Mississippi casinos reported significant gaming revenue gains in August, the first month of legal sports wagering in the state.

Figures released this week by the Mississippi Gaming Commission (MGC) show the state’s commercial casinos generated combined gaming revenue of $181.7m in August, a 7.5% improvement over the same month last year. (The numbers don’t include the Mississippi Band of Choctaw Indians’ three casinos.)

In geographic terms, the dominant coastal casino segment improved 10.5% to $108.7m, while the northern segment rose 3.3% to $49.6m and the central segment gained 3% to $23.3m.

August was the first month of legal sports wagering at Mississippi casinos, and the qualifying venues reported handling $6.3m worth of wagers last month. For the record, this is $3.5m less than the handle figure the MGC issued earlier this month, although that figure included the first three days of September (and the first weekend of NFL action).

Another day, another takedown of a China-facing illegal online gambling operation, as local residents continue to defy their government’s blanket ban on non-lottery gambling activity.

On Thursday, China Court Network reported that police in Cixi City in Zhejiang province had arrested 71 individuals suspected of involvement in a pair of illegal online casino operations offering baccarat games to Chinese gamblers.

According to the report, the Zhejiang Provincial Public Security Bureau began its investigation earlier this year after receiving a tip-off from a disgruntled customer of the gambling site. Raids involving 140 police officers were launched way back in March, although, as is typical in Chinese gambling cases, the details are only now being released.

The report fingered two men identified only as Ye and Jiang as the top of a pyramid of agents who enlisted customers for the gambling site, which was based in an unspecified foreign jurisdiction. Ye and Jiang were apparently once partners, but Jiang broke off to form his own online operation.

Australia’s online sports betting operators have taken yet another shot to their pocketbooks after the state of Victoria approved a new point-of-consumption tax (POCT).

Late Thursday, the Victorian parliament’s upper chamber used the legislative session’s final day to approve a bill that imposes a new 8% tax on online sports betting revenue derived from state punters. The new tax will kick in on January 1, 2019, and the government expects to reap an annual windfall of AU$30m (US$21.8m).

Victoria’s rate is lower than the 15% POCT introduced in Queensland, South Australia, Western Australia and the Australian Capital Territory, and the 10% rate proposed in New South Wales. Online bookies, most of which are licensed in the Northern Territory, previously paid no direct taxes to other state governments.

However, Victoria’s POCT will also apply to promotional ‘free’ and ‘bonus’ bets that bookies offer their customers, which bookies argue don’t represent actual revenue and thus should have been excluded. The bookies are warning that this new wrinkle could undo their commitment to maintaining their existing level of financial contribution to Victoria’s racing industry.