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Ontario report Glacial pace : Where does the rest of Canada stand on igaming ?
by the board , which supported the organisation in the launch of a major campaign to promote the distinctive advantages of lotoquebec . com , including its legality , its absolute integrity , and the management of its profits , which are turned over in full to the community ,” she wrote .
But is there any opportunity for other businesses ? Currently , the government has made little effort to create a licensed regime , but could recent court rulings offer a reason for that to change ?
In 2015 , Quebec became the first Canadian province to start blocking unlicensed online gambling sites . However , this was struck down by the Quebec Court of Appeal last year , with the court ruling that it violates the Telecommunications Act . This year , the Supreme Court of Canada declined to hear the province ’ s appeal .
With the province no longer having a key tool in its arsenal to protect its monopoly , it could consider a more liberal approach instead .
British Columbia Local monopoly the British Columbia Lottery Corporation ( BCLC ) offers online gaming on its PlayNow site . As of 31 March 2022 , there were about 811,000 BC adults registered to play on the site .
In 2020 , the provincial Gaming Policy and Enforcement Branch and the BCLC conducted an online gambling prevalence study , from which the bodies created an action plan on topics including promotion of regulated gambling .
Elements of the plan included marketing campaigns around PlayNow ’ s status as “ BC ’ s only legal gaming website ”. However , no elements of the plan involved any changes to the monopoly model .
While not regulated , the grey market in British Columbia has not been subject to much enforcement activity from authorities . Instead , the Gaming Policy and Enforcement Branch merely “ advise [ s ] players in BC to use caution when playing on non-regulated gambling sites ”.
Following the legalisation of singleevent betting across Canada , the BCLC has made a conscious effort to market its sports betting services further to compete with the unregulated sector , through a number of sponsorship deals .
Alberta Regulator Alberta Gaming , Liquor & Cannabis ( AGLC ) is also the market ’ s only online operator , through PlayAlberta where it offers sports betting and casino gaming , though this site only went live in October 2020 .
In its first six months of activity , PlayAlberta brought in $ 37.0m in revenue .
Alberta is both widely seen as one of the more conservative regions of Canada and is a province with a strong land-based sector made up of First Nations casinos . This may lead
to more opposition to an expanded online channel .
When a group of provincial regulators spoke out against unlicensed businesses circumventing advertising rules to promote their products in Canada , AGLC CEO Kandice Machado spoke of the threat presented by the unlicensed sector .
“ Illegal operators see the Canadian landscape on the whole as ripe for the taking ,” she said . “ They are using misleading advertising to dominate the market , offering countless opportunities for Canadians to – often unknowingly – engage in illegal betting .”
Manitoba As well as its operations in its own province , the BCLC has provided its
Ontario report