TLDR
- Tabcorp has been fined more than AU$2.7 million by Australia’s media regulator for telemarketing and spam law breaches
- The breaches happened between February 2024 and June 2025
- Tabcorp made 351 calls to numbers on the Do Not Call Register without consent
- The company sent over 217,000 marketing messages to unsubscribed customers in just 16 days
- This is Tabcorp’s second penalty from the regulator after a 2025 fine of over AU$4 million
Tabcorp Holdings has been fined more than AU$2.7 million by the Australian Communications and Media Authority. The penalty relates to telemarketing and spam law breaches.
The regulator announced the fine in a statement on Wednesday. It said Tabcorp broke the rules over a 16-month period.
The investigation covered February 2024 through June 2025. During this time, Tabcorp made many unlawful telemarketing calls to its VIP customers.
Investigators found 351 calls made to numbers on the Do Not Call Register without consent. They also found 82 calls made outside legally allowed calling hours.
Nearly 4,000 calls were made where Tabcorp failed to identify itself or explain the purpose of the call. These are basic requirements under Australian law.
The Self-Reported Breach
The investigation grew after Tabcorp reported its own breach in 2025. The company admitted sending over 217,000 marketing emails and texts in just 16 days.
These messages went to customers who had already unsubscribed from that type of marketing. The regulator said the volume and timing of the messages justified enforcement action.
Australia’s Spam Act 2003 requires businesses to get consent before sending marketing messages. Messages must also include a working unsubscribe link and sender details.
The Regulator’s Response
ACMA member Samantha Yorke called the conduct unacceptable. She pointed to Tabcorp’s past compliance record and the risks tied to gambling advertising.
Yorke said people who join the Do Not Call Register or unsubscribe are making a clear choice. She said those choices must be respected, especially given the risk of financial loss and psychological harm from gambling marketing.
This is not Tabcorp’s first penalty from the regulator. In 2025, the company was fined more than AU$4 million for sending non-compliant SMS and WhatsApp messages to VIP customers.
That earlier case found Tabcorp sent 2,598 SMS and WhatsApp messages between February and May 2024 without an unsubscribe option. Another 3,148 messages lacked proper sender information during the same period.
Eleven SMS messages were also sent without consent between February and April 2024. The pattern of breaches spans multiple years.
When setting the latest penalty, ACMA considered that Tabcorp reported the breach itself. It also noted the messages went out over a short window and only to customers who had opted out of one marketing channel, not all marketing.
Alongside the fine, Tabcorp agreed to a court-enforceable undertaking. This requires an independent review of its telemarketing systems and fixes to close compliance gaps.
ACMA said businesses across Australia have paid more than AU$12 million in spam and telemarketing penalties over the past 18 months. Tabcorp was also fined AU$112,680 earlier this year for breaching self-exclusion rules, along with a separate court-enforceable undertaking.
