Alberta is putting the pieces in location to develop its own Ontario-like system for online sports wagering and internet gambling establishment gambling.

The Western Canadian province would be the first to follow Ontario's example, and it might do so by next year, according to some in the betting industry. Bruce Caughill, managing director for Canada at BetRivers, had this to say during a panel at last week's SBC Summit North America conference in New Jersey.

It's been interesting to see it unfold, due to the fact that there is a desire in the Alberta federal government to make this take place yesterday, however I believe they're starting to understand that to make things occur even rapidly spends some time.

Laying a legislative foundation

Caughill noted legislation was tabled last month in Alberta that could permit the provincial federal government to produce a different entity to "conduct and handle" online gaming. That entity would remain in addition to the provincially owned Alberta Gaming, Liquor & Cannabis Commission, or AGLC.

AGLC is presently the only authorized iGaming operator in Alberta by means of its Play Alberta platform. If Alberta were to adopt an Ontario-like system, though, AGLC might be simply among many regulated operators in the province, which has a population size comparable to that of Kentucky and Oregon. Ontario developed an extra "conduct and manage" company of its own, iGaming Ontario, before releasing its competitive market for online gaming.

Bill 16, the legislation containing the new powers to "carry out and handle," the legal term for controlling gaming in Canada, was gone by a committee of the entire in the Alberta legislature on Tuesday.

Caughill said he anticipates provincial lawmakers to authorize it "shortly," which would put 2025 in play for a launch of a competitive iGaming market in the province.

Secondly, there appears to be every indication that they're just going to white label the Ontario licensing routine. That's sort of the hope that you can transition right into that design if you're already in Ontario.

Confidence from the courts

Ontario's iGaming market launched in April 2022 and now includes almost 50 operators, consisting of the provincial lotto, in addition to more than 1.3 million active player accounts. The regulative structure was also reinforced today by an Ontario court dismissing a legal obstacle of the province's online betting plan.