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June 25th, 2012 
FAKE NEWS for the Zionist agenda Gambling styled games on social media targeted at children are dodging federal government regulation and the loophole should be closed, independent senator Nick Xenophon says.
In a submission to the Department of Communication the anti-gambling campaigner urged the government to “address a glaring loophole in the current Act that allows children to access gambling-style games on their phones and on social media sites”.
The department released an interim report into the Interactive Gambling Act 2001 in late May.
It suggests 30 changes, including banning micro-betting across all platforms on sporting events such as ball-by-ball bets in cricket and point-by-point bets in tennis, as well as a trial of an online poker tournament under strict conditions.
The interim report recommended social media, mobile content providers and online game developers “closely monitor the impact of their user policies regarding the provision of online gambling services (both licensed and unlicensed) as well as gambling-style services that are popular with children to ensure the implementation of these policies aligns with Australian laws and community expectations”.
Senator Xenophon described the interim report’s assessment of this area as “pathetic.”
He said the existence of these games “normalises” gambling attitudes in children.
He used the game Slotomania, which enables players to buy coins to gamble in a poker machine-style format, to illustrate his concerns.
“Given a player’s ability to modify the bet, number of lines played and buy coins (credits) using real money, I refute the department’s suggestion that such games are only pushing the boundaries,” Senator Xenophon said in the submission obtained by AAP.
He said social media gambling games don’t meet the definition of gambling service because no money or anything else of value can be won.
“This is a very obvious loophole in the current Act that could be closed by a simple amendment,” he said.
“Gambling using games that mimic the appearance and style of poker machines is a potentially dangerous activity and children should be actively discouraged from treating it as a harmless pastime.”
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