Legal Online Gambling In Canada?

Published: April 21, 2009 06:54 pm EDT

Stating that "in order to remain relevant to our players we must deliver what the player wants in the safest and most entertaining way possible", the Atlantic Lottery Corporation recently issued a Request For Proposals to develop an enhanced online sports betting platform

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Despite limited information released with the RFP, one Ontario lawyer sees no reason why the ALC can't move ahead with the venture that is calling for "a new Internet Player Account Management System (iPAM) and Internet Sports Betting Platform which will be used extensively by ALC to enhance and build on our current product offering and will assist us in delivering the most entertaining, player focused, and responsible products for our players."

Michael Lipton, a partner in Toronto-based law firm Dickinson Wright, told the Chronicle Herald under Section 207 of the Criminal Code the ALC could legally run an online sports betting operation. The caveats to that statement are twofold: the ALC could not accept bets from people in countries where such gaming is not allowed; and other Canadian provinces would have to allow their residents to wager online.

"The Internet is with us, all around us at all time," said Lipton to the Chronicle Herald. "The upshot is that (users) have learned to trust the system. There are jurisdictions that have very high standards that regulate them."

According to a report from PricewaterhouseCoopers, online sports betting in the U.S. could total as much as $50 billion over the next 10 years.

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