The Quebec Online Gaming Coalition has expressed its concern that vulnerable people are being put at risk in the province and that more than $300 million in tax revenue is being lost to the government.
During the pre-budget discussions in Quebec, the Online Gaming Coalition submitted a paper to the Ministry of Finance, setting out that on-line gaming that is not regulated results in the harming of vulnerable people and annual loss of over $300 million in tax revenues to the Province of Quebec.
On Monday, the coalition which consists of Bet99, DraftKings, Flutter, Entain, Apricot Investments, Betway, Games Global, and Rush Street, published a statement urging Quebec to legalize the regulated online gambling market.
At present, Loto-Qubec is the only legal online gambling operator in the province. The coalition claims that, in fact, this situation forces Quebec residents to use unregulated websites that do not offer any protection, and at the same time, the government is losing tax revenue.
Ariane Gauthier, spokesperson for the coalition said:
Why limit the regulation of online gaming to Loto-Québec sites alone, when the offering available on the Internet is much broader? Quebec could very well apply the same rules to private online gaming platforms, whether for advertising, age verification, or accountability, for example. This would channel the vast majority of online gaming into a stable and regulated environment, which is desirable for everyone.
The coalition presented four recommendations to Québec’s Ministry of Finance:
- Assign an independent regulator to oversee all online gaming operators, public and private, including Loto-Québec.
- Create Québec-specific standards for online gaming in partnership with industry stakeholders.
- Set clear criteria for operating licenses and establish revenue-sharing agreements with the province.
- Dedicate a share of private online gaming revenue to community support and prevention programs.
Meanwhile, Alberta is moving forward with its plans to launch a regulated online gambling market.
On the one hand, Quebec, where Loto-Quebec is against the idea of opening the market, On the other hand, Play Alberta, the only legal operator in the province, is saying that it is ready for competition.
Last week, Geoff Zochodne of Covers talked to Carly Curran, who is the acting vice-president of the Alberta Gaming, Liquor and Cannabis Commission that operates Play Alberta. Curran told Zochodne that the AGLC is prepared to face whatever may come their way.
Curran was talking about Super Bowl betting and said Play Alberta expected it to be the most popular betting event of the year since it offered almost twice as many betting markets for the big game as last year.
Curran said:
Regardless of the market opening, we’re always striving to be more innovative with our offerings.
Play Alberta “generated $275 million in net sales for the 2024-25 fiscal year, a $35 million increase from last year,” and the entire revenue was turned back to the province, according to Zochodne.
With regards to the open market, Zochodne and others have highlighted that PointsBet has officially asked for a license to offer online sports betting and casinos in Alberta. Simply put, this means that Alberta customers may now pre-register with PointsBet or any other operator that obtains a license in the province.
Last week Tom Nightingale of Canadian Gaming Business tweeted that Adam Greenblatt, BetMGM’s CEO, stated Alberta will be its first online casino since 2022, after the province’s approval of its open market. A BetMGM LinkedIn post during this week that had been spotted by us is advertising three new positions for Alberta.
This is the start of the customer acquisition season in Alberta which is expected to be launched later this year and probably before the NFL season starts. However, GNCS guest Adam Chernoff suggested that the open market might be just in time for the Calgary Stampede.
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