4147.4.55.001 - Culture and Recreation News, Jul 2002  
ARCHIVED ISSUE Released at 11:30 AM (CANBERRA TIME) 05/08/2002   
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GAMBLING

Surveys of businesses providing gambling services in Australian in 2000-01 revealed that total net takings from gambling during 2000-01 were $13.8 billion, which was an increase of 26% since 1997-98. Net takings are the revenue earned by businesses from gambling services, net of payouts to players or bettors.

At 30 June 2001 there were 6,012 businesses providing gambling facilities in Australia. A large percentage (75%) of these businesses were hospitality clubs, pubs, taverns and bars. Other businesses providing gambling facilities were thoroughbred, harness and greyhound racing clubs, other sporting clubs and venues, casinos, lottery operators, other gambling services (such as bookmaking services and totalisator services and agencies) and some accommodation businesses.

Almost two-thirds (63% or $8,752 million) of the total net takings from gambling came from poker or gaming machines. Net takings from poker and gaming machines have increased by 39% since 1997-98. There were 185,512 poker or gaming machines in use at the end of June 2001, up 19.5% from three years earlier. Most of these machines were located in hospitality clubs (60.4%), pubs, taverns and bars (30.0%) and casinos (5.9%).

During 2000-01 the gambling taxes and levies paid to governments totalled $4,397 million, representing 32% of the net takings from gambling. The largest source of gambling taxes and levies was poker and gaming machines (in premises other than casinos), which accounted for 55% of total gambling taxes and levies.

Main features of Gambling Industries, Australia, 2000-01 are available free of charge on this site, as are the main features of another recent release relevant to this topic, Clubs, Pubs, Taverns and Bars, Australia, 2000-01.