daniel chigunweNew Zealand’s upcoming market regulation is in full swing and it will introduce a licensing system that will allow foreign-based operators to run their business legally in New Zealand and to advertise in local media and on billboards. The law is being prepared as we speak, and it should go live some time in 2026, so more than a year to go.We asked the experienced gambling writer Edward Howarth, who is the lead writer for DashTickets, to explain all the intricacies of the New Zealand gambling market and, of course, of the upcoming gambling regulation.
Edward is a Hamilton native and has spent a lifetime in the New Zealand gambling industry after graduating from the University of Waikato, so he’s the person to talk to whenever something important comes up. He has been following the developments regarding regulation closely, and is in close contact with numerous people in the New Zealand government and in local gambling help groups.
Hi Edward. Can we begin by explaining the current state of the New Zealand market?
Hi, sure. Everyone knows that New Zealand has been one of the most liberal gambling markets in the world, together with Canada, as there was no licensing system and no bans of any kind. This means that everyone was free to offer gambling services to New Zealanders. This is still the case right now. Regardless of your licence, or lack thereof, you can accept a Kiwi player and his money.
Is this good or bad for the players?
Neither and both. I’d say no one benefits in unregulated markets. Casinos can’t advertise, players aren’t protected, and the country doesn’t earn any taxes. From the player’s perspective, the worst part is that you don’t have a regulatory body to submit a complaint to when you have a problem.
Such as, the casino not paying you?
Exactly. This happens more often than we’d like. And when it does happen, it’s imperative to be able to submit a legal complaint to the regulatory body. Otherwise you’re on your own, chasing windmills. If the casino doesn’t want to pay you, they won’t.
Will the upcoming New Zealand regulatory body offer protection in such cases?
I haven’t heard a single thing about this. All we hear about are taxes, which were doubled a few months ago, IP blocking for those operators who don’t pay taxes, and how much money the country will make from selling 15 licences to advertise in mass media.
In short, it’s all about the money. Not a single word has been spoken about player protection by the government officials. Not about protection from the casino not paying you, not about protection from gambling harm.
Should there be protection from player harm? Who should protect the players?
Those of us who are involved with the community on our islands, especially the poorer of the two, know that things will get ugly once deprived communities are exposed to billboards and TV ads promising easy wins to people who are desperate to pay the bills.
I’ve seen it in England. I’ve encountered this while getting my Social Sciences degree. In poorer areas of London you got a bunch of betting shops, pawn shops, quick loan businesses. They prey on the poor. Same thing will happen in New Zealand – the poorer communities will be covered with casino gambling billboards.
The non-government backed volunteer problem gambling groups will handle most of the burden, I suspect. I see the gambling problem in poorer areas as getting progressively worse with the new regulation. Until now, there was a barrier to entry, you had to do some research to find a good casino online, learn how to make a payment, etc. Now, the casino will be right in front of your eyes, inviting you to make a quick deposit using your New Zealand bank-issued card.
What about sports betting?
Tab NZ retains the monopoly. Though it’s no longer our own, but now the industry giant Entain has a 25-year deal that started in 2023. So we effectively already sold the monopoly rights to the highest bidder. Anyway, the situation regarding Tab NZ won’t change when the new regulation comes into effect. They’ll still have the monopoly on sports betting but we can expect gambling in general to become more popular, which will benefit Tab NZ sportsbook and racebook as a result.
How many casino licences will there be?
There was talk about 15 licences total, that was just officially confirmed a few days ago, that will be issued for a period of time, a few years most likely.
What about the operators that dodge tax? What about the hundreds of casinos that don’t want a licence or weren’t able to secure one?
There will likely be an IP geoblock, New Zealanders won’t be able to access the URL of the casino website that is found to accept Kiwi traffic without having a licence. Most casinos will be taken care of in this way, in an effort to channel the traffic to the 15 paying casinos.
Doesn’t that mean that the pool of casinos that pay the taxes is greatly reduced?
Indeed. All the talk about increasing tax revenue is in contrast with this narrowing down of the number of operators. However, the fact is, no one knows how large the New Zealand market is or how large the black market is. What will happen here is that you’ll bring 15 operators under your wing and make them pay taxes to keep operating. This alone is not a bad thing.
How is DashTickets involved in all this?
We at DashTickets – primarily the owner Mark Dash and myself – are in close contact with the concerned parties, mostly the players and the problem gambling groups. We also talk to government officials and other industry professionals. It is our task to be the voice of reason here in this sensitive period when the exact regulatory framework is being constructed before our eyes, in an effort to correct some wrongs when we see them. We also aim to offer correct information to anyone who is concerned with the upcoming changes, from players to operators, and just about everyone else. We try to predict what will happen when the regulation goes live.
Can you give us a prediction, then? What will happen?
Most certainly, the market will narrow down to 15 casinos, and those casinos that have the licence will see it as a blank licence to do whatever they want. It’s always like that in regulated markets. The players will be bombarded with ads, tax revenue will flow, and it will still be up to DashTickets to be an unofficial regulatory body that makes sense of it all!
Edward Howarth’s website: https://edwardhowarth.com/
Online Reporter