Thursday, May 18, 2006

As reported by the Courier-Mail: "Betting cash on the outcome of blackjack,
roulette or poker games in Australia could soon be as easy as pressing a few
buttons on your mobile phone. "Without even dialling a number, users could
also be able to enter lotteries, play electronic slot machines and use
animated "scratch cards". "But Queensland academics are already concerned
this new form of gambling, dubbed m-gambling, could spawn a new generation
of addicts. "As such, a group of four researchers from the Queensland
University of Technology, University of Queensland and Griffith University
have joined to investigate the emerging trend and assess whether it's a risk
to Australian mobile phone users.

"...M-gambling is already taking off overseas and Juniper Research estimates
that the industry will take in $US19.3 million ($A25 million) by 2009.

"Its reach is also spreading. Vodafone in the United Kingdom, for example,
last week signed a deal with the owner of Gambling.com to add betting games
to the Vodafone Live! menu in June..."