Concern over the potential removal of competition in the sports betting business in Australia has prompted the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission to request a Federal Court to conduct a judicial review.
The Australian Competition Tribunal granted authorisation for Tabcorp Holdings to acquire Tatts Group, finding that the proposal would result in public benefit and no material detriment.
The tribunal’s decision was delivered in June, but now the ACCC is contesting the decision which it said was "inconsistent" with previous tribunal decision where a lessening of competition was a factor.
The tribunal, says the ACCC, “made an error in the weight it gave to benefits, such as cost savings and revenue synergies which would be retained by Tabcorp and not shared with consumers more broadly.”
