Tabcorp Holdings Limited, a major player in Australia’s wagering and media sector, has been fined more than AU$2.7 million (US$1.8 million) by the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) for breaches of telemarketing and spam regulations.
ACMA announced on Wednesday that the penalties arose from offenses committed over a 16-month span. The investigation focused on activities between February 2024 and June 2025, during which Tabcorp engaged in several unlawful telemarketing practices directed at its VIP clientele. Among the significant violations identified were 351 calls made to numbers on the Do Not Call Register without prior consent. Additionally, 82 calls took place outside of allowed calling hours, and nearly 4,000 instances occurred where Tabcorp failed to adequately identify itself or clarify the purpose of the calls.
The inquiry was steepened by a self-reported violation from Tabcorp in 2025, where the company disclosed having sent more than 217,000 marketing emails and SMS messages over a 16-day period to customers who had previously unsubscribed from these communications. This mass outreach prompted ACMA to take enforcement action due to the scale and timing of the messages.
Under Australia’s Spam Act 2003, businesses must obtain consent before sending marketing communications. The regulation also mandates that such messages include a functional unsubscribe option and sender information.
ACMA member Samantha Yorke criticized Tabcorp’s actions as “unacceptable,” especially in light of the potential risks associated with gambling advertising and the company's past compliance record. Yorke highlighted the necessity of honoring consumer preferences, stating, “When people join the Do Not Call register or unsubscribe from marketing messages, they are making a clear choice. Those choices must be respected – especially given the heightened risks of financial loss and psychological harm from gambling marketing.”
This recent fine follows a previous enforcement action by ACMA in 2025, when Tabcorp was penalized over AU$4 million for sending out non-compliant SMS and WhatsApp marketing messages targeting VIP customers. Investigators revealed that between February 1 and May 1, 2024, Tabcorp dispatched 2,598 messages without providing an unsubscribe option, alongside another 3,148 messages lacking adequate sender information during the same timeframe. Moreover, 11 SMS messages were dispatched without consent in the earlier part of 2024.
In determining the current penalty, ACMA considered Tabcorp’s voluntary self-report, noting that the unsolicited messages were sent within a brief 16-day window and only to customers who had opted out of specific marketing communications, rather than all marketing.
Along with the financial penalty, Tabcorp has agreed to implement a court-enforceable undertaking. This includes commissioning an independent review of its telemarketing systems and undertaking measures to rectify compliance issues.
Since 2021, ACMA has reported that businesses have collectively faced over AU$12 million in fines for spam and telemarketing offenses.
Earlier this year, ACMA also sanctioned Tabcorp for violations of Australia’s self-exclusion rules, resulting in a penalty of AU$112,680 alongside a court-enforceable undertaking.
