The number of Canadians gambling online has been increasing and will continue increasing over time. Around 3.2 million people, approximately 12% of the population, regularly gamble online, most of them preferring online slots. Moreover, more than 19 million Canadians, approximately 75% of the population, also gamble occasionally.
Unfortunately, around 300,000 Canadians are at risk of becoming gambling addicts. In response, responsible gambling initiatives in the online slot industry are evolving to accommodate the growth and absorb the risks. Take a look at how responsible gambling in Canada is evolving.
Stricter Regulations
Authorities in Canada are making stricter, more elaborate laws to regulate how online casinos operate. Moreover, they continually monitor the industry to enforce the laws and penalize operators that break them.
Provincial Licensing
In Canada, every province has the authority to regulate its gambling industry as it sees fit. Provincial authorities are in a better position to make gambling laws, as they are more flexible than the federal government. More provincial authorities have been ramping up their gambling laws in the recent past. Notably, Ontario has the most elaborate gambling laws and is serving as a blueprint for most of the other provinces.
Advertising Restrictions
Gambling ads can be very appealing, especially when they are intentionally misleading. With this in mind, authorities are enhancing restrictions for online gambling adverts. While the rules vary between different provinces, the most common ones are these:
- No Risk-Free Claims: Claims made in the ads must be true, not reckless. For example, ads cannot guarantee that players will win simply for signing up.
- No False Promotions: Ads must not promise unrealistic bonuses to lure people in.
- Restricted Audiences: Ads shouldn’t target high-risk audiences, such as students, people recovering from gambling addiction, and low-income people looking for a way to make quick money.
Some authorities even require operators to mention the potential dangers of online gambling. For example, ads must mention that gambling is potentially addictive. Some ads even come with gambling addiction helplines.
Compulsory Player Protections
Player protections and responsible gambling tools are now mandatory across many Canadian provinces. Authorities require casinos to provide tools like the following:
- Strict Know Your Customer (KYC) rules.
- Deposit, betting, and loss limits.
- Reality checks.
- Cooling-off periods.
- Self-exclusion.
AI-Powered Behavioral Monitoring
AI technology is helping to enhance responsible gambling in Canada. The use of AI in detecting gambling addiction mostly relies on behavioral monitoring. It looks for patterns that are common among gambling addicts, including:
- Increases in bet sizes after losses, which indicates chasing losses.
- Playing for long periods without pausing.
- Playing at odd times of the day.
- Making frequent deposits, which is indicative of overspending.
- Unpredictable, erratic betting patterns, which indicate emotion-driven betting.
Beyond monitoring and identifying problematic gambling, AI also offers real-time interventions. For example, you can receive a pop-up reminder to take a break if the AI algorithm identifies prolonged gaming. Some algorithms can also go an extra step to enforce a forced temporary cooling-off period.
Besides automated interventions, casinos can also offer human-powered intervention when AI flags problematic gambling patterns. For example, the customer support team can personally check in on players by calling or messaging them. They can also connect them with counselors and therapists for professional help.
Interestingly, many government-run online casinos in Canada have already integrated AI technology. For example, Ontario’s PlayOLG uses Gamalyze from Mindway AI to assess players’ risk levels. The algorithm issues players with automated alerts and personalized risk scores. Additionally, Loto-Quebec uses SAS analytics to detect early signs of problematic gambling.
Moreover, it has AI-powered chat bots that offer instant responsible gambling support. Many private operators are also integrating AI into their platforms to spruce up the experience and boost security.
Advanced Responsible Gambling Tools
Online casinos have tools designed to help players pace themselves in real-time. These responsible gambling tools are crucial because they are mostly pro-active. If used well, they can help at-risk players from falling off the ledge. The most common and useful tools include the following:
- Financial Limits
Overspending is both a symptom and effect of problem gambling. Fortunately, there are financial limits that can help with this.
Deposit limits restrict how much you can credit into your account. Additionally, betting limits help to stretch the money already in your account by restricting how much you can wager. You can also set loss limits to restrict how much you can lose before bowing out. If you have trouble calling it quits, some casinos have smart contracts that automatically enforce loss limits.
- Time Alerts & Time-Outs
Spending too much time playing is another symptom of gambling addiction. To prevent this, Canadian casinos issue time alerts when playing for prolonged periods. The alerts show how much time you have spent playing and urge you to take a break using the time-out options. Time-outs are temporary and can last for hours or days.
Some casinos even enforce compulsory time-outs for players who simply can’t help themselves. For example, your account can lock after three hours of non-stop playing.
- Self-Exclusion
While time-outs lock your account for short periods, usually a few days, self-exclusion covers longer periods. You can use this option to lock your account for several months or even years. Moreover, you can limit your ability to register and play at multiple online casinos. Interestingly, all provinces are working on a national database for wider self-exclusion measures covering all online casinos.
Fair Play & Enhanced Transparency
Chasing losses – the idea that you can win more than you lost if you continue playing – is one of the leading causes of problematic gambling. Unfortunately, chasing losses may never stop if the games are skewed. This is why authorities take all measures to ensure that casino games are provably fair. Some casinos even use blockchain verification to prove that their games are fair.
In addition to proving fairness, authorities also require casinos to be transparent about their games. For example, all games must have their RTP rates and odds displayed.
A Safer Future for Gamblers in Canada
Initiatives for responsible gambling in Canada will keep evolving and getting more efficient over time. Besides Ontario, many provinces are still dragging their feet on regulations. However, this is changing, and gambling regulations will be more elaborate in the future. Provinces like British Columbia and Quebec will set the pace.
AI will also play an integral role in protecting online gamblers. Algorithms will get better at detecting signs of problematic gambling. Moreover, they will offer more effective interventions for at-risk players.
Players are also getting more informed about the benefits and dangers of gambling. Hopefully, Canadians will gamble more responsibly as time goes by.
Conclusion
Initiatives for responsible gambling in Canada are evolving to further bolster players’ safety. Authorities and casinos are leading this evolution with various measures. Provincial governments are developing more detailed laws to regulate the industry. Additionally, operators are integrating responsible gambling tools like limits directly into their platforms. AI is also playing a crucial role in this evolution with solutions like automated interventions.
