Are more Canadian provinces set to regulate online gambling?

Canada’s regulated iGaming landscape looks set to transform in the coming years as developments across the provinces signal strong, long term growth. In Quebec, the people have elected a government that backs regulated iGaming, while Alberta’s market launch, when adjusted for differences in population-size, is outperforming Ontario.Sitting down on the Safe Bet Show, Ron and Alon Segev, founders of Segev LLP, joined host Martin Lycka for a wide-ranging discussion on the state of play in Canada. Ron began by talking about Quebec’s recent elections. The Parti Québécois (PQ) won a minority government in the province on 5 October, returning to power for the first time since 2014. During the campaign, PQ said it favoured liberalising iGaming in the province, with Ron placing that launch at “two, maybe three years away”. He continued, warning that Quebec is “not like the rest of Canada”. Its legal system runs on a civil code, rather than common law, and its online gambling market remains a government monopoly through Loto-Québec. Establishing a private-operator licensing framework would therefore require significant regulatory and legislative work, making a rapid launch like the one seen in Alberta, unlikely. Despite this, Ron said “the juice is worth the squeeze”. He added that Atlantic Canada is moving too, so “the dominoes may be falling”. Alon looked west, to Alberta, a market which has been live since 13 July and launched more strongly than Ontario did on account sign-ups, revenue and spend per capita. This is despite having a population of around five million against Ontario’s 16 million. He credited lessons learned from the Ontario launch and conditional approvals for early operators. The brothers also explained the court case on whether provinces can share liquidity with jurisdictions outside Canada. Ron said the issue is the “conduct and manage” principle that underpins the federal framework, under which gambling is illegal unless a province conducts and manages it. He guessed the decision would favour Ontario, noting that some opponents’ submissions focused on black-market concerns rather than the constitutional question. Ron also raised concerns about advertising, pointing out that a sports betting ad ran every 90 seconds during the World Cup. He backed proposed guardrails in the draft digital safety legislation, and said an entertainment product should be enjoyed “with some more moderation”. Watch the full episode here.