Liam Blackley from Casino.ca on How Ontario’s Online Casino Market Is Redefining Player Trust

Ontario became the first province in Canada to begin issuing licenses for online casinos, paving the way for a regulated iGaming market that prioritizes player protection, transparency, and responsible gambling. 

Local expert Liam Blackley explains how provincial regulations help protect players and build trust in the industry and how review sites like Casino.ca serve an important role in connecting players with a curated selection of online casinos across Ontario. By providing insights, reviews, and information on licensed platforms, Casino.ca helps players navigate the evolving market and make more informed decisions about where to play.

Affiverse Media: Thanks for speaking with us, Liam. What is your expertise in the Ontario iGaming market?

Liam: I research and write regulatory guides for Casino.ca to help introduce new players to the market, as well as publishing reviews for individual online casino sites. I’ve been working in the iGaming industry for several years, including during the period where the Ontario market launched, so I was able to see how the market developed firsthand.

Affiverse Media: Explain more about the regulations. How is a licensed online casino different from an unlicensed one?

Liam: To get government permission to operate in Ontario and accept wagers from Ontarians, a gambling platform must apply to the Crown corporation iGaming Ontario for a license. If they can prove they meet strict criteria for fairness, security, and responsible gambling support, they will be licensed.

This means all licensed sites hit a minimum threshold for safety. As well, gambling at a licensed online casino like those recommended by Casino.ca means a portion of your wagers gets reinvested in the province through government spending instead of being sheer profit for the casino.

Unlicensed casinos operate without oversight and have no obligation to treat players well, or provide adequate digital security, which is a must for an activity like gambling where you need to share payment details with the website. Most unlicensed sites are offshore casinos based outside of Canada, so lost wagers don’t get reinvested.

Affiverse Media: So what does a regulated market mean for players?

Liam: The biggest benefit is increased trustworthiness. Before the regulated market, offshore casinos could use predatory terms & conditions to swindle players, or set unfair odds. This created an adversarial relationship between players and gambling platforms, where each tried to extract the most profit from the other.

Now, regulated Ontarian casinos are guaranteed to be operating fairly. They’ll still make a profit, don’t get me wrong, but players can be safe knowing they are playing games with fair odds and truly random outcomes. A new player will understand exactly what terms they are agreeing to when registering a new account and can decide whether or not to play accordingly. Reliability and transparency help build player trust.

Players also enjoy a higher standard of quality. Ontario won’t license an online casino unless it uses industry-standard digital encryption, for instance, or unless it offers an array of responsible gambling resources. Different casinos will still specialize in different areas of the player experience, but the overall bar is higher.

Affiverse Media: Even if the regulated market is designed to create a better experience, do players agree?

Liam: The player base stats speak for themselves. When Ontario’s regulations first came into effect in April 2022, around 270,000 active player accounts were registered. Today, over 1.3 million accounts are active in Ontario. To put it another way, at launch, approximately 1.8% of Ontarians were registered, whereas today that figure stands at approximately 8%.

It’s pretty obvious that the regulated casino system is winning over Ontarians. And while that could be pinned on other social trends like the rise of prediction betting markets, it’s my opinion that the quality of online casinos offered in Ontario plays a large part. Trustworthiness, quality-of-life features, and legal oversight are key features that appeal to Ontarians.

Affiverse Media: What role do review sites play in Ontario?

Liam: They help bolster trustworthiness by investigating individual gambling sites and providing info on their security features, as well as info on their games selection and payment options. Having these details widely available in a readable format makes it easier for players to stay informed. Sites like Casino.ca empower players to make their own decisions based on their own priorities.

As someone who writes these reviews myself for Casino.ca, the Ontario regulations have changed what reviews need to focus on. It’s nice knowing that any casino with an Ontario license will be trustworthy, so the reviews can shine a spotlight on entertainment value and unique quality-of-life features like mobile apps.

Affiverse Media: To close out, do you think the market regulations are working? Is it worth it for players to put their trust in this system?

Liam: I genuinely think Ontario’s regulated iGaming market has been a net gain, both for the province and for players. After all, both the policymakers and players are Ontarians and want what’s best for locals, both in terms of sustainable gambling entertainment and gambling revenues. In the more than four years that the regulated market has been active, the system has proved its worth and reliability.