Reporter: Alison Caldwell
ASHLEY HALL: Cricket Australia will be closely monitoring Channel Nine's coverage of tonight's 20/20 match in Brisbane to hear if the commentators promote betting odds during their ball-by-ball commentary.
PM reported last week on the concerns raised by anti-gambling campaigners and the International Cricket Council about the in-commentary promotions for the betting agency Betfair.
But the network stuck with its promotion during Sunday's 20/20 match.
Alison Caldwell reports.
ALISON CALDWELL: Cricket Australia says it was only last Thursday that it became aware that Channel Nine commentators were quoting odds framed by the online gambling agency Betfair during their coverage of this year's cricket.
But despite an outcry from anti-gambling campaigners, Nine's commentary team continued promoting Betfair's odds during Sunday night's international 20/20 match.
COMMENTATOR: This is interesting, the latest Betfair odds are in, Australia $1.58 and South Africa $2.68.
ALISON CALDWELL: It's understood Cricket Australia was concerned about the ads after they were brought to its attention last week.
Spokesman Peter Young says Cricket Australia contacted Channel Nine ahead of Sunday's match.
PETER YOUNG: There had been some discussion about them moving to a different way of presenting the Betfair relationship they have. But apparently with the condensed format of 20/20, it didn't lend itself to a change at that point.
Our continuing understanding is that they'd be doing tonight what they did on Sunday and I believe that I'm waiting for confirmation that they're then talking about a possible new way of presenting it once the one day 50 over cricket starts later in the week.
ALISON CALDWELL: Now doesn't that concern cricket Australia that they're just continuing with this on air plugging of Betfair odds?
PETER YOUNG: Well we're interested in it, we're still determining what our view is in terms of concern. We do have a good relationship with Nine. We're continuing to discuss with them how they present this.
ALISON CALDWELL: It's an awkward situation for Cricket Australia, which receives money from Nine under its broadcast rights agreement which runs until 2013.
It also receives a percentage of Betfair's revenue during cricket matches.
The International Cricket Council doesn't like Channel Nine promoting Betfairs odds during their ball-by-ball commentary.
ICC President David Morgan spoke to PM last Thursday.
DAVID MORGAN: That is something that Haroon Lorgat our Chief Executive has been in conversation with Cricket Australia about.
ALISON CALDWELL: For its part, Betfair believes the concerns are misplaced; until recently Betfair CEO Andrew Twaits worked with Cricket Australia.
He says promoting Betfair's odds during the commentary is part of its commercial agreement with Channel Nine.
ADNREW TWAITS: You know, there are other parts of the arrangement as well; we sponsor the Hot Spot, you know we have our logo up on the screen from time to time, but it's no different to any other product that's advertised out there in the market place. It's just that we have, as a sports betting product, have a more unique connection with the game so we think that we provide addition context to a sport where otherwise it might not be there.
ALISON CALDWELL: One critic recently said of the nature of Betfair where people can bet on someone playing badly or loosing, that that opens the game up to corrupt events. What does Betfair say to that?
ANDREW TWAITS: We reject that statement completely. The best way to protect the integrity of sport is to ensure that there's complete transparency in betting transactions that the identity of every person who is betting on a particular game is known and is made available to the sporting regulators so that they can tell who's having a bet and take action if there's anything untoward going on.
ASHLEY HALL: Betfair's chief executive Andrew Twaits ending Alison Caldwell's report. (Credit: ABC)
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