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Concerns raised over betting on TV shows

Is it fair to bet on a TV show when the outcome is already pre-recorded?

Liquor & Gaming NSW has expressed concerns about betting agencies offering wagers on the outcome of Television shows.

A spokesman told News Corp, “TV shows are not subject to the same controls as major sports which have governing bodies and regulators to oversee their operations and reduce risks for race or match fixing.

“There are also concerns over the integrity of prerecorded TV shows where the outcomes are known to some people.”

Shows including My Kitchen Rules and MasterChef Australia have recorded dual endings ahead of their broadcast, but small teams of producers and network execs are aware of which one will be used as a final outcome.

The concerns follow reports that paparazzi shots of The Bachelor finalists could be sold to media and betting agencies.

Sportsbet already has markets open for the upcoming series — punters can bet on hair colour of the winning contestant and what state she’s from.

Betting agencies licensed in NSW are required to seek approval from Liquor & Gaming NSW to offer bets on the outcomes of TV competitions and programs. But Sportsbet and William Hill are licensed in the Northern Territory, while Tabcorp is licensed in both NSW and the Northern Territory.

News Corp reports Sportsbet, Tabcorp and William Hill denied approaching the seller of Bachelor photos and information.

5 Responses

  1. It’d be good to bet how long a heavily advertised show on a commercial network lasts before being pushed back to 10.30PM, shown in double episodes, then moved to a secondary channel.

  2. This is out of control – creating an appalling culture which only benefits betting companies. Time to ban any nexus between TV and gambling. Full stop.

  3. If betting agencies are silly/stupid enough to allow betting & punters are willing to accept those odds, on things that have already been determined, the only losers I can see are the agencies or the punters with little harm to the rest of the community.
    I’m sure that if the gambling companies were to loose constantly on these sort of bets they would get out of the market

    $0.02

  4. One show not covered here is Survivor (which ruined the show personally), Kristy was the short-priced favourite at one particular betting agency before the merge occurred and she remained that way throughout the show – not sure where Lee was, Kristy’s odds though led people to speculate given they bore zero relationship to her position in the show during that period, so it was very evident that the winner or at least final 2 had leaked well before it was aired. Surely these types of things lend themselves to the betting equivalent of insider trading as well.

    1. Agree. Survivor was spoilt for viewers because the odds hinted very strongly at it many weeks in advance. I hope Ten has learnt from this and will screen a Live finale this year to avoid this happening again. As for betting, it’s ok for shows that aren’t taped in advance (e.g. Big Brother, I’m a Celebrity) but for shows that are already in the can weeks (or months) ahead of airing there shouldn’t be any betting at all. I don’t even want to know who the final three are until we get to that stage.

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