Good seats still available for Canadian Gaming Association's one-year anniversary rendezvous
Good seats still available for Canadian Gaming Association's one-year anniversary rendezvous
The sports betting and igaming industry will gather in seven days to raise a toast to - and talk about - the opening year of Ontario's competitive, regulated marketplace.
May the 4th see you at the CGA celebration
If you haven’t yet registered for the Canadian Gaming Association’s Ontario’s iGaming Market Turns 1! Assembly on the shores of Lake Ontario, we suggest putting the second espresso shot on hold and booking your ducat for next Tuesday’s proceedings.
CGA president and CEO Paul Burns told Gaming News Canada yesterday that the 125 spots haven’t been filled for the April 4 gathering at the Toronto Region Board of Trade to mark Year 1 of the regulated sports betting and igaming industry in Ontario. A series of panels throughout the day will focus on responsible gambling and technology, advertising as a shared responsibility, and guiding and educating customers.
The august group of speakers include Martha Otton (iGaming Ontario), Dave Phillips (the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario), Dave Pridmore (OLG), Shelley White (Responsible Gambling Council), Brent McCurdy (AGCO), Catherine MacLeod (ThinkTV), Dale Hooper (FanDuel Canada), Scott Woodgate (BetMGM), David Thomson (NFL Canada), JD McNamara (Better Collective), Andrew Garven (Covers) , Nic Sulsky (PointsBet Canada), Scott Vanderwel (PointsBet Canada), Benjie Levy (Penn Ineractive/theScore, and Jeff Harris (Deloitte). The province’s Attorney General, Doug Downey, is scheduled to put a bow on the proceedings.
“We’ll be having conversations on things that are topical and still of concern around the industry,” Burns said yesterday. “We’ll hear from the operators, who will talk about their experiences. We’ll mark the occasion (of the first anniversary), and talk about what’s occurred.
GNC will provide coverage throughout the day on Twitter (@GamingNewsCA), and we’ll go deeper into the day in the April 6 newsletter.
Q and A with Coolbet’s Canadian country manager
Coolbet officially took leave of the Ontario market last week, and once he had a chance to catch his breath, Canadian country manager Pat Gregoire provided answers to a trio of questions from your congenial chronicler.
GNC: Why is Coolbet exiting Ontario?
PG: The company is focused on maximizing profitability and investing capital and resources into only the highest return regions. Unfortunately, given the competitive nature of the market and the heightened promotional environment we didn’t see a near-term to profitability so we are reallocating our resources elsewhere.
GNC: Will Coolbet remain available in other parts of Canada?
PG: Yes, Coolbet.com remains available in Canada, excluding Ontario.
GNC: Would Coolbet ever return to Ontario?
PG: Coolbet will continue to evaluate regulated market opportunities that present the most attractive returns.
Looking back and ahead Thursday on LinkedIn Audio
We’ll say our goodbyes to March 2023 a day early when we get together Thursday afternoon on LinkedIn Audio at 2 ET for a new edition of the Gaming News Canada Show. Canadian Gaming Association head honcho Paul Burns will join regular guests Amanda Brewer (Kindred Group), Will Hill (Sightline Payments) and Kris Abbott (Betano), to look back at the year that’s been in the Ontario gaming business on the eve of next week’s one-year anniversary of the province’s open and regulated sports betting and igaming industry.
Last week, SBC Americas journalist Jessica Welman appeared on the GNC Show for a wide-ranging discussion on what’s happening south of the border, including the ongoing tug of war for regulated igaming to be accepted by states across the U.S. and an update on which states are best positioned to legalize online sports betting next. Welman also provided some highlights from the first two weeks of the Massachusetts market.
Finally, casino content creator Kelly Koffler and CDC Gaming Reports journalist Rege Behe hopped on board to walk our listeners through the growth of social media influencers in the gaming space.
The Company Line - Paramount Commerce
This week, the TCL bell tolls for Canadian Gaming Association member Paramount Commerce.
Birthdate: 2003
Home Base: Toronto
Founders: Vincent O’Meara is a co-founder and the current chair of the board.
Raison D’Etre: Paramount Commerce is a financial technology company that provides real-time, bank account-level data intelligence and bank-verified processing to ecommerce merchants, with a particular expertise in online sports betting and igaming. Its clients include DraftKings, theScore, Bet365 and Caesars. The company’s One-click payment was featured last month by iGamingBusiness.com.
If you’d like to have your business featured in The Company Line, please drop us an email (steve@theparleh.com).
Follow us @GamingNewsCA on Twitter for the latest news on the sports betting and gaming industry. For our daily picks and other sports video content, visit @Homestand. If you’d like to appear on our Thursday afternoon get-together at LinkedIn Audio, please let us know.
Gaming News Canada has advertising and sponsorship opportunities with our twice-weekly newsletters, LinkedIn Audio, and the Gaming News Canada Show podcast. If you want to reach a highly engaged audience in the space, please email steve@theparleh.com for more information.