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NBA 2K LEAGUE AND AUSTRALIA’S NATIONAL BASKETBALL LEAGUE ANNOUNCE LANDMARK AGREEMENT TO LAUNCH EXPANSION TEAM, NBL OZ GAMING

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NBA 2K LEAGUE AND AUSTRALIA’S NATIONAL BASKETBALL LEAGUE ANNOUNCE LANDMARK AGREEMENT TO LAUNCH EXPANSION TEAM, NBL OZ GAMING
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NBL Becomes First Australian Professional Team to Join a Global Esports League, Third NBA 2K League Team from Outside of North America 

 The NBA 2K League and Australia’s National Basketball League (NBL) announced a landmark agreement that will see the NBL launch an NBA 2K League expansion team, NBL Oz Gaming, representing Australia.  This marks the first time an Australian professional team has joined a global esports league on a permanent basis.

The NBA 2K League tipped off its inaugural season in May 2018, with 17 teams, each affiliated with an NBA team.  With the addition of NBL Oz Gaming, the NBA 2K League has now expanded to 25 teams, 22 of which are affiliated with NBA teams, including 2022 Champions Pistons GT (3v3) and Bucks Gaming (5v5).  NBL Oz Gaming becomes the third expansion team from outside of North America following the addition of the Gen.G Tigers representing Shanghai, and DUX Infinitos representing Mexico City, in 2021 and 2022, respectively, and will make its debut when the NBA 2K League’s sixth season tips off in spring 2023.  Together, the NBL and the NBA 2K League will collaborate to grow the NBA 2K League’s presence in Australia through talent identification, joint marketing efforts and grassroots events.  NBL Oz Gaming will be based in the U.S. during the 2023 season, with the team’s location still to be announced.

“This is another historic day as we welcome Australia’s premier basketball league to the NBA 2K League family,” said NBA 2K League President Brendan Donohue.  “The NBL has a demonstrated track record of not only transforming their league, but also growing a fanbase in new and creative ways.  The NBL is the ideal partner to help the NBA 2K League do the same in Australia, where basketball and 2K are incredibly popular and we’re thrilled that NBL Oz Gaming will represent Australia in the NBA 2K League for years to come.”

“We have been intrigued by the esports sector now for some time, largely because there is a significant crossover between gaming fans and basketball fans – more so than any other sport,” NBL Commissioner Jeremy Loeliger said. “We always want to partner with the best, and one of the best professional esports leagues in the world is operated by our long-standing friends and partners at the NBA.  The global popularity of NBA 2K and the NBA 2K League continue to grow every year, and neither is showing any signs of slowing down.  Our hopes and expectations are that NBL Oz Gaming will introduce the NBL to a legion of new fans around the world.  But first, we have to turn our attention to building a strong and competitive roster and showing once again that the NBL can take on the best in the world.  This time, it just happens to be a slightly different game!”

The 2023 NBA 2K League season will livestream in Australia on Twitch and YouTube.  Over the NBA 2K League’s first five seasons, the league has conducted international qualifying events in Hong Kong, Seoul, and remotely for top players from the Asia-Pacific region.  Jack “Jaacko” Stevenson (New Zealand) was selected 50th overall in the 2019 NBA 2K League Draft and Meason “xMiLo—” Camille (Australia) was selected 62nd overall in the 2021 NBA 2K League Draft.

NBA 2K22 was in the Top-3 best-selling console games in Australia (#3) and New Zealand (#2) in 2021*.

The NBL has established itself as Australia’s fastest growing sports league and one of top basketball leagues in the world outside of the NBA.  Over the past few seasons, the league has seen record attendance, broadcast audiences and social media engagement, and has become a destination for top players from around the world, most notably through the NBL Next Stars program.  Through the growth of the NBL, the success of Australia’s national teams and the impact that Australian players are having in top basketball leagues around the world, basketball is now the fastest-growing sport in Australia.

NBL Oz Gaming will participate in the NBA 2K League Expansion Draft on Saturday, Nov. 5 (Eastern Time).

Australia

Secretlab partners with Fluent Commerce for Order Management

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Secretlab, the leading international ergonomic furniture specialist brand, is partnering with Fluent Commerce to enhance global digital operations – scaling its Order Management System with Fluent Order Management.
Established in 2014, Secretlab has rapidly emerged as an international ergonomic furniture specialist brand with over 3 million users worldwide. With a strong emphasis on quality and ergonomics, Secretlab’s chairs have garnered immense popularity among both gamers and professionals, solidifying themselves as leaders in modern ergonomics.
Secretlab is scaling its Order Management System (OMS) to support its growth and enhance customer experience globally. Fluent Order Management processes inventory data at unprecedented levels to provide complete inventory visibility and accuracy.
“It’s great to see an innovative company like Secretlab choose Fluent Order Management,” said Graham Jackson, CEO, Fluent Commerce. “Fluent Commerce has a track record for delivering enduring value to global retailers and our modern and scalable technology will set Secretlab up for long-term success,” Jackson adds.
Fluent Order Management is used by leading global retailers including JD Sports, L’Oréal, Prada Group, Aldo Group, LVMH, Dulux and Kingfisher. Most recently, Munro Footwear chose Fluent Order Management to enhance inventory management globally.
One of the key solutions offered by Fluent Commerce, Fluent Big Inventory, addresses the challenge of real-time, accurate inventory visibility across all channels and locations in a retailer’s business. It optimises massive sets of inventory data quickly, to provide accurate inventory data that helps reduce overselling and cancelled orders, and out-of-stock online.
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Australia

ACMA: Tabcorp Pays $262,000 Penalty for Illegal In-Play Bets

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Tabcorp Holdings Limited (Tabcorp) has paid a $262,920 penalty for taking online in-play sports bets, which is illegal in Australia.

An Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) investigation found Tabcorp accepted 854 in-play bets across 69 tennis matches between April and October 2023.

Online in-play betting—wagers made on a sporting event after it has commenced—is prohibited in Australia under the Interactive Gambling Act 2001.

Authority member Carolyn Lidgerwood said the ban on online in-play betting is in place to protect vulnerable people.

“In-play betting increases access to gambling opportunities and exacerbates the risks of gambling harm, as people can place bets with high frequency on multiple outcomes during sporting events,” Ms Lidgerwood said.

“There has been significant growth in online sports betting in recent years and it’s important all online wagering services have systems in place so that illegal in-play bets are not accepted.”

During the investigation Tabcorp reported that the breaches occurred due to a technical “bug” in its systems. While the error first occurred in April 2023, it was not fixed until October 2023.

“Tabcorp is a major wagering operator and it is concerning that it took some 6 months for the system error to be identified and fixed,” Ms Lidgerwood said.

In addition to paying the $262,920 penalty, Tabcorp has also advised the ACMA of controls it now has in place and future steps it will be taking to minimise the risk of online in-play bets being accepted.

In its consideration of this matter the ACMA also took into account that Tabcorp had voided all bets so consumers did not suffer any loss and Tabcorp did not profit from the errors.

Tabcorp was previously issued a formal warning by the ACMA in November 2021 for accepting in-play bets on a United States college basketball game.

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Australia

AUSTRAC and Pacific Financial Intelligence Units Gather in Brisbane to Tackle Financial Crime in the Region

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Identifying ways to combat serious financial crime is the key focus when financial intelligence units (FIUs) from across the Pacific meet in Brisbane.

Representatives from 13 Pacific nations are gathering for the Pacific Financial Intelligence Community (PFIC) plenary, which is hosted by AUSTRAC.

The three-day event, which is now going on, provides a valuable opportunity for FIUs to further explore initiatives to fight financial crime. These include joint operations, intelligence sharing, capacity-building activities and region-wide technological enhancements.

Since last year’s meeting in the Cook Islands, PFIC members have focused their efforts on combating transnational organised crime, corruption and child sexual exploitation. AUSTRAC has worked with FIUs to ensure they have the training and capabilities required to proactively identify and tackle these crimes.

As well as ongoing themes such as money laundering, this year’s meeting will also address emerging issues such as illicit use of cryptocurrency, new payment platforms and gambling in the region.

AUSTRAC CEO Brendan Thomas said PFIC is a good example of the value strong regional partnerships bring to combating money laundering and other serious financial crime.

“As Australia’s financial intelligence unit, we’re not just focused on ensuring the security of Australia’s financial system, we also have a key role to play in working with our neighbours to combat the harms posed by criminal networks across the region,” Mr Thomas said.

“To put it into perspective, behind each of these crimes are people who are left devastated by the impacts of online scams, child sexual exploitation, environmental crimes or drug trafficking.

“PFIC was established by AUSTRAC and other regional partners in 2021 to promote greater collaboration among Pacific FIUs, and we’re so proud of the outcomes it’s already delivered.”

The Head of the Cook Islands FIU and outgoing Co-Chair of the PFIC, Mr Walter Henry, said he’s honoured to have played a leading role in PFIC over the last two years.

“Serious financial crime affects all of our nations, so we must work together to combat threats which undermine our financial security and community safety,” Mr Henry said.

“The PFIC has proven to be a vital channel for sharing intelligence, for working on capability enhancements and for staying across emerging threats and developments in technology.”

The Attorney-General will address the conference, to speak about Australia’s commitment to building strong regional partnerships to combat transnational financial crime, and ongoing efforts to strengthen Australia’s anti-money laundering system.

Representatives from the financial intelligence units of Australia, Cook Islands, Fiji, Kiribati, Nauru, New Zealand, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Republic of Marshall Islands, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga and Vanuatu will be in attendance.

AUSTRAC is the permanent Co-Chair of the forum. The Head of the Fiji FIU is scheduled to take on the rotating Co-Chair position at the end of this plenary meeting.

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