BATTLE WITH LOTTOLAND COST $5M
TATTS spent almost $5 million on a campaign to shut down controversial online betting outfit Lottoland, accounts reveal.
First-half results for Tatts, now owned by wagering heavyweight Tabcorp, show it chalked up a net profit of $102.3 million for the six months to June.
That tally was down 16.6 per cent from a year earlier, impacted by merger costs and corporate items, which included the Lottoland campaign.
Tatts outlined an expense of $4.9 million on a “synthetic lottery public campaign”, which it said highlighted the harm that type of product had on Australian communities.
Lottoland allows punters to bet online on the outcome of overseas lottery and keno draws. It has been strongly opposed by domestic gaming businesses.
The group has faced campaigns from Tatts and industry groups including the Australian Lottery and Newsagents Association and the Australian Hotels Association.
The lottery and newsagents group campaigned strongly against the online betting company last year and scored a win when Lottoland was banned from accepting bets on Australian lotteries.