Alberta opens igaming registrations
The AGLC has published the requirements for online gaming, setting out the key rules for operators and service providers.
Canada.- The province of Alberta has officially opened igaming registrations for interested operators and service providers. The Alberta Gaming, Liquor and Cannabis (AGLC) published the “Standards and Requirements for Internet Gaming”, outlining the regulatory framework for the new market.
The AGLC began accepting registration applications following the approval of amendments to the Gaming, Liquor and Cannabis Regulation. Market entry involves a two-step process: applicants must first register with the AGLC for regulatory oversight before engaging with the Alberta iGaming Corporation (AiGC) to finalise commercial contracts. The process also requires integration with the AGLC’s centralised self-exclusion programme.
Dale Nally, Service Alberta minister, said in an interview with the Edmonton Journal that the province represents an attractive market. Nally said: “We’re confident that the operators are going to come to this place to participate in a safer ecosystem for gambling, and we’re confident that Albertans are going to respond to that as well.
“We know we’re not going to get 100 per cent of Albertans participating in the legal space, but we want to get as many of them as possible, because we know it’s going to be a safer place for them to make online bets.”
Nally added that he expects operators to enter the market within a few months. Currently, PlayAlberta remains the only regulated online gambling website in the province.
In an interview in August, Larry Spagnolo, AGLC board chair, said: “AGLC continues to work with the Alberta Government as we approach an open igaming market. We look forward to developing the next steps that appeal to Albertans. As AGLC will act as the regulator of the igaming market, Play Alberta will continue to be operated as an arms-length igaming platform, maintaining AGLC’s regulatory approach to be evenly applied for all future online gambling operators.”
