Newly proposed slot machine restrictions could push Australia's high-volume players out of the local club-and-pub circuit and into the nation's casinos.

The new measures would limit those slot machines not located inside casinos to accepting a maximum of A$20 at a time, the Sydney Morning Herald reports. At present, slot machines in New South Wales can accept up to a hundred A$100 bills, thus allowing a player to load A$10,000 into a single machine before beginning play. In Victoria, the limit is A$1,000 per machine.

Casinos are expected to be exempt from the new limits.

The proposed rule change is one result of a national study by the Productivity Commission, which released its draft report in October.

Whether or not the attempt to reduce the flow of cash through the machines takes hold will be known when the commission releases its completed report on February 26.

By GGB Staff

Staff writers for Global Gaming Business magazine. Las Vegas, Nevada.