the inquiry in Sydney. "There are a multitude
of gambling opportunities. The strategy must not be
to drive (problem gamblers) online ... The strategy
must be to find these people, get them the right treatment
and turn their lives around." He said state regulations
on gambling were sufficient and that a 'one-size-fits-all'
policy should not be applied across all states. Clubs
Australia president Peter Newell said the three main
issues regarding the scheme were cost, whether it
would reduce problem gambling and the consequences
of implementing it. He said the system failed to work
in Norway, and instead drove problem gamblers to the
internet. Five million Australians would play the
pokies in any given 12-month period and the system
would only drive away recreational players, who represented
the "vast majority" of gambling revenue,
he said. "As a recreational gambler myself, I
am disturbed that there are people who think I need
assistance in determining how I spend my money,"
he said. "Mandatory pre-commitment fails to provide
what problem gamblers need most and that is treatment,
and in doing so, diverts attention and resources away
from treatment. Problem gamblers will still gamble
in the mandatory pre-commitment system. They are addicted.
But recreational gamblers will walk away from pokie
machines." Newell said the system would be expensive
and difficult to implement across 197,000 machines
nationwide, taking years and billions of dollars to
do - forcing clubs to close and costing thousands
of jobs - with no indication as to how effective it
will be. It's man VS machine; The People VS The Government,
and The Government VS The Gaming Industry. News media
and website portals just keep lapping up the action
resulting in a readership jackpot bonanza.
News
Australian
Government VS Clubs NSW: Pokie War, by Greg Tingle
- 31st December 2010
Happy
New Year, even including you guys at the Australian
government. The Aussie government, reeling from media
reports that Australian clubs are fighting back on
the Big Brother type regulation like "biometrics"
and finger printing, is now fighting back putting
some of their own PR into cyberspace and trying to
get Australian newspapers to print their side of the
story. Media Man with the Aussie Clubs VS The Aussie
Government; news, PR or both.... you be the judge...
The
war of words and paperwork over the federal government's
proposed pokies revamp reforms has heated up, with
the so called "independent" Nick Xenophon
accusing Clubs NSW of waging a campaign of "fiction
and fear" that has left NSW the worst informed
state about the issue.
But,
the word on the street of 'Sin City' Sydney is that
the people hate being told what to think, what to
do, and especially when it comes to their entertainment
dollar and mattes or privacy. Labor has previously
tried to get into people's bedrooms with in depth
questions about sex and living arrangements on Government
Censorship paperwork, along with paperwork being throw
as pensions and others getting welfare, doing it a
bit tougher than most. Yeah, Australia's big brother
is on the nose, seemingly even worse that Ex PM Kevin
Rudd was a few years ago. In addition, over the past
12 months Labor has lost about a dozen MP's, having
to resign about things including sexual misconduct,
porn visits in working hours, and even gambling at
work!!! So, who is addicted now hey? Not good!
Senator
Xenophon and teammate independent MP Andrew Wilkie,
have begun a national consultation process on the
reforms, agreed to by the Prime Minister, Julia Gillard,
in return for Wilkie helping Labor form a minority
government. Their agenda driven spin campaign has
upset many other independent MP's, including also
the Labor and Liberal Party. Yeah, they appear to
be walking on very thin ice and insiders tip their
days may numbered, having the radical and fanatical
views they do, being out of touch with real Australians,
be it Bondi Beach or the Western Suburbs of Sydney.
Their
agenda reform proposals include but are not limited
to forcing gamblers to decide how much they are willing
to lose, known commonly as "mandatory pre-commitment",
and a $250 buck withdrawal limit from ATMs in pokie
venues. The PM has drawn a line in the sand and given
the Aussie States until May 31 to agree to the changes...
or else! Forced by law is the spin being thrown around.
But
the independent MPs keep getting hostile receptions
at clubs, including recently at Narrabri this month
when they were called '"fanatics" by angry
club patrons and supporters et al.
"As
I travel the country, the only state where people
seem uniformly misinformed about what the changes
will mean is NSW, and that's not the people's fault,"
Senator Xenophon has gone on record with. Many insiders
think its complete spin. "Clubs NSW has been
deliberately misleading its members with misinformation.
It's not hard to stir up people if you are willing
to feed them fiction and fear."
His
comments coincide with the launch of a "'personal
campaign" by the gambling reform activist Paul
Bendat, who works closely with Senator Xenophon. Bendat,
who runs the Pokie Act website has prepared full-page
newspaper advertisements to run in the Illawarra Mercury
targeting the chairman of Clubs NSW, Peter Newell.
Could they be doing their own fear and spin techniques?
If it looks like a rat and smells like a rat, you
can pretty much pick what it is, so the story goes.
Newell
happens to be the prez of Clubs Australia, chairman
of the Steelers Club in Wollongong and a former newspaper
editor, so he's a pretty clever cookie.
The
adverts resemble those taken out by Clubs NSW during
its campaign against increases to poker machine taxes
under the ex NSW treasurer Michael Egan.
The
ads say Newell "should be telling his members
these truths about pokie gambling pre-commitment".
Bendat reckons that gamblers will not be tracked under
the new system, that casual gamblers, such as interstate
or international visitors, will not have to sign up,
and implementation could cost clubs as little as $1.50
a day per machine.
The
issues, including the likely prospect that gamblers
might be fingerprinted, have been raised by the clubs
movement. There's also the "biometrics"
which are fairly effective to ID people, reminding
many of the doomed 'Australia Card' Big Brother proposal
that was tabled about 15 years ago. It was a PR disaster
for the government of the day.
But
Newell described the advertisements as "ridiculous"
and advised it was obvious Senator Xenophon and Wilkie
were losing the war on "mandatory commitment
technology".
"I'm
amazed they think such a tactic would intimidate me
or the industry," he said.
Newell
said the MPs had begun amending their "on-the-run
agreement" as the public learnt more about the
proposal.
"It
seems neither man actually wants to explain how mandatory
commitment will work, what it will cost the industry
and what impact it will have on problem gambling rates.
The Australian public deserve answers to these questions
before having the technology forced upon them."
The
NSW government opposes mandatory pre-commitment. The
Opposition Leader, Barry O'Farrell, said yesterday
he favoured a voluntary system, setting up a fight,
albeit written, verbal, and via news media with PM
Gillard if the Coalition wins power in March. "What's
important for poker machines
is to focus on
those people who have a problem," he said.
At
the moment the Australian government has a substantial
PR problem, having being caught out lying to the Australian
public on everything from gambling to the environment,
to government porn scandals. They mad their bed, and
now they are sleeping in it.
Australian Clubs Declare Pokies War On Australian
Governments; Will Be Bigger Than Aussie Mining Companies
VS Aussie Government War...
Australian
Gambling reform could overshadow the mining tax as
a political nightmare for the Gillard lead Labor government
next year. The all mighty licensed clubs lobby is
getting ready for a very public slaughter campaign
against compulsory "pre-commitment" tech
on pokies, unless the government backs of. Yep maties,
its man VS machine. The hi tech which would link 200,000
poker machines across the great nation of Australia
and in effect force all players to place a limit on
how much they gamble...was a condition Tasmanian independent
MP Andrew Wilkie placed on support for the minority
Labor government. Many political and media commentators
say it was a form of blackmail, but Gillard needed
the vote, so didn't have much choice, if you follow
us. Now in a new development that will make it even
more of a pain in the ass for Gillard to deliver on
her forced promise to have the new tech up and running
by Wilkie's 2014 deadline, the Coalition government
has declared it will support voluntary pre-commitment
only.
A
Media Man insider jokes "It's the commitment
you have when you're not having a commitment",
in reference to a famous beer add that went "It's
the beer you have when you're not having a beer".
The
art of war tactic will put pressure directly on Wilkie's
fellow independent MPs who have been supporting the
minority government, Lyne MP Rob Oakeshott and New
England MP Tony Windsor, both of whom represent New
South Wales regional seats with high levels of licensed
club membership and participation. Oh dear, there
goes the election Labor. Ok, close, but you have just
smell the downfall of Labor already. The Coalition
has tactically not formally declared its hand on the
pokie reforms (yet), but it shouldn't be long now.
Murdoch owned News Limited news hounds have now obtained
a letter from Parkes MP Mark Coultan to a constituent
setting out Coalition policy in black and white for
the first time. "We support voluntary pre-commitment
programs," Coultan writes. "Some gaming
venues already have in place voluntary pre-commitment
programs, and we would like to see these extended
to other gaming venues. The Coalition wants schemes
to be in place to help problem gamblers. However,
we believe that any response to gambling must recognise
that many Australians gamble responsibly. It is also
important to recognise that many Australians rely
on the sector for jobs. Heavy-handed government regulation
may not be the best response to problem gambling."
Industry reps claim that pre-commitment technology
using smart-cards would cost clubs roughly $5000 a
pokie to install and could lead to a 30% drop in pokie
profits during the first year. The Prime Minister
has said she will legislate the changes by 2012 if
the states do not move before then...something not
even one of the states, which rely heavily on gambling
taxes, has shown a willingness to do in the slightest.
Licensed clubs have been passionately lobbying Oakeshott
and Windsor, along with Labor MPs across Oz, many
of whom are understood to be pretty pissed off at
Gillard's promise to Wilkie that jettisoned an earlier
undertaking made to the clubs. ClubsAustralia chief
executive Anthony Ball advised the industry was giving
the government until May to back down, or face the
power and mighty force of the industry in a public
campaign along the lines of the one spear headed earlier
this year by mining companies. "Clubs, hotels
and casinos are a large industry and employ hundreds
of thousands of Australians," he said. "I
don't think people are going to be prepared to let
this through. "The Coalition is echoing what
most people are saying about this issue...that voluntary
pre-commitment can be a useful way to help gamblers
set and stick to limits. The government went from
supporting a sensible position on this issue in late
June to supporting a licence to play poker machines
in late August." Oakeshott went on record to
News Limited with, "I have met with nearly every
club in the Hastings, Camden Haven and Manning areas
and continue to listen to industry views. I am also
talking the issue through with many local constituents
and can confirm a wide range of views within the mid-north
coast of NSW." Folks, things are not looking
good for the Gillard government.
The
Australian Government VS Clubs Australia and Clubs
NSW? We think the smart money is on the clubs. This
could be the issues that's the final nail in the coffin
on Labor. Just saying! It's war on!
News
NSW
Smoking Up The ACT For Pub Pokies; Australian Gambling
Smoking Wars...
The
ACT's dolphin and whale size gambling firms tell us
that they're losing cold hard cash to "cross-border
alfresco" pokies and they demand a bigger tax
cut to compensate their loss! Canberra's clubs, once
thought to be a bit part of 'Sin City', taken over
by Sydney, are hard at work lobbying the Government
for a tax cut of upwards to $4.2 million a year, saying
they are losing punters across the border to Queanbeyan
where gamblers can smoke cigarettes while playing
outdoor poker machines. It's well known that many
gamblers like to smoke, and they are loving doing
so in an outdoors environment. Got to keep the smoking
gamblers happy we guess? Anti gambling and anti smokers
are none to impressed, as the battle for minds on
the gambling subjects continues to be red hot fodder
down under. The ACT gambling operators put forward
that regulatory changes to the industry in the ACT,
including bans on outdoor smoking areas that rule
out "alfresco pokies" on the ACT side of
the border, make a tax cut of more than $4 million
bucks "seem more than reasonable." The clubs
desire to be able to establish a market to allow rich
clubs to buy machines from smaller operators, a move
that would overturn years of ACT out of date Government
policy. Clubs ACT's hard line type list of "I
Wants") to the Quinlan review of the territory's
tax system states that the industry's revenue base
has been declining for years and is now taking another
a dive, news that pokie and gambling haters are relishing
in. Gaming Minister Andrew Barr has been unavailable
to respond on the industry's wish list as we go live
to news. The clubs state that the present taxation
system, which nets the Treasury close to $36 million
annually, hits the big earners in the industry extremely
hard, with well to do clubs contributing about 98%
of the total tax take. The industry peak body has
now suggested 2 business models for restructuring
the tax arrangements, one that would result in a tax
cut of $3.2 million and another that would result
in a cut of $4.2 million. The apparent inability to
compete with "all-weather poker machines"
in NSW is cited in the submission as a key disadvantage.
A Media Man spokesperson said "The ACT based
clubs appear to have a case for a large tax break
in this case. The situation may get worse before it
gets better, as heavy rain is also forecast for much
of Australia's east coast as we head towards the new
year."
News
Tingle:
Australian Clubs, Pubs, Gaming Biz At War With Gvt
- 3rd December 2010
G'day
maties. It's another jam packed report focusing on
down under Australia. It's all about the
Aussie pubs, clubs and gaming industry at war with
the government, and they get ready to bring the fight,
and campaign like hell. It's the gaming lovers VS
the gaming haters. Media Man http://www.AustralianSportsEntertainment.com
and Gambling911 with the latest and greatest from
Aussie land...
Australian
Clubs, Pubs And Gaming Industry Prepares For War...
Aussie
clubs, pubs and the gaming sector at large are getting
ready for a major campaign against the Julie Gillard
Government and her friend in politics, independent
MP Andrew Wilkie, over their cunning plans for pokies
reform.
The
pending war in being described by some commentators
as not totally unlike in nature to when the old Labor
Rudd government went to war with the mining sector.
Wilkie
on the Parliament floor snatched the Government's
backing for the introduction of "mandatory pre-commitment
technology" (for all gamblers playing the pokies
in clubs, pubs and casinos)!!!
Wilkie
spruiks the clubs are "peddling lies" and
he's not concerned about their plans to campaign against
pre-commitment technology.
Clubs
Australia, the main body reping for down under's 4,000
or so clubs, has likened the looming wrestling match
to the Rudd government's battle with the mining industry
over the resources super profits tax.
Clubs
Australia chief executive Anthony Ball tells us that
as with the minerals tax, there has been a serious
lack of consultation about the gambling reforms.
"What
I do know is that there was a lack of consultation
before a very big decision was made which would have
serious knock-on effects for the mining community
and if that's what happened with mining that is what
has happened with clubs," Ball said.
"We
certainly weren't consulted about that deal and we
saw it on Sky News when the press conference happened."
Wilkie
has made it clear he will walk from the Federal Government
if P.M Julia Gillard does not bring in "mandatory
pre-commitment technology"...a system where every
one armed bandit player will be required to register
using a "smart card" or some other technology
to have their playing habits... yes, their habits,
human behaviour tracked. Big Brother could be seen
to be watching to get in mind of the player!!!
While
the exact tech does not quite exist at the time of
print, Wilkie is inviting Clubs NSW and Clubs Australia
to work out a system together that will help ensure
every pokie machine across the country is connected.
Yep, Cleopatra, Black Rhino, Gone Fishing, Where's
The Gold, Big Red, Pink Panther, you name it Casino
Jack. This means a "problem gambler" could
not jump from one club to another, to try to sidestep
the Big Brother system, and their spending limits
would be capped - stopped, dead in their tracks.
Clubs
Australia is not keen on "the system", and
is currently preparing for a major campaign aka war,
next year.
The
clubs have appointed 10 delegates to shadow and lobby
each federal MP, particularly Labor members in marginal
political seats.
"What
I do know is that I have been talking to a lot of
MPs and senators over the past few months and I think
there is a level of disquiet about it," Ball
said. "They will handle the politics and yes,
they do need Andrew Wilkie's vote.
"Everybody
knows what the local club does; there is one in every
suburb and certainly in every electorate. I think
they have genuine concerns about this licence to gamble,
this Australia-card solution. I think that the 10
million memberships around Australia will be worried
about that."
The
clubs' art of war strategy will ramp up before the
NSW state election this March and before the important
deadline PM Gillard set for the states and territories
to agree to implement the reforms. Yep, Gillard is
now setting deadlines, and it will be interesting
to see if she meet them this time.
Gillard
has threatened the states that if they do not introduce
"mandatory pre-commitment technology" by
May 2011 she could move to force their hand. The clubs
believe this could see the tax revenue from pokies
flowing to the Federal Government away from the states.
Art
Of War Tactics On The Way...
Grahame
Morris, a former adviser to prime minister John Howard
and to the gambling industry, advised the Aussie clubs
have the means to mobilise communities and resources.
Morris,
the federal director of Barton Deakin Government Relations,
says the power of clubs in NSW is enormous and marginal
seat MPs would be nervous!
"If
I was Prime Minister Gillard, I would think twice
about taking on the club industry; they can be a powerful
opponent in marginal seats. She could blow her government
out of the water on this one community issue alone
if she is not careful."
Wilkie
says the clubs are spreading misinformation as part
of a scare campaign.
"There
are some in the industry who have been at least mischievous;
some have been downright dishonest; some members of
the industry are peddling lies and they know it.
Claims
such as there will be fingerprinting technology, that
there will be a national database and some of the
figures they are using, they are making them up and
they know it. They are deliberately misleading the
Australian community and I think that is reprehensible.
My advice to the industry is that the decision has
been made."
Ball
denies clubs are misleading people and says the only
way to track players is to use "biometric data".
Think Big Brother once again.
"They
might call it a biometric identification or some other
tricky term if you like, but ultimately players have
to be identified under this system and they need to
have their play tracked," he said.
Wilkie
says the clubs are trying to galvanise support against
the measures by scaring pensioners.
"Spreading
this information as they are doing is increasing the
heartache unnecessarily. For example, the claim pensioners
are going to lose their pensions because the system
will track their winnings - that is a downright lie.
They don't need to lie. They need to work with us
and come up with a better system."
Wilkie
Means Business On Hard Line Approach...
Wilkie
says he is "remarkably unworried about the pressure
the industry is bringing to bear. "What the industry
needs to understand is that they are lobbying the
MPs as though we are having a discussion of whether
there will be or won't there be poker machine reform.
The decision has been made. There will be unprecedented
reform on poker machines and problem gambling in Australia.
They can lobby all the politicians until the cows
come home but it won't mean anything because the decision
has been made."
Footy
clubs, RSL clubs are not going to take it lying down.
Chris Hart, a supervisor at the Steelers Club in Wollongong,
says he is wearing a badge opposing the changes because
he believes they could cost him his job and pay packet.
"I
am wearing this badge because it is part of a campaign
against the mandatory pre-commitment changes and it
involves a customer having to scan their thumb on
a machine so they commit an amount of money and once
they reach that limit they can't do it anywhere else
in Australia," Hart said. "I really think
it will have a devastating effect on clubs like this."
Emma
Sumner also works at the Steelers footy club. She
says mandatory pre-commitment won't work and the club
could close down if it is forced to implement the
new technology.
"It
isn't a good idea because we will lose about 40% of
our revenue and it means we can't support out local
team, the Illawarra Dragons," she said.
Sumner
reckons that she sees problem gamblers in the club
but does not believe anyone can intervene.
"When
you work in this industry you do see people and you
think how much money have they put in today, but then
again it is really none of our business ... it is
their sort of business."
Clubs
say they are happy to support pre-commitment reforms
(as long as they are voluntary) and they are calling
on PM Gillard to meet them to discuss the issue.
Readers,
if you have a put, know your limits, and stick to
them.
How
did you find the report today? Offer your opinion
in the Gambling911 forum.
If
you have a bet, bet with your head, not over it, and
for God's sake, have fun.
*Greg
Tingle is a Special Contributor to the Gambling911.com
website and proprietor of Media Man http://www.AustralianSportsEntertainment.com
*Media
Man http://www.AustralianSportsEntertainment.com
is primarily a media, publicity and internet portal
development company. They also offer political analysis.
Australian
Political Parties Bet On Self To Lose - 1st August
2010
Readers,
punters, gamers, casino billionaires, entrepreneurs,
journos and political pundits, what a week, and what
a story have we got for you. You've heard of an own
goal in soccer. Well, get this... Australian political
parties betting on themselves to loose the upcoming
election... no joke folks. Centrebet is enjoying the
spoils with the rumour mill saying PartyGaming want
in, but the clock is ticking boys. Media
Man and Gambling911 play 'Casino Jack' with this
most unusual turn of events that is rumoured to bring
Paul The Psychic Octopus out of retirement...
New
Australian Prime Minster Julia Gillard might feel
like she's spent Six Months In A Leaking Boat (thanks
Split Enz), even though it's only been a month. Liberal
call the Gillard run the shortest "Honeymoon
Period" in the history of Australian politics,
and it looks and smells like the case. Tony "The
Bruiser" Abbott can hardly put a foot wrong at
the moment, and even if he did, it may be missed by
sweet science pundits, as Gillard stumbles around
the ring, bouncing off the ropes like an irish whipped
Skippy Kangaroo... going down sport!...with the corner
man leaking buckets and reaching for the secret grease...
Top
dog Labor party folks have placed some large wagers
on the outcome of the upcoming Australian federal
election, with plenty of would be turncoats punting
against their own party. What would Captain Cook or
Jesus think? A major betting powerhouse advised bets
had been placed on members of the opposing team to
win marginal seats including New South Wales and Queensland.
Just when we are trying loose the taste of the NRL
State Of Origin series, not to mention the Green Machine
VS Paul "The Hurricane" Briggs "boxing
match"... you know, the one banned from Sydney
which went on to super scandal in Western Australia.
Centrebet
hotshot analyst Neil Evans went on record to our friends
at Fairfax Media with "I can't tell you who but
I can tell you this...these are people very high up
betting on some of the critical seats and I can tell
you they don't always stay faithful to their party
- they swap sides. They are well-known Labor figures
and associates that are punting on these seats. A
lot of Labor-connected money has been backing a Coalition
win in marginal seats and, to a lesser extent, the
Coalition has been doing the reverse."
Fairfax
is of the understanding the figures also include parliamentary
staffers, advisers and senior party officials. Fire
them all... just kidding.
Media
tart of sorts (we appreciate your style mate) Independent
senator and anti-gambling campaigner Nick Xenophon
aka "Mr X" (affectionate satire) advised
on the record "In the same way in the AFL officials
and players can't bet on the other team, the same
rules should apply for election betting. We have those
rules in place so matches aren't thrown and, when
it comes to a democracy, the stakes are much higher
and therefore the standards should be accordingly
higher.". Mr X has a point, so give the devil
his due hey maties.
Later
today the outspoken and switched on senator will call
for all politicians, party officials and advisers
to be banned from election betting. Media Man understands
he has not consulted as of print with either Australia's
gambling watchdog 'Mr Woof' (satire), not Australian
casino king, James Packer, currently on voyage via
Artic P. Bible bashers have been ringing X's email
and phone off the hook.
The
findings follow a 24-hour shark like feeding frenzy
in which the Coalition's odds tightened up from $3.32
to $2.64 and the ALP eased up from $1.32 to $1.46.
A
Herald/Nielsen poll published yesterday demonstrated
the Coalition... reeling by leaks against the Government
of the day has an election-winning lead with a 2 party
preferred vote of 52 to 48%. Yahoo! ... just kidding,
we're journalists, or at least media agents, but this
is an opinion type piece with disclaimers a plenty.
Green at heart, but brains say Liberal my friends.
Not so much a "swinger", not in that capacity
anyway.
With
Labor at its longest price in the betting markets
since PM Julia 'Jungle Girl' (satire MM stage name)
Gillard deposed Kevin "Bloody" Rudd, bets
of $10k... yep, 10 Grand at $3.25, $7800 at $3.10,
$5000 at $2.90 plus s loads of other moderate type
bets were recorded for a "Bruiser" Abbott
victory.
Election
betting and the subsequent fever is on track to reach
record levels across the nation. More than $1 million
in head-to-head bets have been placed with Centrebet
alone. Bondi Beach media entrepreneurs were overhead
in cafes discussing "The Punting Party",
perhaps following in the footsteps of The Sex Party
and Family First.
An
ALP campaign spokesman would not directly speak on
the allegations of insider betting but said it was
a "personal choice" if party members had
engaged in such conduct. Some do gooder are calling
for the political betting to be banned (there's that
word again BANNED).
"Those
are personal choices for individuals to make. This
will be a close election. As the Prime Minister has
said, we are in the fight of our lives."
A
Liberal spokeswoman said the party had no knowledge
of such betting on electoral seats.
'Mr
X' is demanding an independent inquiry into political
punting and will expand the terms of reference of
a Senate inquiry into sporting and online gambling
to include tougher regulations on election betting..."To
say it is a personal choice is an insult to the electorate."
'Odds
On' Evans said election betting was the biggest growth
area of his industry! He had no trouble going on record
with "The bets that we get in a federal election
are bigger than the bets we get in all of the state
elections put together. They're not mugs betting.
When there are people putting money like that on an
election outcome, they are people who are inside the
game."
Competitor
to Centrebet, Sportingbet also spoke via their operations
manager, Bill Richmond, confirming the practice of
high-ranking party officials and even politicians
taking a wager.
"Not
that I've heard of it this year, although it has happened
before. They may be with other betting agencies but
they're not with us."
Swing
up north to Banana Bender territory... Queensland-based
Unitab has opened election betting for the first time
and PR type Brad 'The Lion' Tamer advised the decision
was made due to demand from punters!
Betting
agencies suspended bets on the date of the election
early last month after continued speculation it would
be called.
Media
Man says to "Vote early and vote often"
(just kidding again).
MM
early in the week attended the GenerationOne 'Ideas
Forum', doing a 1:1 with Andrew "Twiggy"
Forrest, and to spite rumors, was not a political
front, but we all know relationships matter, in life,
business and news media. MM is also tipped to attend
a range of Malcolm "No Bull" Turnbull functions
including one of Internet Censorship!
The
Late News...
The
Great Debate ASP V's Family First...
Sex
Party welcomes national sex and morality debate with
Family First: We're Ready When You Are!
Appearing
on national television Thursday morning for a panel
discussion regarding the sexual politics of the upcoming
federal election, Australian Sex Party President and
Victorian Senate Candidate Fiona Patten welcomed the
idea of a debate with Family First Senator Steven
Fielding, on the social and moral issues which are
being increasingly ignored by the major parties in
the lead-up to polling day.
**
Stop Press: The debate is on! The Australian Sex Party's
Fiona Patten will go up against Family First's Wendy
Francis Monday, 2 August, 7.15am on Sunrise.
This
is the debate Australians really want to see. Two
politicians with differing views, debating real issues**
Ms.
Patten wholeheartedly embraced the notion of a debate
with Senator Fielding after it was suggested this
morning by historian, author and columnist Dr. Ross
Fitzgerald, on The Morning Show discussion this morning.
Citing issues such as censorship, same sex marriage
and the internet filter, Dr. Fitzgerald chided the
major parties for ignoring these issues on the campaign
trail and in Sunday nights Leaders Debate,
and emphasized the need for a public discussion on
these vital issues between the Australian Sex Party
and the fundamentalist Christian-backed Family First
leader Senator Fielding.
The
call for a debate between the two parties comes in
the wake of revelations that Family First bizarrely
courted the Sex Party in preference discussions, in
spite of holding diametrically opposed positions on
a staggering range of issues, from voluntary euthanasia,
to drug reform, to the universal right of adults across
Australia to legally access adult themed computer
games and non-violent erotica. Family First has since
denied making preference approaches to the Sex Party,
in spite of a clear body of evidence to the contrary
in the form of emails from Family First staff members
to Ms. Patten and other Sex Party campaign staff.
So,
whether you prefer Liberal, Labor, Greens of other.
Enjoy the fun and games that is Australian politics.
If your an Austen Tayshus supporter, please keep your
bits in your Mancini, unlike one punter who got arrested
by the cops at Manly Beach, home ground to The Bruiser
(who opts for budgie smugglers). If planning to bet,
as always, know the odds, bet with your head, not
over it, and have fun. Good luck.
*Greg
Tingle is a special contributor for Gambling911
*Media
Man http://www.AustralianSportsEntertainment.com
is primarily a media, publicity and internet portal
development company. They cover a dozen industry sectors
including gaming and political analysis.
*This
report contains elements of opinion and satire and
is not intended as a betting guide!
News
Australian
Punters Bet On Julie Gillard PM, by Greg Tingle -
6th July 2010
The
Australian punting public has spoken... they believe
that Prime Minster Julie Gillard will hold on cum
the next Australian election, likely to be held within
3 months... Media
Man and Gambling911 probe politics and watch the
watchers...
Australian
Prime Minister, the smart, humble and most sexy Julia
Gillard, will win the next election however Labor
will loose 8 seats, the Aussie punters predict at
this time.
The
Federal Government's chances, stocks and image, so
it seems, have improved quite a bit since Labor boned
(thanks Eddie McGuire) Kevin "Bloody" Rudd
last month in favour of his former deputy Ms Gillard
(speculation reigns for how long she will remain a
Ms... marriage this year?)
Aussie
betting - gaming giant Centrebet
(Betfair)
- James Packer 50% owned is the competitor) still
expects the Government to lose 8 seats at the upcoming
election however still enough to form a 10-seat majority.
That's 10 (think of Julia as the Bo Derek of Aussie
politics hey baby).
With
this scenario, Labor would hold 80 federal seats,
in comparison with 67 for the Coalition and 3 for
the independents (Bob Brown and friends).
A
redistribution has made 5 Coalition-held seats notionally
Labor, putting 88 electorates in the Government's
column so to speak.
A
uniform swing (not swinger) of 1.5 per cent away from
Labor would see the Government lose 8 seats, including
the electorate of Bennelong held by high-profile television
journo queen cum MP Maxine McKew.
Disendorsed
MP Belinda Neal's NSW central coast seat of Robertson
would also fall to the coalition along with Perth
WA electorate of Hasluck and the Darwin NT seat of
Solomon.
Labor's
odds of winning the next election have shortened to
$1.29 with the Coalition's odds now at $3.50, following
a whopping $50,000 bet with Centrebet on the weekend.
This
is the Government's shortest odds of victory since
December last year, when the Liberals dumped Malcolm
Turnbull as leader for Tony "The Bruiser"
Abbott.
Centrebet
has temporarily suspended betting for an election
date, with August 28 presently the favourite.
With
Ms Gillard heading to Queensland, an election is unlikely
to be called today for early August.
Meanwhile,
Ms Gillard has finally joined the social-networking
site Twitter - and she's sent it into a Sunday afternoon
feeding frenzy.
Ms
Gillard had been maintaining a dignified silence on
Twitter, which other politicians appear addicted to.
But
commensurate with her new role running the country,
Ms Gillard joined the internet age.
Tweeting
under "JuliaGillard", the prime minister
said: "I've decided it's time to take the Twitter
plunge! Hopefully Ill master it. JG."
Within
30 mins of her first tweet, Ms Gillard had surged
to 450 followers, and was adding one sheep er (follower)
every three seconds.
Her
site includes an ALP logo and a smart, even titillating,
photograph of her in matching necklace and earrings.
Of course, beauty (and sexiness) is in the eye of
the beholder.
Twitter
allows anyone to sign up send out messages of 140
characters or less whenever they like; others sign
up and follow the messages.
Ms
Gillard may be the talk of Twitter but she has a long
way to go before she can match her former boss Kevin
Rudd, who has almost one million people following
his regular tweets.
Posting
under the not-entirely-accurate moniker "KevinRuddPM",
Mr Rudd's latest message showed him enjoying a day
out with his family on the Sunshine Coast.
"Doing
normal things like shopping. Turns out I'm still a
lousy shopper," Mr Rudd tweeted yesterday.
Mr
Rudd's recent posts have received wide media coverage
as he communicated what he was up to and how he felt
after losing the leadership in the dark of night.
His wife, Therese Rein, is also a committed tweeter.
Mr
Abbott is just shy of 10,000 followers on Twitter,
and that's with or without his famous Budgie Smugglers
not so shy photo shot (Julie, pleaseee try to top
Tony... I beg you...a beach shot would be appreciated
by many. If too hot or provocative, perhaps one from
a day at the races).
Meanwhile,
Ms Gillard has called for an open debate on asylum
seekers days before the Government is expected to
announce a new policy on refugees.
A
three-month freeze on the processing of Sri Lankan
asylum seekers is due to expire on Thursday. A Media
Man staffer was heard joking in regard to Labor "So,
the inmates are no longer running the asylum, time
will tell, and let's see what Liberal's Malcolm Turnbull
might get up to re the three way dance".
Ms
Gillard would not be probed further on what decision
her Government would make or if it would apply to
refugees more broadly. Gillard is no broad and widely
remains viewed as beauty and brains.
However,
she said people should be able to speak their mind
on the issue, free from political correctness.
"I'd
like to sweep away any sense that people should close
down any debate, including this debate, through a
sense of self-censorship or political correctness,"
Ms Gillard said while on a tour of bushfire-attacked
Marysville down south in Victoria.
"People
should say what they feel and my view is many in the
community should feel anxious when they see asylum
seeker boats and obviously we as a government want
to manage our borders.
"For
people to say they're anxious about border security
doesn't make them intolerant, it certainly doesn't
make them a racist, it means that they're expressing
a genuine view that they're anxious about border security.
"By
the same token people who express concern about children
being in detention, that doesn't mean they're soft
on border protection, that just means that they're
expressing a real human concern."
Media
Man prefers Gillard's approach, style and media policy
(and good looks) to that of her former equivalent,
Kevin Rudd. We hope Senator Stephen Conroy ("Minister
Of Censorship") picks up on a few communication
tips from "Our Julia".
Australian's
wish our American friends a belated Happy Independence
Day - 4th of July
Twitter
- For Twits Or Smart Operators?...
Oh,
did we mention... Julie Gillard recently joined the
social networking craze with her Twitter account
http://twitter.com/JuliaGillard
Media
Man Int Twitter
http://twitter.com/mediamanint
Media
Man Politics Twitter
http://twitter.com/mediamanpolitic
Gambling911
Twitter
http://twitter.com/gambling911
Media
Man Politics profile
http://www.AustralianSportsEntertainment.com/profiles/politics.html
Media
Man Centrebet profile
http://www.AustralianSportsEntertainment.com/profiles/centrebet.html
Punters,
please play it legal, bet with your head, not over
it, know the odds, have fun and try to remember to
vote, unless you can get a donkey to vote for you...
just kidding.
PS:
Julia, are you certain about keeping Senator Stephen
Conroy on board? Then again, Media Man spies advise
that he's been listening to Crown Casino king James
Packer, continuing on great work with GenerationOne
and Andrew "Twiggy" Forrest, so perhaps
excellent idea to keep Sen Conroy. We note the proposed
Aussie internet filter proposal is getting reconsidered.
If done right it may be a vote winner, if done wrong,
it may be The Election Looser! You're throw of the
dice Jules.
Political
Trivia...
American
President Barack Omaba is the only president to ever
make front cover of Marvel Comics (shared with Spider-Man)
Marvel
icon Stan Lee 2 years ago released comic 'Election
Daze'
Australian
PM Julie Gillard was voted by Australians as the Sexiest
Politician
Aussie
sex symbol Madame Lash (Gretel Pinniger) formed her
own ill fated political party in 1996 based out of
Palm Beach, The Extra Dimension Party! She had promised
to bring "rubber, leather, glitter, glamour and,
of course, lashes" to Canberra! Lash was also
understood to have enjoyed a spanking good relationship
with Clyde Packer, same family as gaming and media
mogul, the late Kerry Packer (father of James Packer).
Jesse
'The Body' Ventura (James George Janos), former governor
of Minnesota was once a front man for American sports
betting and gaming company, BetUS
Linda
McMahon, World Wrestling Entertainment former CEO,
is running for U.S Senate. She announced her candidacy
for U.S. Senator from Connecticut on September 16,
2009. On May 21, 2010, she became the presumptive
nominee, winning a majority of support from the Connecticut
Republican Party. She is running as a Republican,
campaigning on promises of lower taxes, fiscal conservatism,
and job creation.
Jack
Abramoff was a Washington, D.C. lobbyist, businessman,
and con man. He is the key figure in the gaming and
political themed 'Casino Jack and the United States
of Money' documentary film and the story is also known
as 'Bagman', staring Kevin Spacey as Jack. The rumor
mill says Jack was recently spotted flipping Pizzas.
Malcolm
Turnbull, former leader of the Liberal Party of Australia
is also an internet entrepreneur and made millions
with his once start up, ISP OzEmail.
Crown
Casino and competitor, Star City Casino, are a few
of the biggest donors to Australia's major political
parties (Labor and Liberal)
Arnold
Alois Schwarzenegger the 38th Governor of California,
acting and bodybuilding icon, is also featured in
the online slot game 'The Terminator' found at political
and media savvy - PartyGaming - PartyCasino http://www.partycasino.com/index.htm?wm=3221754
*The
writer is a special contributor for Gambling911
*Media
Man is primarily a media, publicity and internet
portal development company. Gaming is just one of
a bakers dozen of sectors they cover. They also offer
political analysis and commentary.
Profiles
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Rudd
The
Hon Wayne Swan
Malcolm
Turnbull
Craige
McWhirter
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Wynne
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Leoni
Emelia
Gypsy Fire
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Garrett
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Brown
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Pearce
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Daley
Clover
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Interviews
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News
Internet
Censorship in Australia: Senate Transcript - May 2010
For
those of you who have been following the exploits
of Australia Communications Director Stephen Conroy
and his attempts to censor the Internet here at Gambling911.com,
we have obtained a copy of the Senate transcript as
it relates to Google in Australian Parliament, courtesy
of Greg Tingle.
Conroy
does not mention or reference gaming or gambling,
however, it is known that some of those sites appearing
on a so-called "black list" include online
gambling websites such as Betfair.
CHAIR
- We now move to program 1.2, Telecommunications,
Online and Postal Services. We are waiting for Senator
Ludlum, who indicated that he has questions here.
We will start with Senator Fisher.
Senator
FISHER -There was a story on the ABC News website
recently that Google was trawling streets collecting
wi-fi data, and there was a suggestion that in the
process of collecting that data they somehow downloaded
network connection contents of people's houses.
Senator
Conroy - I do not think it was somehow'; I think
they set out to collect it.
Senator
FISHER - Minister, given the concerns that have been
raised about the potential privacy issues and the
concerns that have been ventilated as to what use
Google will put this information and for how long
they will keep it or have their wonderful way with
it, what do you propose to do about it?
Senator
Conroy - I believe the Privacy Commissioner has written
to them. I think they are now engaged in a conversation.
Senator
FISHER - Did you ask her to do so?
Senator
Conroy - No. The Privacy Commissioner is in a different
portfolio.
Senator
FISHER - That would not stop you asking.
Senator
Conroy - I note that the German minister has referred
it to the criminal authorities for illegal data collection.
Senator
FISHER - For the same thing in Germany?
Senator
Conroy - This has been worldwide. Google takes the
view that they can do anything they want-they do not
evil to themselves. I do have a little bit of information.
You actually cut into an answer I was hoping to give,
but I will take you through the information that I
have.
It
is possible that this has been the largest privacy
breach in history across Western democracies. After
being caught out by European privacy commissioners,
Google has admitted that their Streetview cars-the
ones that drive down your street and photograph your
house without your permission so that they can make
it available worldwide for use in their Streetview
product-has also been collecting information from
people using wi-fi connections; that is, your personal
data, including, potentially, emails. Welcome, Senator
Ludlam. We are just filling in for you.
Senator
FISHER - And connection equipment and so on.
Senator
Conroy - All of that information. Ten privacy commissioners
around the world recently wrote to Google about their
concerns. Many privacy commissioners, including Australia's,
are investigating Google for data breaches. Google
have admitted to doing this and claim it was a mistake
in the software code, meaning that it was actually
quite deliberate; the code was collecting it.
Senator
FISHER - Can you explain that?
Senator
Conroy - The computer program that collects it was
designed to collect this information.
Senator
FISHER - Are you disputing Google's claim that it
was inadvertent?
Senator
Conroy - Yes. I am saying that they wrote a piece
of code designed to do it.
Senator
FISHER - So, it was deliberate in your view?
Senator
Conroy - It is interesting to note that this claim
that it was a mistake came only after the data protection
authority in Germany asked to audit Google's data.
They continually say publicly, Trust us.' This
comes on top of recent controversies relating to the
Google Buzz product, which made public the details
of the people users most emailed and chatted with
on their social networking site.
I
can fully explain the policies being adopted by a
company like Google. In December 2009 their CEO, Eric
Schmidt, told CNBC, If you have something that
you don't want anyone to know, maybe you shouldn't
be doing it in the first place.' At the World Mobile
Conference in Barcelona in February the same CEO falsely
denied any privacy breach with Buzz. He stated, People
thought that somehow we were publishing their email
addresses and private information, which was not true',
when it was true. He said, It was our fault
that we did not communicate that fact very well, but
the important thing is that no really bad stuff happens
in the sense that nobody's personal information was
disclosed.' I repeat that it was. Google Buzz exposed
one user's location to her abusive ex-partner, and
it was only after worldwide condemnation of Google
that they actually apologised. People should not mistake
the approach being taken by Google on a range of issues
around the world.
Senator
FISHER - Obviously there is little love lost between
you and Google.
Senator
Conroy - No, it is fair to say I am just chronicling
the activities of Google worldwide. I have not finished
yet.
Senator
FISHER - I gathered not.
Senator
Conroy - At the Abu Dhabi media summit-
Senator
FISHER - I was about to beg to differ, because I am
quite genuine in my question.
Senator
LUDLAM - This is starting to sound really personal.
Go ahead.
Senator
Conroy - I am very pleased to note that you have arrived
for me to finish my answer. At an Abu Dhabi media
summit in March 2010, Google CEO Eric Schmidt said,
Google sees itself really differently from other
companies, because we see ourselves as a company with
a mission about information and not a mission about
revenue or profits.' Yet at the third quarter earning
call for Google on 15 October 2009, Eric Schmidt told
Wall Street analysts on the phone hook-up, We
love cash.' Mr Schmidt, in December, said this-I noted
this previously, but I am not sure that you heard
this, Senator Ludlam, so I want to repeat it: If
you have something that you don't want anyone to know,
maybe you shouldn't be doing it in the first place.'
Senator
LUDLAM - You read that 30 seconds ago.
Senator
Conroy - I was not sure if you were in the room when
I read it the first time. Schmidt also absurdly claimed
to be misunderstood over Google Buzz and he went on
to say, People thought that somehow we were
publishing their email addresses and private information.'
Again, I am not sure if you were here.
Senator
LUDLAM - Yes, I was here.
Senator
Conroy - Schmidt made the statement about how they
were not really doing these things and the abusive
ex-partner got someone's address. Schmidt said that
after a civil liberties group had already issued a
warning about Buzz's serious problems with private
information and after Google's own spokesman, Todd
Jackson, had said, Google was very, very sorry
for getting millions of users rightfully upset.' Google
were also questioned at the Abu Dhabi media summit.
Mr Schmidt was asked about the company's worrisome
stash of private data on its users: All this
information that you have about us, does that scare
anyone in the room?' The response from Mr Schmidt
was: Would you prefer someone else? Is there
a government that you would prefer to be in charge
of this?' Frankly, I think the approach taken by Mr
Schmidt is a bit creepy.
Senator
LUDLAM - Are you going to quote them on your filter,
because I presume that is what this is all about?
Senator
Conroy - I have not even got to the filters yet.
Senator
FISHER - I have not finished my question yet either.
Senator
Conroy - No, you have not. I have almost finished,
so I thank you for your patience, Senator Fisher.
This is a company that says do no evil', but
tries to pretend that it is not motivated by profit
and that it knows best and you can trust us'
when it comes to privacy. Unfortunately there are
no safeguards. You are dealing with company policy.
There are more issues that I will come to when we
get to YouTube later. When it comes to their attitude
to their own censorship, their response is simply,
Trust us.' They state on the website, Trust
us.'
Senator
LUDLAM - Terrible!
Senator
Conroy - They consider themselves to be above government.
They consider that they are the appropriate people
to make the decisions about people's privacy data,
that they are perfectly entitled to drive the streets
and collect private information by photographing over
fences and collecting data/information. This is probably
the single greatest breach in history of privacy.
That is why so many governments around the world have
reacted in the way they have to a company like Google.
Senator
FISHER - So, you say they consider themselves above
government. Are they above the Telecommunications
Act?
Senator
Conroy - Not in the slightest; not in this country.
Senator
FISHER - Have you referred these actions for investigation
as a potential breach of the Telecommunications Act?
Senator
Conroy - As I said, the Privacy Commissioner has written
to them seeking further information, and we will be
liaising with the Privacy Commissioner to see where
that gets to before we take any further action. We
will be awaiting the Privacy Commissioner's-
Senator
FISHER - Why, given that indictment? That is five
minutes of estimates we will never get back.
Senator
Conroy - The German government has already referred
it. We will see what the Privacy Commissioner has
to say, but we will be watching it very closely.
Senator
FISHER - Why are you sitting back and watching? Why
are you not referring the matter?
Senator
Conroy - The Privacy Commissioner is the appropriate
place to start this process.
Senator
FISHER - Surely there are other aspects of the Telecommunications
Act that could potentially have been breached by this
behaviour, if it is as indictable as you suggest.
Senator
Conroy - What I said was that Germany has described
it as indictable. I did not say that we had. Let me
be very clear about this. I did not say we had.
Senator
FISHER - I was using a generic description of your
downloading-your description of their behaviour.
Senator
Conroy - No. What I said was that we would await the
Privacy Commissioner's report.
Senator
FISHER - Why?
Senator
Conroy - It has already been referred in Germany.
Senator
FISHER - Why await the Privacy Commissioner's report?
Is privacy the only aspect that may have been violated
by this?
Senator
Conroy - We can take that on notice.
Senator
FISHER - You have just given a diatribe of their behaviour.
Senator
Conroy - I have described what has happened in other
jurisdictions. You are talking about one specific
instance. What I have said is that the Privacy Commissioner
has already written to them and we will be awaiting
what the Privacy Commissioner says to see if there
are any breaches of Australia's laws.
Senator
FISHER - You are hiding behind Karen Curtis?
Senator
Conroy - I am not hiding behind anybody. She is engaged
in her statutory obligations. That is her statutory
obligation and she is pursuing them.
Senator
FISHER - If the Privacy Commissioner concludes that,
for example, there is no breach of privacy issues,
what would you do then?
Senator
Conroy - If there is no breach of privacy issues,
there is nothing we can do. We will have conversations.
As I said, we will take on notice the issue of whether
or not there are any other breaches. We are happy
to take that on notice, but at this stage the Privacy
Commissioner is pursuing it.
Senator
FISHER - My final question on notice is: why would
you not, in any event, refer the matter for investigation
for potential breach of the Telecommunications Act?
Senator
Conroy - As I said, we will take that on notice and
give you some information about that. At this stage
the Privacy Commissioner has taken it forward and
we will be coordinating with the Privacy Commissioner.
Senator
FISHER - In your answer you inferred that there may
be breaches of the Telecommunications Act outside
privacy issues, did you not?
Senator
Conroy - ACMA were here earlier. You could have asked
ACMA if they thought there was a breach. I am happy
to take that on notice for you and ask ACMA.
Senator
FISHER - I am asking you, Minister.
Senator
Conroy - As I said, I am happy to take that on notice
and ask ACMA on your behalf.
Senator
FISHER - Thank you.
News
Australian
Gambling Report Asks Federal Government to Control,
by Greg Tingle - May 2010
The
Australian Productivity report on gaming and gambling
has come out, but relax - it's not all bad news.
A
report tells the Aussie federal government to basically
take over the regulation of gambling, which Australians
spend $18 billion a year on, states collecting $4.69bn
in tax revenue annually, and that's only the figures
they know about.
Education
think tank powerhouses at Deakin University and the
Australia Institute, urge the Rudd government to put
a 2 per cent tax on all gambling revenue. Furthermore,
using some of the $378 million to give state governments
that reduce gambling levels "incentive payments"
(not a bribe of sorts?!) to reduce their "reliance"
on pokies tax.
The
report argues that the land down under Australia should
establish a national gambling regulator that would
set poker machine quotas and bet limits. They also
call for the establishment of a national (not-for-profit)
lottery to replace revenue states would lose. North
and South Carolina has the Education Lottery, which
gambling and wrestling fans will be aware of 'The
Nature Boy' Ric Flair fronting.
The
Aussie reports goes as far to state the commonwealth
should establish a national player tracking system
to detect "abnormal or risky playing patterns".
Associate
Professor Hancock said problem gambling was a serious
health risk. "This whole approach . . . needs
to be a central plank in the Rudd government's health
plan," she stressed.
Media
Man and Gambling911 acknowledge the existence of "problem
gamblers", but in society many people have problems,
be it gambling, employment, relationships, health,
time management and all sorts of matter, so it does
point an accusing finger at the gaming and gambling
sector. Some types of personalities are more likely
to encounter problems with gambling, and that's just
part of the human make up.
Some
serious and concerning information was also included
in the report. In the state of Victoria, one in five
people arriving at The Alfred Hospital's emergency
unit after suicide attempts were gamblers in crisis,
Professor Hancock said. A high profile U.S. gambler
here in the states may have also committed suicide
due to high gambling debts.
Some
Australian politicians are buying right into the argument.
Well known anti-pokies campaigner and independent
senator Nick Xenophon advised he was inspired to run
for federal politics because Kevin Rudd said he would
act against gambling.
"Can
I suggest to the Prime Minister that now the emissions
trading scheme is off the agenda, there's a lot more
time in the Senate to consider legislation,"
Senator Xenophon said.
"State
governments are the No 1 jackpot junkies. They can't
be trusted when it comes to gambling regulation. And
despite his promise to deal with gambling, the Prime
Minister had done nothing to reduce rates".
Labor
clubs operating "one armed bandits" provide
the Labor Party with $1m plus in campaign donations
per annum.
Mr
Rudd pledged to do something about the rise of poker
machines across the country.
"I
hate poker machines and I know something of their
impact on families," he said.
The
Productivity Commission draft report on gambling late
last year recommended that pokie bets be restricted
to $1 a play, and cash withdrawal limits should be
placed on adjacent ATMs.
The
report states Australians lost $18bn a year on gambling,
and about 15% of Aussies gambled regularly (excluding
Lotto), scratchies and the like.
Its
estimated 10% of regular gamblers are "problem
gamblers".
The
new report says the commonwealth should add to the
"Grants Commission formula incentives" for
state governments to reduce their reliance on gambling
taxes or reduce their commonwealth grants if they
did not do so.
At
present much discussion in the gaming and igaming
sector revolves around if full regulation of the sector,
both globally and in the Asia Pacific region is the
way forward, with the vast majority saying Yes.
Media
Man and Gambling911 encourage gamblers to know the
odds, bet with your head, not over it, and have fun.
*Greg
Tingle is a special contributor for Gambling911
*Media
Man is primarily a media, publicity and internet portal
development company
News
Australia
Gets New Gambling Watchdog in Town: Woof!, by Greg
Tingle - 3rd June 2010
Australian
gambling remains politically red hot. With the changes
in town comes a new watchdog... yep, a man of a different
breed who appears to be a shoot straight, and takes
a balanced view of the industry. Media Man, Gambling911
and our pack of sniffer dogs pound the pavement and
sniff out the story... Ruff
Meet
Mr Ches Baragwanath, Australia's new Gambling Watchdog.
No, he's not affiliated with our unmet friends at
Affiliate Guard Dog (or CAP or GPWA for that matter).
For
the unacquainted, Baragwanath, is a former auditor-general
of Australia circa 1990.
This
watchdog has a reputation of not taking rubbish from
the animals in Parliament or in the gambling sector.
Via
Fairfax Media we learned of a previous masterstroke
and key happening re today's new sheriff in town ....the
Victorian government before last November's election,
Mr Baragwanath let it be known to the house he has
accepted an invitation to become a commissioner for
gambling regulation.
His
appointment, announced just yesterday, comes at a
pivotal time for the Australian gaming and gambling
industry. Shakes ups of late include James Packer's
Crown Casino growing, politicians are open to seeing
the proposed Mildura "Jewel" Casino happen
on their watch.
Baragwanath
has his finger on the pulse. No spring chicken, at
75 years of age, he's wiser and more experienced than
the best of them, and is understood to process a brilliant
mind, understands the typical man in the street (and
boasts outstation credentials and business contacts).
Insiders say he's expected to make fair but tough
rulings, and is not a casino lover nor casino hater.
Controlled growth and suitable regulation, maintaining
balance, are understood to be high on his priorities.
Mr
B says "I've spent a bit of time in Las Vegas;
it's a soul-destroying place. I would hate Melbourne
to become the Las Vegas of the southern hemisphere.
Pokies are the most mindless and boring pastime I
could imagine". Still, he respects people to
play the pokies, and other legal casino games of their
choosing.
The
personable, hang on, likable, Mr B (Big) loves the
horses, having a beer and is known to even try his
luck having a punt on Tattslotto, if you believe the
media gossip around town.
The
Melbourne Age was able to get this rip snorter quote
from the man..."Despite what political parties
might say in opposition, once they get into government
they are fascinated by the revenue that flows from
nicotine, booze and gambling - wait until they decide
how to tax sex! The Victorian government - and most
governments, for that matter - do very well out of
problem gamblers, they do very well out of problem
drinkers and they do very well out of problem smokers,
so they've got a moral obligation to support those
people who are harmed by gambling, nicotine and alcohol.
I haven't read the Bible for some time, but I seem
to recall the Roman soldiers were rolling dice underneath
the crucifix. I would say to them, look, 97.5 or 98
per cent of the population enjoy a mild flutter on
poker machines. Should they be penalised because 2
per cent can't control themselves? I enjoy a drink.
Should I be penalised because some people can't hold
their liquor? If gambling went underground, the criminal
element could take over. I can remember when I was
a kid growing up in Brunswick just near the Union
Hotel, the bigwig in the area was the local SP (starting
price) bookmaker. Do we really want SP bookmakers
back on the scene? To some extent it (the role) is
to ensure the criminal element is kept out of this
field - you know, we don't want the bloody Mafia buying
into hotels with poker machines".
Whether
"Blueys" err, Mr Big's bark is bigger than
his bite remains to be seen. Insiders meantime question
who let the dogs out, and what side of the fence will
"Mr Dog" prefer?
Media
Man remains a proud shareholder in Crown Casino, understood
to remain a focus point of the new sheriff in town.
"Mr Big" will also be acutely aware that
the funds the pour into the likes of Crown Casino
flow back into the community and create real and sustainable
employment opportunities, some of which tie in with
celebrated employment initiative GenerationOne, a
project of which Media Man remains in close contact
with.
Casinos
remain a key element in the Australian tourism, entertainment
and employment landscape, and "Mr Big" will
no doubt remind himself of these facts when it comes
to the hard decisions that will be coming his way
for as long as his holds the top dog position.
Loyal
readers of Gambling911, as always bet with your head,
not over it, and have fun.
*The
writer is a special contributor for Gambling911
*Media
Man is primarily a media, publicity and internet portal
development company. The gaming sector is just one
of a bakers of dozen of industries they cover.
*The
writer owns shares in Crown Limited
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