Ontario Still Struggling with Illegal Online Gambling Market
It has been three years since Ontario launched its regulated online gambling market, yet illegal operators are still successfully attracting a large number of players.
LISTEN TO THIS ARTICLE:This was the finding of a new IPSOS study commissioned by the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) and iGaming Ontario. The survey found that 83.7% of Ontarians who gamble online use regulated platforms. However, this still leaves a large percentage playing on the black-market. The study interviewed 2,003 residents over the age of 19 who had placed real money bets online in the past three months.
Ontario’s online casino market requires private sector operators to register with AGCO and contract with iGaming Ontario. Currently, the province has 49 licensed operators and 84 gaming sites, competing with PROLINE, the online gaming platform operated by the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation (OLG).
Players Increasingly Visiting Illegal Sites
Before the regulated market launched in April 2022, an estimated 70% of online gambling happened through unregulated sites. A study last year showed 86.4% of players were using legal options, which means that there has been a slight drop in channelization. The latest study found that 16.3% of players now exclusively use illegal sites, up from 13.6% the previous year. Furthemrore, 20.2% of those who gamble on regulated sites also still wager on illegal platforms.
iGaming Ontario reported CAD $82.7 billion in bets and CAD $3.2 billion in gross gaming revenue for the 2024-25 fiscal year, increases of 31% and 32%, respectively.
While 84% channelization is a slight decline over the previous year, it remains competitive with global leading jurisdictions like the United Kingdom, Sweden, Denmark and Spain. The Canadian marketplace is hyper competitive, with many unregulated options available to the public. Ontario will need to remain vigilant and keep cost of compliance reasonable so that operators can continue to offer entertainment choices that can compete with the illegal market.
More Regulation News
AGCO Monitoring Unlicensed Sites
Following the AGCO’s 2022 deadline for grey market operators to join the regulated sector, the province stopped distinguishing between grey and black-market sites.
In a statement, the AGCO said that the survey “underscores” that a “notable amount” of gambling takes place on unregulated sites. It warned players that these sites do not offer any forms of player protection. The statement added that the AGCO’s compliance team monitors play at unlicensed sites and added that, “The AGCO is continuing to explore additional opportunities to further minimize unregulated online gaming activity in Ontario.”
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