The state's pokies hit the spotlight when Federal Group tied its ability to invest in a multimillion-dollar tourism venture to an extension of its exclusive gaming machine licence.

Monash University research Dr Charles Livingstone argued monopoly deals were dangerous, particularly when linked to gambling.

"The problem is when a company has a monopoly like this how can they be properly regulated by a government that has become dependent on the revenue," he said.

"The government is addicted to the additional stream of revenue and is responsible for licensing these things ... governments have a vested interest in poker machines.

"The government doesn't licence heroin and cocaine dealers and put them in every pub and club but they have licensed these machines."

Treasurer Peter Gutwein disputed Dr Livingstone's claims and said any decision on extending Federal's exclusive gaming licence would be guided by Tasmania's needs.

"It is less than 1 per cent of the state's revenues and any decisions will be made with the best interests of Tasmanians at the centre, not be driven by tax revenue," he said.

"Given the 2003 Deed with Federal Group, which is incorporated into the Gaming Control Act, the first decision point for the state government in the deed regarding electronic gaming machines is 2019, and the government is not rushing any position on this noting that the current arrangements are in place until 2023 at the earliest.

"Of course we'll take on feedback from the community."

Department of Treasury and Finance data shows that Tasmanians have lost $194.6 million on poker machine gambling in the past year.