If you watch free-to-air TV in the evenings, it’s almost impossible to escape the incessant barrage of gambling advertisements that most online gambling platforms promote. According to broadcasting authorities, gambling commercials on free-to-air TV peak between 7pm and 10pm, when 22% of advertisements are broadcast.
Between May 2022 and April 2023, more than half a million (504,100) gambling spots were broadcast on municipal television, of which 51% advertised online gambling companies, 20% advertised lotteries and 17% advertised lotteries.
The damage caused by gambling addiction is well documented, with devastating social harm often emanating from the problem gambler themselves, affecting their family and spreading into the wider community.
Last year, a cross-party committee of inquiry chaired by the late Labor MP Peta Murphy proposed a complete ban, but the Labor government is likely to water down that proposal and respond with a partial ban.
What do the TV stations say?
Australian television broadcasters have told the government that they are so dependent on advertising revenue from the gambling industry that they need it to maintain their position.
Without it, broadcasters Ten, Nine and Seven may have to rethink whether they can continue to fund local news programs. It was just one of the extravagant claims made this week by media companies and the Albanese government. A ban on all gambling advertising, as recommended by the Murphy Inquiry, would make the free-to-air television industry unsustainable, they argued.
Bill Shorten even went so far as to say that the broadcasters were in “diabolical trouble” and needed gambling advertising revenue “just to stay afloat”.
How much money do broadcasters earn from advertising in total?
Figures released this week show that the total TV advertising market, which includes all free-to-air TV in major cities, regional free-to-air TV and catch-up TV, recorded revenues of $3.3 billion in fiscal year 2024.
The $3.3 billion is more than $250 million lower than the previous financial year and will be split between Seven, Nine and Ten and subsidiaries.
There are no figures available showing how much each network earns individually.
The free-to-air broadcaster is being challenged by streaming services such as Netflix and a weak advertising market. Shorten is not wrong when he says the broadcasters are in “diabolical trouble”; on Wednesday, Seven West Media reported a 69% drop in profits.
But it’s not all bad. Nine Entertainment reported that it had good advertising revenue for the Paris Olympics, bringing in a whopping $160 million over the two weeks.
Nevertheless, the advertising market declined by 8.1 percent compared to the same period last year.
What is the share of gambling advertising in the $3.3 billion pie?
The Australian Communications and Media Authority puts the amount at $162 million, which is probably not a large part of the $3.3 billion.
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But the lobby of commercial television, Free TV, does not accept Acma’s figure. It argues that the actual sum is closer to 200 million dollars.
“At a time of increasing pressure on commercial television broadcasters, who have to fund their entire operations through advertising revenue, it is our obligation under our legislation to make every dollar count,” Free TV chief executive Bridget Fair told ABC Radio.
“We want to talk about how we can ensure the sustainability of the sector so that all Australians can continue to watch the Olympic Games, just as we have done over the last two and a half weeks.”
What do opponents of gambling say?
Charles Livingstone, associate professor at Monash University, believes that a partial ban on gambling advertising is not enough.
“Broadcasters and sports associations claim that an advertising ban would deprive them of vital revenue,” says Livingstone. “But the price of this concession to self-interest is ongoing damage to families and communities.”
Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young says Australia can support sport and journalism in the public interest without gambling advertising.
In June 2023, the Guardian announced that it would no longer accept gambling advertising on all of its global platforms.
Hanson-Young says: “Experts have told us that we need to ban gambling advertising just like we ban tobacco advertising.
“Labour will be tested on this issue in the Senate when the Greens’ amendments calling for a complete ban on gambling advertising in line with Peta Murphy’s recommendations are voted on.”
