One of the most eagerly awaited speakers at the Canadian Gaming Summit last week was Alberta’s Minister for Service Alberta and Red Tape Reduction Dale Nally.
Nally has been mandated by Premier Danielle Smith to assess the feasibility of opening up Alberta’s regulated online gaming and betting market to commercial operators. After months of swirling talk about what this review might throw up, Nally confirmed in an address at CGS that the province will pursue an Ontario-style open licensed model. Just like in Ontario, the market will not be regulated by the provincial crown corporation responsible for gaming, in Alberta’s case Alberta Gaming, Liquor and Cannabis, but by a separate entity.
Nally spoke with Canadian Gaming Business in a little more depth about the plans for the province, why Alberta should be such an appealing market for operators and why First Nations considerations must be front and centre of all ..