The Federal Court of Australia has ordered AU$24.24 million in penalties against the providers and promoters of three prohibited online poker services, the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) announced on 6 July. The report describes it as one of the largest enforcement outcomes under the Interactive Gambling Act 2001 (IGA).

What the court found

The court found that Brisbane Poker Pty Ltd, its operator Rhys Edward Jones, and promoter Brenton Lee Buttigieg allowed members of the public to play online poker against each other using virtual chips. Those chips could be bought and sold for real money. The court treated that arrangement as an unlicensed interactive gambling service.

The services operated under the names PPPfish, Shuffle Gaming and Redraw Poker. ACMA opened the proceedings in April 2022 after an investigation into the services. The source does not disclose how many players used them or how long each ran.

The penalties

Brisbane Poker Pty Ltd was ordered to pay AU$15 million, and Mr Jones was ordered to pay AU$9 million. According to the report, the two received a combined AU$7.2 million in benefits from the services.

Mr Buttigieg, who promoted the platforms through a private Facebook group, was ordered to pay AU$240,000. That is double the AU$120,000 figure jointly proposed by ACMA and the defendant. Justice Rangiah rejected the agreed amount on general deterrence grounds. The judge noted that Mr Buttigieg's profit of AU$44,400 was modest compared with the returns to Mr Jones and Brisbane Poker. The judge said it still did not justify the lower figure, given the need to deter comparable promotional activity.

Mr Jones and Mr Buttigieg were also restrained for five years from providing or aiding prohibited interactive gambling services.

The ruling follows a AU$5 million penalty imposed on Diverse Link Pty Ltd in March 2023 in related proceedings. The source does not describe Diverse Link's role. Combined, penalties across the enforcement action now total AU$29.24 million.

"This decision sends a clear warning that offering online poker to Australians is illegal and there are serious consequences for those who breach the law." – ACMA Chair Nerida O'Loughlin

The legal context

The IGA prohibits online poker services from being offered to people physically in Australia, regardless of where the operator is based. According to the report, providing an illegal interactive gambling service exposes corporations to maximum penalties of AU$1.8 million per day and individuals to AU$360,000 per day.

The report says ACMA has pursued an escalating enforcement program since its powers were expanded through the 2016–2017 IGA amendments. It also says no legislative pathway to licensed online poker in Australia is currently active. ACMA has given no indication it will ease civil proceedings against services that try to re-enter the market, the report adds.

The trade publication's reading is that the court is treating deterrence as an active factor in setting penalties. Justice Rangiah's decision to exceed an agreed figure in the Buttigieg sentencing is the clearest example. That is the publication's interpretation, not a statement from the court quoted in the source.

Online casino and poker services of this kind are prohibited in Australia under the IGA. Players who use them do so without Australian consumer protections, and funds held as virtual chips are not safeguarded by any Australian licensing regime. The source does not say whether any players lost money or whether any remedy for them was ordered.

The source does not say whether any party intends to appeal, or whether the services remain accessible.