Ladbrokes revives live betting in Australia as think tank warns gov’t it’s ‘pointless’ to hold back in-play wagers

Ladbrokes Australia relaunched its in-play live betting feature, joining William Hill and Bet365 in allowing punters to bet on live events via the Internet.

The British bookmaker reactivated its live-betting feature—now called LivePlay—last week, The Australian reported. The relaunch happened months after Ladbrokes decided to withdraw the feature—called Quickcall at the time—back in July following the Australian Communication Agency’s (ACMA) announcement that it will investigate the service.

ACMA alleged the live-betting feature is a breach of the 2001 Internet Gambling Act, but William Hill challenged the probe in October after the Australian Federal Police (AFP) declared it will not investigate the bookmaker’s controversial Bet In-Play smartphone app.

Ladbrokes’s Australian rivals and the Irish-owned Sportsbet have yet to launch their own live betting features, fearing that having a system that allows bets to be placed at the click of a button is against Australia’s gambling laws.