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"Statewide services will also be provided to support problem gamblers from non-English speaking backgrounds, to help problem gamblers facing legal difficulties, and to ensure that NSW's gambling counsellors have access to the latest professional training," Mr Souris said in a statement. The money will also provide increased after hours counselling, financial counselling, community education programs and referrals for problem gamblers with complex mental health issues.

FOUR out of every five problem gamblers in South Australia are addicted to pokies - despite the growth of online and sports betting. A profile of problem gamblers treated by the Flinders University School of Medicine shows less than 1 per cent said they had a problem gambling online but 83.9 per cent admitted to poker machine addiction. Flinders University Professor of Psychiatry Malcolm Battersby said experts did not know why a boom in sports betting and online gambling had not yet translated to an increase in problem gamblers.

"The Coalition has released its policy "to help problem gamblers" under that very title. If the betting markets are any guide, the Coalition is poised to win government on September 7, so the likelihood is that this will be Australian government policy for some time to come. What does it promise?"

JULIA GILLARD has walked away from a deal on problem gambling with independent MP Andrew Wilkie in favour of a strategy to shore up her own and the Labor government's position. Read more: http://www.smh.com.au/national/wilkie-cant-take-a-trick-20120121-1qb6t.html#ixzz1k7okpzAM

Zynga Inc (NASDAQ:ZNGA)'s attempts to enter real-money gambling may be held back by US laws, which favor existing casinos, according to Bloomberg. So far, 3 US states, including New Jersey, Nevada and Delaware, have passed laws that will allow online gambling games to be played on their territories, but it looks like the conditions will benefit casinos which dominate the gambling scene. This could create problems for the social gaming giant, which is looking to reduce its dependence on its current business model, including bolstering growth and business transactions by offering real-money games. At present, Zynga (ZNGA) has employed a 'free to play' business model, which was started by multiplayer online games like Jagex Games Studio' RuneScape. It allow players to play games free of cost but with the choice to spend real money on virtual items or other in-game advantages. These in-games purchases are called "micro-transactions".

Great story emphasises the problem of accountability

"A Fairfield hotel that doubles as crisis accommodation for vulnerable people has won its battle to install 50 pokie machines. The win has horrified anti-gambling advocates, who believe the highly visible Victorian-style hotel will attract problem gamblers. See your ad here The Grandview Hotel proprietor Daniel El Fahkri appealed to VCAT after Darebin City Council rejected his application last year, arguing that the only way he could afford to significantly renovate the deteriorating 19th century building was to fund it with pokie machine expenditure."

The answer to the question posed in the title of today's hearing - "Is There a Safe Bet?"- is a clear yes. That safe bet can be found in the licensing and regulation of online poker. The risky bet would be to leave unchanged current law that leaves consumers, minors and those with gambling problems vulnerable to unregulated offshore companies.

Have a 'lucky' machine or a special technique for choosing a machine to play? Find out more about how pokies really work and why luck has nothing to do with it.