Aristocrat Leisure has extended its share buyback by another $500 million and pledged its support for cashless poker machines, but some critics aren't satisfied with the "responsible gameplay" initiative.
Chairman Neil Chatfield told shareholders at the gaming giant's annual meeting in Sydney on Friday that it was proud to have begun an Australia-first trial of cashless gaming technology in NSW in partnership with a major customer, the NSW government and the regulator.
"This trial represents several years of work on the part of our teams, and millions of dollars in investment, and was launched in-market in 2022," Mr Chatfield said .
"It was proposed by Aristocrat as part of our longstanding commitment to undertake such trials, working together with customers and regulators, to bring forward new RG (responsible gameplay) product options."
But shareholder activist Stephen Mayne told the meeting the cashless gaming trial had started 13 months late and was "massively different" from what was being contemplated in NSW.
"The cashless solution that the company seems to be contemplating is one that applies to everything in a venue, so you can go in there and flash your phone at the pokies, put a $1,000 on, buy $100 round of drinks, buy a 10-year membership, shout your mates a dinner," Mr Mayne said.
"So it's like manna from heaven for big-spending clubs that just want people to flash their phones and go for it."
Mr Mayne said what NSW Premier Dominic Perrottet has proposed was very different: a mandatory government-issued card that was the only way to pay for gambling and that could only be used for gambling.
Tasmania was also proposing a government-issued card with a $100 a day maximum, Mr Mayne said.
"That is the nearest regulatory train coming at us. Are we going to embrace it?"
Mr Chatfield said the trial wasn't about letting people pay for gaming with their phones, but "about a raft of responsible gaming products around that solution".
The digital wallet product lets people self-exclude, set breaks from gaming including time limits and amount spent, and access responsible gambling tools.
An independent researcher is assessing the trial for the NSW regulator.
"I can assure shareholders that we will continue to make an active and genuine contribution on" responsible gameplay, CEO Trevor Croker said.
"We share the community's legitimate concerns about the impact of excessive gameplay on individuals and families, along with a desire to see the highest levels of industry probity and to stamp out all illegal activity."
Poker machines have been an issue ahead of the NSW election on March 25, with both parties pledging reforms.
Before the meeting, Aristocrat said it would spend another $500m on a share buyback after already spending $478m on buybacks since June.
Shareholders at the meeting elected US gaming executive Bill Lance, a Native American tribal leader with the Chickasaw Nation in Oklahoma, to Aristocrat's board.
As expected, Mr Mayne's bid for a board seat was rejected, with 99.67 per cent of shares cast against the measure.
Mr Croker reaffirmed the company's guidance issued in November that it expects to grow profit over its financial year, which runs through September 30.
