Betting giant Betfair is facing a AUD 871,660 ($566,348) penalty after sending messages to VIP customers that don’t comply with Australian spam laws.
Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) has announced that it will be charging Betfair with the penalty for sending commercial messages that didn’t comply with national spam laws, after an investigation.
The examination revealed that Betfair sent 148 emails and text messages between March and December 2024 to VIP customers that did not consent or had withdrawn consent for such communication. Six messages were also found that did not contain an option to unsubscribe.
Betfair has been penalised $871,660 for breaching Australia’s spam laws, following an ACMA investigation that found the company sent marketing messages without valid consent, including to customers who had previously unsubscribed.
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— ACMA (@acmadotgov) July 30, 2025
The communications were centered around offers for account deposits and free tickets to events, targeted towards VIP customers. The ACMA said that it operated under a no tolerance policy for non-compliance under the Spam Act in the gambling sector.
“VIP programs are generally designed to attract and retain customers with high betting activity, however this doesn’t mean VIP customers are well off or can afford losses,” said Authority Member Samantha Yorke.
“Sending promotional gambling messages to these customers without consent or with no option to opt-out is incredibly irresponsible in addition to being non-compliant.
“The spam laws have been in place for over twenty years and it is simply unacceptable for businesses not to respect the rights of their customers.”
What’s next for Betfair?
As well as facing the penalty of $871,660, Betfair will also start a two-year court-mandated program that will demand an independent review of its marketing messages. From there, the company will be required to implement any logical improvements, such as staff training, quarterly internal audits, and regular reporting to the ACMA.
“This is the second recent ACMA enforcement action concerning VIP customers in the gambling sector,” Yorke said. “Providers are on notice that they need to have their compliance systems in order.”
The ACMA reported that, over the last 18 months, businesses have paid over $16.6 million in spam penalties under the Spam Law. Enforcing compliance remains a major focus for the organization.
This comes after Betfair was recently in the headlines for a breach of customer data.
ReadWrite has contacted Betfair for comment.
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