Canadian Lotteries to Offer Online Poker

Canadian lottery players will now be able to play one of the most popular online games-poker. Some Canadian lottery corporations are starting to offer players safe and regulated online poker. Once confined to the shadowy world of online gaming online poker has gained some measure of respectability in recent years. Loto-Quebec is the latest lottery to announce the addition of an online poker website that will launch in the fall. Loto-Quebec says the new website will counter the many illegal gambling websites and expects to make about $50 million by 2012.

The new website will be launched by Loto-Quebec and Atlantic and B.C. lottery corporations. The Atlantic and B.C. lottery corporations already have their own online poker operations. The Atlantic Lottery Corporation has operated an online gambling website since 2004 and allows players to purchase online lottery tickets in addition to poker. The B.C. lottery website offers online poker allowing players to bet as much as $9,999.per week. The B.C. lottery website also sells online lottery tickets. The industry expects big bets to translate into big profits for the lottery corporations

Some Canadian provinces are taking a wait and see approach to online poker and gaming. Kevin Van Egdom, with the Western Canada Lottery Corp stated, "Nothing has been written off forever, but we have no plans to do that." The Western Canada Lottery Corp provides lottery services for Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, the Yukon, the Northwest Territories and Nunavut. Van Egdom further stated, "We're responsible for offering lottery games and selling lottery products through authorized retailers, where you buy them in person. Each region makes its own decision and Quebec's doesn't play into ours."

Ontario Gaming and Lottery Corp. is also taking a wait and see approach. The company says it has spent a 'considerable amount of time' investigating the possibility on online gaming and online lottery tickets. Ontario Lottery spokesman Rui Brum said that "No decision has been made," and that it would be up to the new board of directors whether the lottery will offer online gaming.

John Kennedy FitzGerald, the CEO of the Vancouver-based Interactive Gaming Council says he hopes that government sanctioned lotteries offering gaming is a step towards regulation of the online gaming industry and not a step towards a government monopoly of the online gaming sector. FitzGerald stated, "It's a natural progression for governments to be more involved. At least we have the government saying they recognize the industry and know it's here to stay."