sport24h Gambling advertising should be banned during live sporting events Sportivo

Prime Minister Malcolm Turnbull has confirmed the Government will ban gambling advertising before 8.30pm during live sporting events, and for five minutes before and after the start of play.

ABC News revealed last month that the plan had been taken to Cabinet.
It faced a backlash from the executives of some of the nation's biggest sporting codes, who argued restricting gambling advertising would slash the value of the television rights their codes attract.

But speaking in the United States before his flight back to Australia this morning, Mr Turnbull said the plan would go ahead.
"Parents around Australia will be delighted when they know that during football matches, and cricket matches, live sporting events before 8:30pm, there will be no more gambling ads," he said.

"There are no gambling ads allowed before 8:30pm generally, but there's been an exception for a long time, of live sporting events.

"What is being announced, is an agreement to ban gambling ads prior to 8:30pm during live sporting events other than racing."

Executives from the AFL and NRL had been lobbying Communications Minister Mitch Fifield to scrap the plans.
ABC News had also been told Cricket Australia was pushing against the change.

Government 'scraps licence fees' to fund lost ad revenue

The nation's free-to-air television networks had also raised concerns it would eat into their advertising revenue, and demanded their Commonwealth licence fees be cut to fund the losses.
Free TV Australia said the Government had ceded to those demands, and would scrap licence fees in favour of adopting what is called a "spectrum charge" instead.

"Until today, Australia's free-to-air broadcasters had been paying the highest licence fees in the world," Free TV chairman Harold Mitchell said in a statement.

Australia's third largest network, Network Ten, had been hoping for a cut in its licence fees as it battles to survive in the tough television advertising market.

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