Gaming News Canada

The conversation on research into the Canadian gambling industry continued on the latest episode of the Gaming News Canada Show presented by Bede Gaming.Dr. Carrie Shaw, Associate Professor in Psychology at the University of Alberta and Research Chair of the Alberta Gambling Research Institute, was Steve McAllister’s guest for a segment on AGRI’s history and the work being done. McAllister asked Shaw about the recently released findings from a study into the Canadian Provincial Channelization of Online Gambling in 2025 and why the researchers were denied access to information about the Ontario market.Jessica Welman, Deputy Director of Doura-Schawohl Consulting and the former Editor-in-Chief for SBC Americas, made her return to the GNCS. Among the topics do jour were her work these days, the continuing controversy around advertising by gambling operators in North America, the current state of the gambling industry in the U.S., and other matters.

On a new episode of the Gaming News Canada Show presented by Bede Gaming, Dr. Michael Naraine joins host Steve McAllister to continue the conversation they had for last week’s newsletter regarding a Toronto Star investigation into research commissioned by iGaming Ontario that wasn’t released.Naraine, a professor in the sports management program at Brock University and a member of the Institute on Sports Wagering and Gaming at San Diego State University, expanded on his reaction to Brendan Kennedy’s reporting in The Star, including criticism of iGaming Ontario’s decision to tender the research project five years ago and eventually award it to the Responsible Gambling Council.He also talked about the creation of the Alberta Gambling Research Institute more than 25 years ago and the work done by AGRI, including new research about problem gambling rates in Ontario since the launch of the province’s regulated sports betting and igaming market. Naraine believes Ontario should exploit the brainpower at universities across the province to create its own institute , and also called on the provincial government to increase the tax rate on regulated operators to help fund research around problem gambling.

On a new episode of the Gaming News Canada Show presented by Bede Gaming, host Steve McAllister welcomed back long-time sports media/business/tech entrepreneur, executive and advisor Eric Herd.These days the Head of Global Media & Emerging Markets at Yieldmo, Herd talked about his current role and the work his company is doing with professional sports teams. Most of his conversation, however, was focused on the ongoing relationship between sports betting operators and media companies, the For Sale sign being placed on sports betting content company SportsGrid, the shutting down of the FanDuel Sports Network and a recent restructuring of Vegas Sports and Information Network (VSiN).McAllister also asked Herd for his thoughts on the sports rights landscape that now includes streaming companies (i.e. Netflix), the shifting watching habits of sports fans, and more.

Given the daily flurry of news, notes and quotes around the Canadian gaming industry, Steve McAllister brought back his media colleagues Geoff Zochodne (Covers) and Tom Nightingale (Canadian Gaming Business/SBC Americas) for an extended episode of the Gaming News Canada Show presented by Bede Gaming.Among the stream of topics covered:A postmortem on a busy Global Gaming Expo, including the piling on by the American Gaming Association and others against prediction markets over the three days of panels, fireside chats and speeches at the Las Vegas conference.The latest on Alberta’s regulated market, including the comments of Service Alberta/Red Tape Reduction Minister Dale Nally on how many operators will be up and running (legally) by October 13, what the province can do when it comes to unlicensed operators moving forward, a federal bill to create guardrails around sports betting advertising, and possibly exploring the use of cryptocurrency in the gaming space.Comments by AGCO boss Dr. Karin Schnarr at G2E about Ontario also seeking to deal more harshly with unlicensed operators.The results from the Quebec provincial election and what that may mean for regulated gambling in La Belle Province.The ongoing discussion around sports betting and igaming advertising by national TV networks and most notably TSN and Sportsnet.Nightingale’s interview last week with Molly Cormier on the rebranding of the Canadian Lottery Coalition to the Canadian Alliance for Regulated Gaming and what that means. And, a lengthy final segment on last week’s Supreme Court of Canada appeal hearing with some provincial lottery and gaming corporations pushing back against Ontario’s wishes for cross-borders gaming.

Between trips to Las Vegas for the BSA/AML Gaming Conference and this week’s Global Gaming Expo, Derek Ramm made his return to the Gaming News Canada Show presented by Bede Gaming.Ramm, the Global Head of Advisory Services for Kinectify and a member of the Board of Directors for the Canadian Gaming Association, has been a leading voice for an overhaul of anti-money laundering rules and regulations in the Canadian gambling industry with a special focus on online gaming. He spoke with host Steve McAllister about recent monetary penaltieslevied by the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada (FINTRAC) against the Nova Scotia Gaming Corporation and New Brunswick Gaming Corporation. Ramm sits on an AML working group in the CGA and spoke about the conversations the association has had with the federal government. We also asked the Kinectify exec why AML programs have yet to be put in place by gaming regulators in both Ontario and Alberta, and why he believes revised AML measures matter so much.Finally, he spoke about what he and his colleagues at Kinectify are seeing with the data being collected around the industry these days.

On a new episode of the Gaming News Canada Show presented by Bede Gaming, mkdodo Commercial Director Will Whitehead spoke with host Steve McAllister on the UK company’s continued expansion into North America – including Alberta – introduction of new products and other topics. Whitehead, who joined mkodo as an account executive in 2013 and has been in the commercial director’s role for almost five years, talked about the retirement of Stuart Godfree this summer and the lessons learned from the company’s co-founder and long-time managing director. The conversation with McAllister included the introduction of mkodo’s GeoLocs product into Alberta over the summer and its presence in the Ontario market that includes collaborating with Bede Gaming to support OLG’s igaming business. There’s also a segment on mkodo’s adoption of new tools, including Fraud Shieldand the challenges and opportunities around the demand for products beyond geolocation in today’s regulated gaming industry. Whitehead also addressed mkodo’s expansion strategy for the North American regulated market.