Social Casino Apps: Exempt from Australian Gambling Laws

With each wager, the virtual poker machine's wheels turn. The image on the screen is sparkling and twinkling. When the symbols align and a victory is registered, coins jingle. The thrill of getting a jackpot combined with an explosion of colors and sounds is mesmerizing.

Social Casino App Industry

Slotomania, a smartphone game created by the Israeli company Playtika, first appears to be quite similar to any other electronic poker machine. Users invest tens of thousands of dollars in it because they want to win big, just as any gambler does.

Although gamers spend real money to purchase coins to keep the virtual wheels turning, there is one significant difference: they are never able to cash out their wins. Due to the fact that Slotomania and similar "social casino" games are not considered gambling, they are not subject to Australian regulations that forbid unlicensed online betting. And this is why a regulated and responsible market is very important to a player. You can find the best apps at the iGaming NJ website that provide great games and care for responsible gambling.

It's a prosperous industry: Playtika generated more than $2.5 billion in revenue and $308 million in profit in 2021 alone. One cannot deny the appeal of mobile casinos. They are easy to pick up, easy to get started, and you can play wherever you want to, at home, on a train, at work, etc. And thus, the industry has been rapidly evolving, in large part, due to the sheer demand by the player base.

Concerns Over Social Casino Expansion

However, a parliamentary inquiry looking into the condition of Australia's online gambling legislation and the harm the market does to individuals is set to investigate the statute that permits social casinos to operate in this manner.

The committee's chair, Labor MP Peta Murphy, claims that virtual gaming is commonplace. She continued by saying that the majority of the committee members had discussed how this type of simulated gambling either led to other types of gambling or got people hooked on it and people are losing money.

The investigation takes a look at international developments where some countries have determined that social casinos are in fact a type of gambling.

Some nations, including Belgium, have gone further and ruled that video game loot box mechanics, in which players pay for the opportunity to win an effective in-game item, also constitute gambling.

One person who invested tens of thousands of dollars in Slotomania missed payments for their rent and other necessities, putting a major financial strain on themselves and their family.

According to Financial Counselling Australia's head of policy and campaigns, Lauren Levin, there is growing evidence that virtual games may be detrimental to players much like traditional poker and slot games.

Levin claims that gambling financial counselors are now extremely worried about the amount of money players are losing while playing social casino games, as well as the addictions that are forming.

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