After the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) agreed to issue gaming licenses to three companies that operate their own services, punters across the Canadian state will soon have the choice of nine new casino and betting sites to enjoy.
The licenses were granted to Apollo Entertainment (for seven individual sites), plus Betsson parent company GWN and Pala Interactive and they mean that the three companies will be able to offer what the AGCO call “games of chance” across Ontario over the next 12-months.
The seven sites operated by Apollo that will be playable within Ontario are as follows:
- Zodiac Casino
- Yukon Gold Casino
- Luxury Casino
- Grand Mondial Casino
- Casino Classic
- Captain-Cooks Casino
- Golden Tiger Casino
And also available will be Palo Interactive’s On.canplaycasino.com and GWN’s Ot.betsafe.com.
Long Road To Opening In Ontario
In a state that was solely offering lottery games for many years, Ontario’s decision to become a regulated market for casino and other forms of iGaming was a slow and often tortuous process for companies seeking to expand into the Canadian market.
After deciding to end the monopoly of the lottery in Ontario back in 2019, it took a further three years before the Ontario market officially opened for licensed operators on April 4th this year.
Part of the delay was the passing of legislation that would establish the key licensing regime within the state, to ensure that the state met regulations within Canada.
Casino Gaming Focus But Ontario Offers More Including Esports
While these nine new sites tend to have an online casino gaming focus, it is fair to say that natives in Ontario do have more betting options open to them too, especially those with an interest in the sports betting and esports industry.
With betting sites licensed in the province like Betway, you can now enjoy Ontario esports betting on sites like Rivalry too.
Many sites like Rivalry and Betsafe esports are sites that offer an extensive range of betting options including sports betting, casino gaming and esports.
And of course, with a significant number of sites now coming online, natives of Ontario will have a massive choice of different options to consider when they fancy a wager.
Great First Quarter Start For The Province
Having gone live back in April, the first quarter performance for the online gaming industry in Ontario has delivered very promising results.
iGaming Ontario released its financial report for that first quarter at the end of August which showed gross gambling revenue of CA$162 million.
That was generated from stakes worth around £4.07bn, all from the first quarter of operation.
The chair of iGaming Ontario, Dave Forestell, was buoyant with the figures commenting:
“Our aim is to be the best gaming jurisdiction in the world and these positive results are an early sign that we’re on our way.”
“With competitive revenue share rate and low barriers to entry, Ontario is an attractive igaming market with a strong player base.”
Furthermore the addition of sites such as those announced recently, mean that the market is only likely to grow in size and strength as it matures over the next few years.
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