Pokie spending rises as machine numbers fall
4 November 2015
Spending on pub and club pokies is on the rise despite a continuing decline in the number of gaming machines.
In the year ended September spending increased almost two per cent, from $808 million to $823.8 million while the number of gaming machines decreased from 16,814 to 16,440 with fewer licence holders (down from 321 to 309) and gambling venues (from 1300 to 1255).
The spending is captured through the electronic monitoring of non-casino gaming machines (EMS), which became fully operational in March 2007, enabling the Department to track and monitor gambling operations to ensure the integrity of games and the accurate accounting of money.
Non-casino GM spending by Society Type – July-Sept 2015
Society Type | Total GMP Quarter | % of Total |
Non-Club | 186,143,819.31 | 87.2% |
| Sports Clubs | 4,376,558.60 | 2.0% |
| Chartered Clubs | 16,438,849.33 | 8.2% |
| RSAs | 6,531,654.59 | 3.1% |
Total Club | 27,347,062.52 | 12.8% |
Total All | $213,490,881.83 | 100.0% |
Media contact:
Trevor Henry, Senior Communications Adviser, Department of Internal Affairs
Ph 04 495 7211; cell 021 245 8642
