AGCO, iGO issue more licenses, operating agreements

Ontario’s regulated online betting and gaming market continues to add operators and suppliers to its pool, with many more companies and brands waiting in the wings.

Gaming News Canada reported last week that the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) has issued 10 operator and supplier registrations since the beginning of July, and even more have been handed out since.

One of the most notable has been Mohegan Gaming & Entertainment, which became the first land-based operator to be licensed to operate an online brand in Ontario’s regulated market as its PlayFallsview site got the green light to begin operating from iGaming Ontario (iGO).

Another big name to go live in recent weeks was Betway. The company already had a significant level of brand recognition in the province, having operated in the grey market for a long while, and has now completed the transition to the regulated market.

As of August 23, there are more than 35 online gaming sites live in the province, and that number could double before the end of 2022, according to regulators.

In addition, numerous brands that have been licensed by the AGCO in recent weeks will be able to enter the market once they execute an operating agreement with iGO.

One of those is Sports Interaction, whose parent company Avid Gaming was acquired by industry giant Entain from Middlebrook Investments Limited in a $300m deal earlier this year. Avid Gaming leases Sports Interaction exclusively to the Mohawk Council of Kahnawà:ke and Sports Interaction operates in Canada through Mohawk Online. Entain was already active in Canada with its Bwin and Party brands operational in the Ontario market.

Meanwhile, other recent AGCO licensees include Kaizen Gaming’s international Betano brand, Gaming Innovation Group (GiG), EveryMatrix, and Novomatic digital brand Greentube.

Others remain in the works.

Caesars-owned giant William Hill US recently announced it is suspending its operations in Ontario until it is approved to enter the province’s regulated market. The company hopes it will re-enter the market “in the coming months”.

Others including Novibet have recently begun license applications. Novibet says it is on track to launch its iGaming and OSB platform in Ontario in the fourth quarter of 2022, with additional provinces expected to follow.

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