TAB has been fined more than $4 million for sending thousands of marketing messages, breaching Australia’s spam laws.
It follows an investigation by the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA), an independent watchdog.
ACMA’s investigation showed thousands of messages were sent without proving an option to unsubscribe and/or did not contain “adequate sender information”.
TAB
TAB is an Australian gambling provider.
According to ACMA, its VIP program involves “personalised messages offering incentives such as bonus bets… and offers of tickets to sporting and other events.”
Between February to May 2024, ACMA found TAB sent almost 2,600 messages to VIP customers without providing an option to unsubscribe, and more than 3,000 messages did not have enough sender information.
Between 15 February and 29 April 2024, TAB sent 11 texts to customers without consent.
TAB has entered into a three year “court-enforcable” undertaking. This includes reporting to ACMA regularly and an “independent review of its direct marketing systems”.
ACMA
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ACMA Authority Member Samantha Yorke said in a statement: “The gambling industry needs to understand that spam laws apply to all direct marketing… these types of gambling VIP programs can involve customers who are not well off and are experiencing significant losses.
“It is utterly unacceptable that TAB did not have adequate spam compliance systems in place.”
TAB response
A TAB spokesperson told TDA that it is “remediating and significantly improving our processes.”
The spokesperson said TAB “assisted ACMA throughout the investigation and will continue to work closely with the regulator to ensure ongoing improved compliance.”
Spam rules
Australia has rules that mean telemarketing companies must have a person’s consent when making calls, and offer people a way to opt out of messages and calls.
Under the Spam Act 2003, businesses are not allowed to send texts without consent, proper sender information and an option to unsubscribe.
ACMA says businesses have been fined almost $17 million for spam breaches over the past 18 months, and that spam rules and gambling safeguards are “current compliance priorities.”
