Thursday July 21st saw Nova Scotia launch its online casino industry through the Atlantic Lottery Corporation’s (ALC) website.
The launch sees slots, table games and video poker added to the products and services available at the ALC website with Nova Scotia becoming the second Canadian province, alongside New Brunswick, where the company offers iGaming.
Speaking to the press of the launch Finance Minister Allan MacMaster said:
“We didn’t want to make a big announcement about this. We’re not trying to really promote it. We just wanted to put it out there. It’s up and running now and it’s there for people who want to play.”
According to MacMaster, the decision to launch the service was made following several months of discussion between lawmakers and supporters backed by the ALC. During those discussions, he was made aware of how prevalent online gambling had become in the province noting that:
“People are gaming on sites quite literally from just about anywhere in the world. There’s no guarantee of payouts and there’s also, you know, very little in the way of protections for people who, you know, may become addicted to them and have other problems with them.”
The ALC’s casino gaming is seen as a reputable alternative to international websites and will allow players to use ‘play wise’ tools that will help a player limit their spending and minimize losses.
A spokesperson for the Finance Department said the provincial gaming corporation expects the website to generate CAD$10 million ($7.8/€7.6 million) during its first year. However, MacMaster stated that finances were not a deciding factor in the launch.
“What really drove it was the fact that it’s out there,” he said. “It exists without us and if we have a presence, well at least maybe we can protect people and recoup some of the money that’s leaving our province.”
The ALC’s other iGaming market, New Brunswick launched in 2020 and generated CAD$7.3 million ($5.7/€5.5 million) in its first year of operation. ALC had also managed to get Prince Edward Island on board but the local government has yet to set an official launch date.
An experienced iGaming commentator and analyst based in New York City - Jenny reports on regulation and gambling industry news and events.