If you are thinking of jumping into the foray of promoting your products in the internet or starting an online competition business you should know about the basic information about the rules and regulation of online competitions in Australia.
The rules may also vary in different states or territories in Australia as state regulations and requirements for permit application differ and it can somehow affect the mechanics of your competition.
Keeping competition legal is the organizer’s and promoter’s responsibility. Knowing, following, and keeping in mind all the laws, rules, regulations, and those slight variations of state regulations, will help you avoid embarrassing situations and sometimes costly legal misunderstanding with participants and with the authorities.
Different states in Australia provide different conditions when starting a legal online contest. The organizer has to review the specific rules of the state, depending on the mechanics of the contest.
South Australia, Victoria, Northern Territory
If amount of prize of a competition is more than $5,000 AUD, it is considered a major lottery and you will be required to acquire a permit. For more information visit the websites for South Australia, Victoria, Northern Territory.
New South Wales, Australian Capital Territory
All games of chance competitions are required to get a permit, no matter how much is the prize amount that are given away. For more information visit the websites for New South Wales, Australian Capital Territory.
Queensland, Tasmania, Western Australia
Online competitions in these territory, are not required permits regardless how much the total amount of prize are given away. For more information visit the website for Queensland, Tasmania, and Western Australia.
Types of competitions
One of the things you also need to know is the difference between the two types of competitions: the game of skills and the games of chance. Choose from what kind of competition you think is the best one that suits you, your purpose and your goals the best.
Games of Chance or Luck
This is the most popular type of online competition, besides being easy to join and win, there is also a sense of fairness and equal chance for participants to win because they are randomly picked by just drawing the winner from a pool of entries or these are set and chosen by a program to prevent human intervention. It usually attracts all kinds of people interested in joining online competitions. Sweepstakes, Timed giveaways, Instant Win Games are just examples of games of chance competitions. Sometimes organizers and promoters combine these games together to help make it more fun, appealing and interesting for the participants.
Games of Skills and Talent
This type is the most rewarding. Winners are chosen by several judges based on the rules and criteria set by the organizers. Contestants showcase their skills and talents, from short story writing, comedy writing to best video and photo contest, the contestants present their best creative work that competes among the rest of the entries. Permits are not necessary if the process of picking the winners does not require choosing them randomly.
