Ontario’s Early Move in the Canadian Market Setting a High Standard

It wasn’t long ago that Las Vegas was seen as the gambling capital of the world, with perhaps only Monte Carlo as its legitimate contender, thanks to the class and sheer luxury environment of Monaco. Then, Macao came along. Greatly funded by US gambling firms, monthly revenues have been in the multi-billions of dollars for years. We even reported on a rebound of $2.9 billion in March 2017, and in October 2023, another comeback effort was made to climb back up to $1.99 billion.

Now, however, another contender might be weighing in. The Canadian province of Ontario first swung open its doors to iGaming on April 4, 2022. Since then, the industry has grown rapidly, with more and more platforms getting licenses and more options for Canadian players coming to the fore. Just a year after its launch, the Ontario market made over $1 billion, with online casino gaming being a huge focus. So, how does Ontario’s success compare to elsewhere, and what’s going right in the province?

Ontario’s iGaming continuing to surge

Ontario was the first mover in the Canadian market to create a licensed and regulated online gambling space. On April 26, 2023 – one year after commencing – regulator iGaming Ontario declared total gaming revenues eclipsed $1.48 billion. At the time, 45 different gambling operators were live via 76 sites and, per the report by the CBC, the industry made an economic contribution of around $1.6 billion, $469 million was made in provincial revenue, and $238 million went to the federal government.

Since that initial revenue report covering the first 12 months of regulated iGaming, quarterly statements have been released by iGaming Ontario. In Q1 of 2023/24, gambling revenue rose to $545 million, which marked an increase of more than three times from Q1 in the year prior. During that time, $2 billion was bet on sports, but some $11.6 billion was bet at online casinos, resulting in $392 million in gaming revenue.

Move the lens to Q2 (July to September), and total gaming revenue sunk a little to $540 million. Total bets increased from $14 billion in Q1 to $14.2 billion. It marks a stark increase on 2022/23 figures, and that’s despite the number of sites decreasing to 71 from a slight increase to 47 operators. Once again, casino games were the primary drivers of bets and revenue, seeing $11.9 billion in bets and $407 million in gaming revenue.

All in, casino revenue, per iGaming Ontario’s numbers, accounts for 83.8 percent of Canadian betting online. Down in the United States, the 33 states with licensed and regulated gambling industries also saw most of the revenue come from slots and table games. Of the $16.7 billion generated in Q3 in 2023, per the AGA, 69.5 percent came from slot and table games. However, only $1.5 billion of the total $16.7 billion in revenue came via iGaming.

Over in the UK, where there’s been a regulated online gambling market since 2005, iGaming is dominated by online casino gaming, but not by as much as the North American markets. Instead, the November 2022 industry statistics from the UKGC demonstrate a 60.9 percent siding with online casino games, generating close to $5 billion that year - $3.8 of which came from online slots. So, how has the Canadian market so rapidly taken to online casino gaming over sports betting?

Competition quickly created a strong market

The key to any online entertainment market improving and becoming as user-friendly as possible is competition. In the realm of online streaming, Netflix was a dominant force and then found the need to step up its production slate as more platforms got involved. Netflix even started to produce award-worthy films like Roma in 2018. Competition is always good for the customers and for innovation, and in iGaming, battlegrounds where platforms compete for the best ratings were swiftly created.

These battlegrounds are the massive review sites. Being such a new industry, intrigued would-be casino players and bettors gravitate to platforms that have already done all of the research for them. On https://casinobonusca.com/, the curated casino lists are assembled by industry experts, updated with new casinos, and create specialized lists and filters for players.

So, if a player wants to experience the top slots or even the best high-quality live dealer games, they can go to the one site to find lists clearly showing the top casinos to visit. However, it’s not just about presenting answers. The in-depth learning material aims to make smarter casino players faster. This way, more gravitate to the best offerings, increasing the competition at the very top of the industry.

Having this kind of expertise and easy-to-use platform has helped to make iGaming in Ontario even more accessible, especially when it comes to casino gaming. This helps to explain the heavy leaning towards such games.

- B.E. Delmer, Gambling911.com