SPORTS BETTING

WHERE DOES ONTARIO STAND?

Two months in, how is the regulated market stacking up?

BY DAVE BRIGGS

As much as Ontario’s gambling industry has changed in the first two months of an open online market — and, boy, has it changed — it’s nothing compared to what is to come.

THAT 18 OPERATORS are already taking bets in Ontario at the time of writing is astonishing. It also proves the province was good to its word to provide a truly open market.

Yet, that is just the half of it. At least sixteen more operators are already registered with the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario and just need to sign an operating agreement with iGaming Ontario before being allowed to go live. That tally is absent a few notable grey-market operators believed to be transitioning to the regulated market that have yet to appear on the AGCO’s list.

That means before the year is out, Ontario could be home to more than 35 online gaming operators. That gives consumers a world of choice from major global gaming companies such as BetMGM, Caesars, BetRivers, FanDuel, DraftKings, bet365, PointsBet, and many more, down to homegrown Toronto-based eGamingspecialist Rivalry.

Some will thrive and some just survive, and it’s the consumers who have the chance to select the winners. And if operators are learning anything about Ontario, it’s the fact the province and its consumers are very different from other jurisdictions.

WHERE ARE THE REVENUE NUMBERS?

Two months in and still no official figures have been released. About the only thing we have to go on is a projection from Ontario Auditor General Bonnie Lysyk saying the regulated gaming industry will generate around $75 million in revenue for the province over three years. But that’s just an educated guess and others place the revenue figures much higher than that.

Those expecting American-style revenue reports that come at least monthly and sometimes weekly are getting an education in the measured approach of Canadians. The Ontario government traditionally releases figures quarterly. That’s certainly true for how the OLG and other provincial agencies report. So, if that’s the case for an iGaming industry that launched April 4, the best guess is the first quarter will be over at the end of June. That means figures may be out sometime in July.

Compounding the lack of transparency is the fact the province was in an election cycle at this writing (election day was June 2). During an election, the government can’t release any numbers and can’t even say when or even if it will.

NOT A BUNCH OF RUBES

Despite Ontario’s unique approach, newcomers to the market have been quick to discover its long history as a haven for grey-market operators, combined with a sportssavvy population that approaches 15 million — making it the fifth-largest jurisdiction across the combination of U.S. and Canada — means consumers are not gaming rubes.

It’s not easy to win Ontarians over with so-so apps and lukewarm offers. Many have turned to uniquely Canadian brand ambassadors — Wayne Gretzky for BetMGM, the Trailer Park Boys for PointsBet, Dan O’Toole for BetRivers, etc. Meanwhile, some U.S. operators’ occasional failure to recognize such simple things as the fact Ontario is a province and not a state and Canadians have social insurance numbers, not social security numbers have faced the wrath of consumers not happy with operators’ poor understanding of the market. You only have one opportunity to make a first impression, and Canadians are a fiercely patriotic bunch.

On the betting side, Ontarians expect a plethora of options and an easy sign-up process. That hasn’t been

the easiest to provide given the government’s stringent responsible gaming, know-your-customer, and geolocation rules. If there were operator stumbles out of the gate — and there were plenty for the first few days — they mostly came in those three areas.

The government’s insistence that gaming be contained within the province has led to some other problems.

DFS AND ONLINE POKER DOA, SO FAR

Daily Fantasy Sports and online poker have taken big hits, so far, in Ontario’s new regulated market.

When the AGCO classified DFS as “sports betting” it meant pools were confined to the province. Same goes for online poker: it’s Ontario-only, and Ontario-only pools are too small to offer attractive prizes.

That forced giants FanDuel and DraftKings to get out of the DFS game in Ontario in favour of opening online sportsbooks and casinos. It also has led to very limited adoption of the regulated market by the big online poker operators.

The word is that a lobbying effort is trying to get that Ontario-only rule changed for poker and DFS. But, so far, Ontario’s wide-open casino and sports betting market has come at the cost of both DFS and online poker in the province.

ALL THINGS CONSIDERED, IT’S BEEN PRETTY SMOOTH

All that said, it appears to have been a relatively smooth launch for most operators.

In a small experiment I conducted about six weeks after launch, I was able to sign up, deposit, and place a small wager with six of eight sportsbooks I tried in an average of about 20 minutes apiece. Since then, I have successfully added two more to my list. I now have accounts with eight sportsbooks.

That kind of choice is especially beneficial to consumers.

As professional Ontario-based bettor Rob Pizzola told me: “People do need to see the advantages of being able to shop the best lines. I don’t necessarily think people in Ontario realize how lucky they are right now in the sense that there are all these sportsbooks available to them versus some U.S. states where there might be only one or two regulated options. If you’re a losing bettor, you will lose less by line shopping. And if you’re on the edge of being a winning bettor and you can’t get over the hump, just by finding the best price, you’ve made yourself a winning bettor. If you already win and you’re finding the best price, you’re going to win more.”

To have a sustainable gaming industry, that’s what matters most.

Dave Briggs is the Managing Editor of PlayOntario and previously spent more than 25 years as a writer and editor specialising in horse racing.

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