Totalizator Agency Board

Totalizator Agency Board in Australia and New Zealand, universally shortened to TAB, is the name given to monopoly totalisator organisations. All were originally government owned, but many of the Australian ones were privatised in the 1990s.

The TABs have extensive radio networks in Australia, except in Victoria and Tasmania where other parties own equivalent networks. All these networks share the National Racing Service, a continuous broadcast of thoroughbred, harness and greyhound racing. This makes up the bulk of these networks' content. Collectively, these networks own more radio licences than any other group in Australia - however their terrestrial coverage is less than the ABC as they generally have tiny wattages.

The heir of the NSW TAB also owns a national racing subscription TV service. In New Zealand, the TAB owns a near-national free-to-air and national subscription TV service. Most New Zealanders can sit at their analogue TV with a standard aerial and watch racing.

Throughout the mid-2000s, the TABs in Australia were involved in a dispute with Betfair, attempting to deny the organisation access to a license in Australia. The Tasmanian government granted access to a licence in 2005 (with advertising prominent throughout the state). In a media smear campaign, one of the TABs at one point ran advertisements that aimed to undermine Betfair's credibility (due to horses being laid to lose).

The New Zealand TAB was replaced by the New Zealand Racing Board in 2003.

TAB Codes

TAB wagering on thoroughbred, harness and greyhound racing events relies on a series of codes to designate the venue and type of race meeting held on a particular day. Known as TAB codes, punters use these codes to bet on their meeting of choice via TAB outlets and internet betting. The current list of TAB codes used by the Victorian and NSW TABs include:
*MR - Melbourne Races
*SR - Sydney Races
*BR - Brisbane Races
*AR - Adelaide Races
*PR - Provincial Races (primarily for Victorian meetings, except on Saturday used for NSW)
*CR - Country Races (primarily for NSW meetings, except on Saturday used for Victoria)
*WR - Western Australia Races
*YR - New Zealand Races (Also, Tasmanian Races on Sunday)
*TR - Miscellaneous Races (Gold Coast Saturday, New Zealand Sunday, Darwin Races)
*ER - Miscellaneous Races (New Zealand Meeting 2 Saturday)
*LR - Miscellaneous Races (NSW Country 2 Saturday)
*MH - Melbourne Harness
*SH - Sydney Harness
*BH - Brisbane Harness
*AH - Adelaide Harness
*PH - Provincial Harness
*CH - Country Harness
*WH - Western Australian Harness
*YH - New Zealand / Tasmania Harness
*MG - Melbourne Greyhounds
*SG - Sydney Greyhounds
*BG - Brisbane Greyhounds
*AG - Adelaide Greyhounds
*PG - Provincial Greyhounds
*CG - Country Greyhounds
*WG - Western Australian Greyhounds
*LG - New Zealand Greyhounds

ee also

*Tabcorp Holdings

External links

* [http://www.tab.com.au TAB (Victoria/NSW)]
* [http://www.tabonline.com.au UniTAB (Queensland/South Australia)]
* [http://www.ozbet.com.au/ TABOzbet (Western Australia)]
* [http://www.acttab.com.au ACTTAB]
* [http://www.tab.co.nz TAB New Zealand]