Victoria Considering Non-Exclusive Licensing Move

The government for the southern Australian state of Victoria could be about to propose legislation that would allow multiple firms to be licensed for the local provision of land-based sports wagering.

Melbourne-headquartered Tabcorp paid approximately $279 million in 2012 for the exclusive 12-year license to operate all on-course and off-track sports betting as well as approved trackside racing games in the jurisdiction of almost 6.7 million people.

Increasing Competition

This arrangement, which is due to expire in August of 2024, was later modified so as to remove a requirement for the Victorian firm to run as a betting exchange but has nevertheless faced stiff competition from the growing presence of online sports betting sites run by rival firms including PointsBet, Entain and Intralot.

As such, the Labour-run government of Victoria Premier Daniel Andrews is now said to be considering doing away with the monopolistic nature of this license in order to ensure the future health of the state’s land-based sports betting scene for the benefit of the local horse racing industry and the wider public purse.

Conceivable Creation

The government’s plan could well see as many as three firms given permission to operate land-based sports betting on a non-exclusive basis in Victoria with multiple companies now said to be preparing associated bids. 

Athens-headquartered Intralot, which was a big player in the southern Australian state until axing its local keno and scratchcards business from 2014, is widely expected to be among the front-runners in this process alongside the likes of Flutter Entertainment-owned Sportsbet and local bookmaker PointsBet.

London-listed Entain, which is responsible for the well-known Ladbrokes and Sportingbet brands, has nevertheless publicly recused itself, citing uncertainty over future access to the Victorian database built up by Tabcorp.

Domination Desire

For its part, Tabcorp is known to be open to the proposed non-exclusivity move but may look to have its Victorian monopoly on sports betting within clubs and pubs guaranteed for as long as 20 years.

Although the future cost for a non-exclusive Victoria land-based sports betting license remains unclear, JPMorgan earlier estimated that a new 20-year monopoly could involve an outlay of up to $545 million, while Taylor Collison went even higher at $613 million.

The Victorian wagering licence process has been overseen for the last year by corporate advisory firm Ad Astra, but do not expect any final decision on the future nature of the state’s land-based sports betting scene before October.