Over the course of the past few years, local community groups have been receiving less money from pokie grants. According to statistics released by the Otago Daily Times, the loss could be attributed to the rise in online gambling spending. In Dunedin, there has been a sharp decline in pokies spending starting in 2007. From April to June 2007, residents spent $5.7 million on pokies, which dropped to $4.7 from October to December 2012.
In just five years, there has been a $1 million drop in pokies spending, and local gaming experts believe that it has something to do with the amount of money that players are spending at online casinos. All poker machines in New Zealand are operated by trusts, which donate a third of all profits to local organizations.
Since pokies are generating less revenue, fewer grants are being awarded. Should online gambling continue to increase in popularity, local community groups will be faced with a dilemma. ''Money that is gambled on the internet is just gone,'' says Kevin Mechen, Dunedin Council’s Liquor Licensing and Projects Officer. ''At least with other forms of gambling a portion of the money will go back into the community.''
Currently, the only operators that are permitted to offer online gambling services in New Zealand are TABCorp and the Lotteries Commission. These companies are licensed and taxed, providing money for pokie grants. If the federal government decided to legislate online gambling, this type of arrangement would certainly benefit community groups.
Internationally-based gambling operators would pay licensing fees and taxes that would be allocated to local organizations via pokie grants. However, not everyone believes that regulating online gambling would be the solution to the issue. According to Graeme Ramsey of the Problem Gambling Foundation, pokie spending has declined due to increased awareness of problem gambling.
As such, his organization is unlikely to support the idea of online gambling regulation in New Zealand.
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