KenoGo v Commonwealth Listed in NSW Supreme Court as Online Keno Ban Nears

KenoGo Pty Ltd v Commonwealth of Australia was listed for directions in the New South Wales Supreme Court on 22 October 2026, ten weeks before the national online keno ban is due to take effect on 1 January 2027.

The listing puts a court test next to one of the sharpest policy reversals in recent Australian gambling regulation. A government review published in January 2026 did not recommend banning online keno. Parliament passed a ban on 19 August 2026 anyway.

What the court list shows

The NSW Supreme Court daily list for 22 October 2026 shows the matter in the Equity Division before Justice D Hammerschlag, the Chief Judge in Equity. The case number is 2026/00360076. It was listed for "Directions" at 10:00 AM in Court 7D.

A directions listing sets the procedural timetable, such as when documents are due and when a hearing might occur. It is not a hearing on the merits, and no ruling on the ban has been reported.

According to NEXT.io, KenoGo is the Australian business associated with Lottoland, and the claim seeks a declaration that section 8D(2)(b) of the Interactive Gambling Act 2001 is invalid on section 92 grounds. Section 92 of the Constitution protects freedom of trade and commerce between the states.

The law and the timeline

The Interactive Gambling Amendment (Gambling Reform) Bill 2026 amends the Interactive Gambling Act 2001, the federal statute that regulates online gambling services. It bans online keno and foreign-matched lotteries. A Senate committee report in August 2026 said Schedule 4 of the bill would prohibit certain online lottery products. The government's reform package was announced on 2 April 2026, with reforms starting from 1 January 2027.

Why the ban reverses the review

The Department of Infrastructure, Transport, Regional Development, Communications, Sport and the Arts produced the January 2026 review. It treated online keno as an "excluded lottery service" under section 8D of the Interactive Gambling Act. Its recommendations were narrower than a ban:

• a credit-card ban for online keno
• extending BetStop, the national self-exclusion register, to online keno
• extending advertising restrictions
• further research

The review also recorded the harm arguments that fed the political case. Keno television advertising spend was A$7.4m in 2024, up from A$4.3m in 2023. Advocates told the review that some platforms allow spending of up to A$1,000 every three minutes, or A$20,000 an hour.

Those figures help explain why lawmakers went further than the review. Australia has already restricted payment methods for online gambling, as covered in Gamingo's report on the nationwide credit card ban, and the long-running argument over marketing limits is traced in the story on the delayed gambling ad ban. The keno ban skips the incremental route that the review itself proposed.

The section 92 question

The review noted that multiple state regulators said they cannot legislate to restrict trade in this area because of the section 92 guarantee of free interstate trade. That gap is the stated reason a Commonwealth response was on the table at all, and it is the constitutional provision NEXT.io says KenoGo relies on.

For operators, the practical issues are timing and scope. The ban is scheduled for 1 January 2027, and a directions listing alone does not stop it. Compliance teams serving Australian customers should plan for the start date while watching for any application for interim relief or a hearing date.

What this means for operators and regulators

• Licensed keno operators: the ban covers online keno and foreign-matched lotteries, so product and marketing plans for 2027 need to assume withdrawal from the Australian online market unless a court intervenes.
• Payment processors and affiliates: exposure to online keno traffic and flows ends with the ban's commencement.
• Regulators elsewhere: the contrast with regulated keno models abroad is stark. Colombia, for example, has launched regulated keno with blockchain tickets, while Australia is moving the opposite way. Prohibition is also on the agenda in Latin America, as seen in the Chilean senators' online gambling ban proposal.

The next procedural steps in the NSW matter will show how quickly the court moves relative to the 1 January 2027 start date.

Status reviewed on 4 November 2026. Dates and figures come from the NSW Supreme Court daily list, the Department's January 2026 review and the Senate committee report. More regulation news and Oceania coverage.