How Has the Online Casino Industry Evolved in Canada?
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August 27, this year, marked an important date in the Canadian online gambling industry. The federal government legalized single sports betting after years of opposition. The government legalized the sector because it wants to divert the $14B Canadian spend on black market sportsbooks to legal bookmakers.
This money doesn’t include the amount spent on online casino games like slots, poker and roulette. That’s alright. This article delves more on the casino side of Canada’s online gambling industry. How did it evolve so fast?
Legalized at a Provincial Level
Online casinos fall under provincial governance. And presently, provinces have the power to regulate sports betting as well. British Columbia was the first province to permit online casinos in 2004.
Quebec, Manitoba and Ontario later followed, legalizing both online slots and table games like poker. In the Maritime provinces, online casinos fall under the jurisdiction of the Atlantic Lottery Corp.
For a long time, it provided online bingo and lottery tickets but not slots and blackjack. However, things are changing. Nova Scotia sanctioned online casino games earlier this year. More provinces in the East Coast have plans to expand their gambling products. And the Atlantic Lottery Corp is preparing for the expansion with a new website.
Wider Acceptance
Fifteen years ago, the online casino industry in Canada was small for a valid reason. People weren’t sure whether it was legal or not. With time, legal experts explained the industry is a legal grey area.
You can gamble at offshore casinos without breaking Canadian laws. However, online casinos can’t set up shop in the country. Otherwise, they would risk legal action. Due to that, the best online casinos in Canada operate in countries like Malta, the UK and Curacao—regions that license and regulate online casinos.
Some great examples of top online casinos in Canada include Royal Panda, Jackpot City, Mega Slot and ComeOn casino. Although the sites are licensed and safe, it’s in your best interests to compare their games, bonuses, and payment methods. That way, you can find the right casino for you.
Mobile Gaming
Before 2010, many Canadian casino players gambled through their home computers. Today, over 50% of gamblers play slots and card games through their mobile devices. They prefer their iPhones and Android smartphones because they’re more convenient.
Think about it. If you’re on the bus going back home, chances are you will have your phone in your pocket and not your laptop. If you want to play jackpot games, then your mobile device will provide more convenience.
Besides convenience, mobile casinos are up to par with desktop sites in performance. They’re fast, jam-packed with games and reliable. There isn’t a thing you could do on your laptop you can’t do on your smartphone, at least when it comes to gambling.
Mobile gaming in Canada is growing so fast that most people who’ve won large amounts of money at casinos did so through their phones. A case in point is the Canuck who won $7.5M from the Mega Moolah jackpot game.
Transparent and Secure
Before countries around the world began regulating casino sites, the industry was murky. You couldn’t tell a genuine company from fraud. Security wise, not every casino secured its data. Some of them even shared customers’ data.
Over time, the industry evolved to become more secure and transparent. Today, every genuine casino has a license and a set of security measures like SSL encryption, web firewalls, 2-Factor Authentication and password protection.
Increased security and transparency haven’t just legitimized the casino sector. They gave Canadians more reasons to gamble online. People know their data and money is safe. What’s more, they can read a company’s policies to further verify its security.
In case you’re wondering, transparency in the casino sector is crucial because it helps build trust with operators. It ensures players know what they’re getting into before they give out their personal information, time and money to a casino.
High-Paying Games
Gambling in Canada used to be about simple slots from small studios in North America. But once the market took an interest in offshore casinos, the quality of games at Canadian casinos improved drastically.
Today, no one in Canada has to play a poor-paying casino game. That’s because they have a wide array of high-quality games to play. Think of fan favorites like Starburst, Gonzo’s Quest, Book of Dead and Thunderstruck II.
Then there are live casino games, from poker to blackjack. The beauty of it all is that the quality of games keeps improving. The graphics, bonus features, soundtracks and themes used five years ago have been advanced.
Owing to that backdrop, Canadians can even gamble online professionally. It’s a risky job not recommended to most people. But the quality of online casino services has improved so much that you never have to visit a land-based casino.
Sweet Bonuses and Promotions
Some people dislike casino bonuses. And you can’t really blame them. Bonuses haven’t always been the generous, fair promotions they are today. There was a time fraudulent operators would use bonuses to scam people.
Those days are gone. Nowadays, casinos use bonuses as marketing tools or tokens to promote loyalty. They might not give you thousands of dollars. But they give out promotions with fair policies.
Fair terms are essential because they ensure you can cash out your bonus winnings without fulfilling so many terms and conditions. It’s also important to find a casino with loads of rewards. That way, you have plenty of bonus deals every now and then.
Personalization
Personalization describes the concept of customizing products or services to suit someone’s requirements. In the Canadian casino space, it involves supporting the CAD, local banks and languages.
It goes further into involving games and bonuses. At personalized casinos, you can favorite slots and card games. Importantly, the casino gives you bonuses according to your tastes. In other words, personalization is about providing the best experience to each player.
Personalization has profound benefits. Importantly, it has helped increase the number of casino players in the country because people love operators that treat them right.
