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Ontario report Ontario igaming : early takeaways
ONTARIO iGAMING : EARLY TAKEAWAYS
With the first regulated igaming market to open to non-monopoly operators launching in a province that is home to nearly 40 % of the Canadian population , Ontario was always going to be an enticing prospect . Geoffrey Smorong provides analysis of the first few months
ON 4 APRIL , the first Canadian province went live with a regulated igaming market for private operators , as Ontario officially opened its doors to non-government operated online casinos and sportsbooks .
Ontario boasts a population of nearly 15 million , making it one of the largest new North American markets for regulated online gaming . The igaming market will likely be a sizeable one financially , as it ’ s expected to generate gross revenues of CA $ 989m (£ 628.3m /$ 788.8m /€ 734.7m ) by the end of this year and CA $ 1.86bn by 2026 , according to Vixio .
Six months have now passed , making this the ideal time to assess how the launch of the expanded igaming market in Ontario has gone .
EARLY ENGAGEMENT WITH THE MARKET The Ontario igaming market has seen significant engagement thus far , with 24 operators available across 42 brands licensed by the provincial regulator , the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario ( AGCO ), and its ‘ conduct and manage ’ entity , iGaming Ontario ( iGO ). On top of that , there are more than 70 operators looking to obtain a licence , according to a recent panel conducted by digital identity specialists GBG with members from iGO . The regulator has also announced that they won ’ t be capping the number of licences .
With all the enthusiasm surrounding the market , many large US operators have extended their affiliate marketing programmes into Ontario after the AGCO and iGO regulations were put into place . Among this number are major brands such as FanDuel , PointsBet , DraftKings and Bet365 .
Additionally , the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation ( OLG ), the provincial lottery ( and , before April , the only regulated Ontarian igaming operator ), recently launched its affiliate programme in the province , making it the first provincial lottery to launch an affiliate channel in Canada . These are exciting developments for affiliates
Ontario Report