According to Australian press reports, MP Nick Xenophon has written to Federal Communications Minister Helen Coonan asking for the Government to investigate a new scheme offered by an Adelaide-based company, txt2 Bet, in which people can bet on racing and sports using text messages on their mobile phones.
Xenophon demanded amendments to the Interactive Gambling Act to stop the scheme on grounds that it is likely to put more young people at risk of becoming problem gamblers.
“The promoters of this scheme in their own information on their website, talk about 24 hours a day, seven days a week punting,” he said.
“That you can place a bet while you are at work or at a family gathering, I think indicates that it will lead to more problem gambling.”
But the director of txt2 Bet, Keith Boerholm, said the scheme is safer for users than other betting methods because punters receive an audit trail of their transactions.
“And it\’s debit based, in other words there\’s no credit,” he said. “The man or the woman has to put money on the card in order to use it.”
“And from our experience from the people using it now, from what we can see it hasn\’t increased their punting habit one bit.”
Calculators
