A clash of coalitions in Canada's gambling biz
A clash of coalitions in Canada's gambling biz
Regulated gaming operators in Ontario have responded to a "cease and desist notice" letter from a law firm representing four provincial lottery corporations. Also, the NHL is monitoring the ads angst.
In this issue:
Coalitions lob legal letters at each other
NHL keeping tabs on tempest over sports betting ads
A packed lineup of guests on LinkedIn Audio today
Michael Copeland named new CEO at Woodbine Entertainment
The conversation on what’s next for igaming regulation in Canada
Six days and counting down to Canadian Gaming Summit
Coalitions lob legal correspondence at each other
Welcome to the latest round of the Coalition Confrontation. Also, you may need a program to keep track of the players.
You may recall last summer an announcement made by a new coalition of provincial gaming corporations which included the British Columbia Lottery Corporation, Alberta Gaming, Liquor & Cannabis, Manitoba Liquor & Lotteries Corporation, Loto-Quebec, and the Atlantic Lottery Corporation (so, no Saskatchewan Indian Gaming Authority or Saskatchewan Lotteries). The Coalition of Provincial Lotteries Corporation was established for “calling on the federal government to continue to work with the provinces and regulators to protect Canadians from the misleading advertising and operation of illegal gambling websites within Canada”.
The AGLC later launched an ad campaign to warn Albertans who like to lay a wager or play online slots of the dangers of doing so with operators other than Play Alberta.
Since then, the Canadian Lottery Coalition (CLC) - made up of the Atlantic, Manitoba, B.C. and Quebec lottery corporations - instructed its legal representatives to send letters to registered sports betting and gaming operators in Ontario with “Cease and Desist Notice” in the subject line. Tom Mungham, the registrar and CEO of the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario, was also copied on the letters
That’s according to the Coalition of Ontario Online Gaming Operators which had its legal counsel send correspondence last month (May 19, to be exact) to the four members of the CLC. From the letter, obtained by GNC, that was sent to the Atlantic Lottery Corporation:
The Ontario coalition, according to its letter from law firm McCarthy Tetrault, is also making a Freedom of Information request on a few issues, including:
Did the individual provincial lottery corporations brief their respective Attorneys General about the CLC’s legal positions and the “CLC intimidation campaign”?
Records relating to the CLC retaining legal counsel and how much money the lottery corporations have contributed to the CLC to date.
Questions around funding for the coalition to hire a public relations company, and what PR services that firm are/will provide.
We were told that there’s been no response from the CLC to the latest letter. McCarthy Tetrault isn’t commenting.
These revelations come two weeks after news broke of seven operators joining an investment firm to create a coalition to push for a regulated sports betting and igaming industry in Quebec. Both Loto-Quebec and the provincial Minister of Finance’s office quickly shot down the notion of an open market in La Belle Province.
Given the presence of both lottery corporation leaders and executives from the licensed operators at next week’s Canadian Gaming Summit, the table has been set for some fascinating dynamics in the hallways of the Metro Toronto Convention Centre.
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NHL keeping tabs on angst about sports betting advertising in our home and native land
In one of our previous lives (albeit a brief one) juggling media requests for the National Hockey League Players’ Association coincided with the beginning of Gary Bettman’s stewardship of the National Hockey League.
As we’ve told anyone who’s listened since those days, while there have been times when it’s been appropriate to question moves made by the commish (his stubbornness to keep the Coyotes in Arizona being near the top of that list), Bettman has served NHL owners very, very well over his 30-year reign as commissioner (if you told us five years ago the Ottawa Senators would be sold today for $1 billion, we’d have replied by telling you no more late nights at watering holes in Hull) and deserves an overflowing fountain of credit for dragging the league out of the dark ages as a business entity. We weren’t surprised when it was made public this spring that Bettman was being honoured last month by our friends at Sports Business Journal with its Lifetime Achievement Award.
We’ve also learned, seeing it up close, speaking with former media colleagues and keeping up on the business of the NHL, that the commish has his hands in pretty much everything that happens (you know the old saying, when things are lousy the boss gets too much blame, and when things are great, the boss gets too much credit).
That includes the current tempest when it comes to sports betting advertising on hockey broadcasts here in the Great White North. So, we only casually raised an eyebrow when hearing from a couple of sources that Bettman, along with NHL chief business officer Keith Wachtel, is keeping tabs on the met with officials at the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario for two hours before the start of the Stanley Cup playoffs to discuss the AGCO’s concerns about the presence of sports betting promotion on NHL broadcasts. And, if changes are to be made with regards to the use of athletes and other celebrities in ads, the volume of commercials and digital board ads, the league wants to participate with the other stakeholders (regulators, the Canadian Gaming Association, broadcasters, operators and other entities with skin in the game) in coming together and finding common ground on potential changes to the advertising standards.
Finally, we learned the league is also on board with research on the impact of advertising on gambling behaviour, and is willing to lend a hand in funding that research.
During last week’s Gaming News Canada Show podcast presented by Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP, Betano Canadian country manager Kris Abbott said discussions with both the NHL and Rogers (Sportsnet) indicated that the number of sports betting commercials wouldn’t be capped for now.
“The NHL is significantly smaller than (the NFL, NBA and MLB), and they also have to make money. They have to hit budgets,” Abbott said on the pod. “Right now, our industry is a great category for them, and that leads to a lot of different brands around the broadcast.”
It’s also worth noting that when talking and/or listening to business executives with the major professional sports leagues in the past, including the NHL, their research indicates that there’s a higher level of engagement from fans with the integration of sports betting information into broadcasts.
Both the league and Sportsnet declined our request to have someone speak with us to respond to the current criticism.
(Ed’s Note: Speaking of Sportsnet, we put it out there on a recent podcast that Cabral (Cabbie) Richards’ absence during the second and third rounds of the playoffs may be related to the backlash the network was facing. To set the record straight, Cabbie’s appearances on Hockey Night in Canada broadcasts as part of a sponsorship agreement with DraftKings for the first and Stanley Cup final rounds. Bet365 had the rights to those pre-game and intermission segments for the middle two rounds, and used retired NHLer Jamal Mayers for the pregame segments. We just want to set the record straight.)
A robust roundtable set for Gaming News Canada Show
We have a rather packed lineup this afternoon for the latest Gaming News Canada Show presented by Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP on LinkedIn Audio.
Cristian Robalino, SBC North America’s marketing maven, will answer some questions about next week’s Canadian Gaming Summit. He will be joined by gaming industry vet Jesse Learmonth, who’ll host the conference’s First Pitch competition with Flex Fantasy, Linemate, and Turnover Global vying for a prize package worth $70,000.
Also joining the show are Dr. Flora Matheson, Dr. Arthur McLuhan and Madison Ford from Unity Health Toronto to walk our audience through the app they’ve developed to put together research on problem gambling.
There will also be a lightning round of sorts for other industry news featuring show regulars Amanda Brewer, Kris Abbott, Mark Silver and Gavin Roth (along with anyone else who wants to join the conversation).
See you at 2 p.m. ET.
Copeland to succeed Lawson as CEO of Woodbine Entertainment
When Jim Lawson appeared on the Gaming News Canada Show six weeks ago to discuss his decision to step down as the chief executive officer at Woodbine Entertainment, he mentioned the search was already well underway for his successor.
It turns out the board of directors at Woodbine needn’t even log into the company’s Uber account to get their man.
In a news release on Tuesday morning, the board announced the appointment of Michael Copeland as the new CEO, effective October 1. Copeland, whose previous stops in the Canadian sports business community include the Canadian Football League and the Toronto Argos, has been with Woodbine since 2021 and is the company’s current President, Commercial.
“With this role comes great responsibility as it supports a way of life for tens of thousands of families in Ontario as it did for my wife’s family for decades,” Copeland said in the release. “I am excited about the opportunity we have to lead Woodbine and racing in Ontario to ambitious, new heights.”
Lawson, who had told us on the GNCS he wasn’t completely going away, was also named executive chair of the organization. Long-time Woodbine executive Bill Ford also has a new role as chief racing officer and general counsel.
Copeland slides into the CEO’s chair at a busy time for Woodbine, which is building an urban community on its 684-acre site which includes Woodbine Racetrack. Woodbine, under Lawson’s leadership (and which he discussed with us last month), also continues its efforts to expand its sports betting and gaming business beyond horse racing and bricks-and-mortar casinos.
For your viewing pleasure, the WNFIGIC webinar
Firstly, apologies for the awkward acronym.
Secondly, and most importantly, the supportive sponsors of this twice-weekly dispatch - GBG Plc - put out the red carpet yesterday for a one-hour webinar on What’s Next for iGaming Regulation in Canada? with a rather sterling panel consisting of GBG’s Rebekah Jackson, FOGNC (oops, we did it again) Amanda Brewer of Kindred Group, PointsBet Canada grand poobah Scott Vanderwel, and Jack Tadman of GME Law.
As expected, the conversation was of the insightful, informative and educational type, especially on the eve of the gambling industry gathering in Toronto for the Canadian Gaming Summit (more on that below). So, before heading for The Six, we suggest you put on your sweats and hoodie, grab your laptop/tablet/phone and give the webinar a watch.
Six days and counting down to start of Canadian Gaming Summit
Just in case you’ve been curled up on a deserted island the past month speaking to Wilson, the Canadian Gaming Summit is almost ready to open its doors.
It’s the first time for SBC to be hosting Canada’s largest sports betting and gaming conference, and the proceedings start Tuesday afternoon with the Player Protection Symposium at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre. We recommend you block off the 1:30-2:10 p.m. time slot and join Entain senior VP Martin Lycka for his Safe Bet Show conversation with NHL Alumni Association head honcho Glenn Healy (here’s hoping the Stanley Cup champion shares a two or two about tending goal for Mike Keenan).
The lottery and gaming corporations across Canada will be well-represented with their leaders contributing to the discussion on a number of topics throughout the conference (and we expect they’ll be asked more than a few times about following Ontario’s lead and adopting a regulated marketplace).
If you’re the procrastinating type and haven’t yet registered, Gaming News Canada subscribers are receiving a $200 discount when using the code PARLEHPARTNERVIP to register.
Gaming News Canada has advertising and sponsorship opportunities with our twice-weekly newsletters, the LinkedIn Audio events on Thursday, and the Gaming News Canada Show podcast. If you want to reach a highly engaged audience in the space, please email steve@gamingnewscanada.ca for more information.