Alberta Allocates $1 Million to Explore Open Online Gambling Market

Alberta is slowly but surely moving towards becoming the next province in Canada to launch an open online gambling market. Last week, the province announced a budget of $1 million allocated towards reviewing its online gambling structure. Province officials are currently exploring the potential of employing an Ontario-like online gambling market in Alberta.

The statement came from the government as part of their 2024 budget announcement. A section of the spending plan worth more than $70 billion included a brief section dedicated to the review. It states that $1 million in the 2024-25 budget will go towards supporting the Gaming, Liquor and Cannabis Act, aiming to identify ways to contribute toward the community and charity facilities in Alberta.

Written by Bonnie Gjurovska 3 minute read
alberta explores open online gambling market

Open and Regulated Online Casinos in Alberta Begin to Materialise

Within a few short weeks, the process to bring an open and regulated online gambling market to Alberta has started to materialize. Even though nothing concrete has occurred yet, the plan is further than it was a month ago. The process started in February already when Nally attended the London ICE gambling conference. The Alberta Minister met with various heavy hitters in the industry, including Doug Downey, the Ontario Attorney General. Bouncing ideas around, Downey took the lead in educating Nally about what the best Canadian online casinos and sportsbetting sites in Ontario have brought to the table since April 2022.

Nally showed interest in picking Downey's brain, which stems from receiving a mandate letter from Danielle Smith, the Alberta Premier, last July. Smith expects Nally to finalize Alberta's online gambling strategy which forms part of the 10 initiatives that she expects Nally to deliver on. The initiative includes working together with indigenous partners, indigenous and provincial revenue generation, and developing and implementing the online gambling strategy in Alberta, focusing on responsible gambling.

Potential of Online Gambling in Alberta Intrigues Operators

Not shy to show interest, PointsBet Canada vocalised joining the online gambling market in Alberta. The operator based in Australia included a section named Canada Business Review in its first-half 2024 financial performance report. The slide titled Canada Opportunity featured in the presentation included a map of Canada.

British Columbia is highlighted in red, while Alberta and Ontario are blue. An accompanying blurb states that Ontario accounts for 38% of the population in Canada. Expanding to BC and Alberta would respectively add 12% and 14%. Together, the three provinces account for 64% of the entire population in the country.

According to projections by PointsBet, Alberta will add 11% towards the net gambling revenue of the nation. 12% by BC and 53% by Ontario, which totals 76% of the NGR of Canada. The desire for Alberta to join Ontario continues to grow, and it is not only within the province. Nally agrees with the views of industry players that the ideal iGaming destination is the Western region.

The office of the minister shared back in February that Alberta could be the leading iGaming hub with an emphasis on a free market and openness. Adding streamlined regulations, low corporate taxes, and high disposable incomes. Such conditions allow Alberta to establish itself as a premier iGaming destination.

PlayAlberta vs International Online Casino

Upholding the best practices within the local registration and licensing setup, PlayAlberta Casino is a new and exciting brand residents can trust. Residents play the best games from premier software developers and claim bonuses to enhance their gaming sessions. However, top international online casino sites still offer advantages.

  • Promotions and Bonuses - Developed to encourage responsible gambling, PlayAlberta can be a little conservative in terms of bonuses and promotions. The best international casino sites, for example, offer bonus packages with high values that often include no deposit bonuses, free spins, and VIP bonus rewards.
  • Software Providers - Play Alberta only offers games from a handful of top software providers. However, international online casinos present players with a huge game variety from more than 50 software providers. This gives Canadians access to incredible online slots, table games, live dealer titles, video poker, and specialty games.
  • Progressive Jackpots - The PlayAlberta site currently offers no progressive jackpots, therefore, residents need to visit international sites to play jackpots with massive payout potentials, contributed to via multiple wagers. If you are searching for a wide variety of progressive jackpot titles to win a life-changing sum of money ,we highly recommend that you register with Jackpot City Casino.
  • Loyalty Rewards - While PlayAlberta does offer loyalty benefits, it pales in comparison when you compare it to the Casino Rewards Group where you can unlock 6 different loyalty levels, each offering unique perks that you'll struggle to beat anywhere else. This includes higher deposit limits, faster payouts, birthday bonuses, exclusive getaways, jackpot draws, and more.

PlayAlberta is a licensed and regulated site presenting account holders with great benefits such as free play in games, convenient transactions, deposit bonuses, free spins, and comp points unlocking additional perks and benefits. However, international online casino sites offer a bigger variety of payment options, a larger selection of casino games, and better loyalty benefits. It's safe to say that the recommendations we provide at Top 10 Casinos Canada are far more superior in 2024.

 Bonnie Gjurovska
Written by
Bonnie Gjurovska Managing Editor

With more than 5 years of experience in the Canadian online gambling industry, Bonnie Gjurovska is particularly passionate about locating the most generous promotions and bonuses, evaluating software providers, testing the latest games, and reviewing online casinos. This makes her the ideal candidate to guide players in Canada in the right direction while overseeing the publication of content on Top10Casinos.ca.

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