It is worth pointing out that Great White North has a deep history of gambling. The story of Canadian gambling stretches back to the times far before the invasion of European settlers. The game of luck called Slahal was spreading widely and even well-known on the Pacific Northwest Coast among First Nations. Historians of culture speak with authority about some indications that prove the fact that this game was invented even before the dawning of the Ice Age. Slahal was not only entertaining but also the spiritual significance and social implication. Actually, over the course of history, that game has changed lots of names specific to each language, but in Canada, it is named with a word from Chinook vernacular.
And for now, there are more than 19.3 million heavy users of Web gambling facilities in the Great White North – it is almost fifty percent of the country’s population. It makes Canada the eighth on the list of the countries by the quantity of money spent on Internet gambling. A few of the Canadian provinces are already making a profit from such an incredibly profitable industry. They change local legislation to support Internet gambling facilities. It helps to increase the efficiency of service provided to the consumers. Among such cutting-edge provinces are progressive Ontario, home of Canada’s capital – Ottawa, the westernmost province of Canada – British Columbia, the fourth largest and the fourth most populous province – Alberta, and Saskatchewan, which borders the US to the south.
As previously mentioned, nearly twenty million of the Great White North residents are involved in some kind of gaming entertainment on the Web. So, there is no wonder that provinces and the whole of Canada as the economy get an impressive and massive profit from the iGaming. According to the Report submitted by the Canadian Gaming Association, players from the whole country spend more than $20 billion per year, 16 of them in locally available traditional casinos, and the other 4 billion go to the offshore online gaming facilities.
New Digital Era
Without any doubt, traditional stationary casinos are a sizable portion of gambling history and an inalienable part of the entertainment industry. But nowadays, a great number of people all over the globe, including in Canada, shift their attention to internet casinos. Websites for gambling are always within easy reach on people’s devices – they offer lavish bonuses, mobile gambling facilities are incredibly convenient to use, and online games of luck are also more eco-friendly.
Online casinos have gained such great popularity all over Canada that the profit of old-school stationary casinos started declining over the last few years. Covid lockdowns during 2019-2021 just made the situation worse. Some of the provinces keep up with the times and open their own online gambling facilities.
Major Types of Gambling in Canada
In 2022, playing on the Internet, Canadians prefer such video games as Slots and Poker. Along with that, they also like Baccarat, Blackjack and Roulette. Talking about slots, it is clear that Canadian gamblers prefer to play on the go. It follows that mobile slots are the most popular in Canada. Сoncerning Blackjack, Canadian gamers prefer its classic version, which also has come to be known as the American Blackjack and the variation called European Blackjack. In terms of online poker games in Canada, the overwhelming favourite is Texas Hold’Em. Roulette is also a trendy game in Canada, especially its French part, where it is appreciated at its true value for its elegance. French and American variations of the game are very popular in Canada, in distinction from other types of this game. When it comes to baccarat at Canadian Web casinos, Baccarat Banque, Punto Banco (North American baccarat) and Baccarat Chemin can be called the most in-demand among local players.
One more passion of Canadian high-rollers is betting on the Internet, and sports betting is a large portion of it. Canadian fans of sports betting most commonly prefer to bet on such mainstream games as basketball, football and, of course, the most favourite national sport – hockey.
Demographic Factor
The Canadian community of Internet players consists of an almost equal quantity of female and male players in the year 2022. Fifty-six percent of Web gamers are men, and the other forty-three percent are women fans of internet games of chance. Statistically, the average online gambler on the Great White North is around thirty – fifty years old. But there is also a high percentage of young players.
One might wonder, what do gender and age matter? It has emerged that gambling preferences vary depending on these indicators. Women prefer video games of chance, while men give precedence to online betting. Whereas older gamblers prefer games with a strategy like a poker, younger gamers favour fast-actioned colourful titles like Midas Golden Touch slots.
Canadian Gambling Industry Net Worth
In 2021 total profit of the gambling industry in the Great White North was $2.64 billion, $1.2 billion of which was from iGaming. Nevertheless, it is thought that there is a possibility for Canada to get much more profit from the industry case if licensing by governments of the provinces wouldn’t be required for online casino providers. Canada’s iGaming market is fabulous in its incredible diversity. It is able to attract a bunch of exterior investors. In perspective, they can increase the revenue of the country from online gambling.
Statistics indicate that Canadian players spend around $800 on gambling in a year per capita. This number is impressive, especially in comparison. Eight hundred bucks are more than UK and US gamblers, all put together, spent in a year per capita.
Lawfulness of Online Gambling in Canada
Every Canadian province has its own unique regulations and legislations regarding the industry of online gambling. Starting with 2021, most of the provinces have set in motion the development of gambling laws on modern lines or their renewal.
In common, online casinos are legal in all provinces, but every single case needs some separate study. Online gambling websites in Canada usually work under special licenses provided by the authorities of the province. In this pattern, all administrative divisions within Canada, excluding Saskatchewan, already operate at least one of their own online gambling facilities.
It should be mentioned that offshore gambling operators provide their services without any licensing all over Canada. And there are no restrictions for Canadian payers to enjoy playing at offshore gambling websites. However, advertising on such websites is illegal and playing on them is not safe for players – that’s why every Canadian player should follow simple tips choosing an online casino to play.
Canadian iGaming Industry Development Trends
The pandemic badly damaged the business of land-based casinos, but it boosted online gambling. For now, traditional casinos are reopening, but the demand for old-school gambling will never be the same. Modern technologies offer much more to the entertainment industry at a lower price and with more convenience. There are fewer places without internet connection in the world now, the Web spreads fast, and mobile gaming is following it with the speed of data connectivity. The industry is growing fast, and it is not even on the rise yet. The year 2022 is going to be a good year for iGaming not only in Canada but in the whole world.
A great shift in marketing and advertising policies for online games is coming in 2022. The Canadian government and legislators enact further legislation with great attention to problems forced by gambling. Specific control measures will be implemented to help users control their internet experience and age restrictions. Since then, users can exclude themselves from specific promotions and games, including in particular gambling and games of luck. But it wouldn’t affect the industry a lot, just will help to make the gambling environment more healthy.
Land-based casinos are losing popularity, but players still like to play table games with a live dealer. High demand for such titles increases, and 2022 is definitely going to become a year of live-dealer games. The gambling community is also waiting for some new communication experiences with the dealer and among players. VR technology might be the basic concept of the brand new type of live dealer games.
The number of providers that allow cryptocurrencies like Ethereum and Bitcoin for payments and withdrawals increases constantly. Cryptos increase the safety of online casinos, and blockchain technology makes all the payments not just fast but in an instant. And privacy is the cherry on the cake in talking about crypto casinos.