Australia’s premier online gambling licensing body has told its licensees they must stop offering in-play sports wagers in four weeks.

On Friday, the Northern Territory Racing Commission (NTRC) sent its licensees a letter saying they must close down any online in-play betting apps within 28 days in order to “head off future action by the federal government.”

In April, the federal government released its review of the Interactive Gambling Act 2001, which permits in-play sports wagers only over the telephone. The review recommended that the government close the loophole that had allowed some NT-licensed operators to offer voice-activated smartphone ‘click-to-call’ apps that circumvented the IGA’s online in-play restriction.

However, while the government requested that the offending operators – William Hill, Bet365, Sportsbet and Unibet – withdraw their apps, it offered no timeline for complying, leading the operators to conclude that they’d be fools to shut down the money-making apps until they were explicitly ordered to pull the plug.