The International Betting Integrity Association (IBIA) has urged the New Zealand government to adopt an international gaming licence system.
The New Zealand government launched a public consultation into widening the number of permitted operators allowed to offer online betting services in the country. At present, TAB and Lotto NZ are the online firms allowed to offer online gambling in New Zealand.
IBIA has pointed to a number of other countries which successfully manage a licensing model that permits overseas companies to operate. IBIA also suggested that New Zealand should ensure they take a proportionate approach to taxation, rather than viewing it as a “revenue raising tool.” The IBIA cautioned that if taxation was set too high, operators would be reluctant to apply for a licence in the country.
So far, the New Zealand government has put forward four possible models for regulatory reform but the IBIA has condemned three of these. Maintaining the status quo, extending the remit for TAB and Lotto NZ and only permitting domestic operators were criticised by the IBIA as being fundamentally the same as the “existing monopoly.”
The consultation period has now ended and the New Zealand government is yet to announce its findings.
