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Canada still lags in online gambling front
With US Supreme Court’s recent order paving the way for legalising sports betting in the country, many observers are curiously watching Canada’s gambling scene. But the indications from the country suggest that it may be going in the opposite direction. Canada’s gambling industry has created an income of $17.3 billion CAD last year. It is expected to be higher this year.
The legislation is such that it is legal to bet online, provided the online casino or poker site does not have a physical facility in Canada. Obviously, the provincial casinos, like PlayNow.com, Espacejeux, and PlayOLG, have been finding this hard to accept.
The lawmakers are also concerned with this as online gambling results in revenue loss for the state. In 2016, the Quebec legislature passed Bill 74 which, among other things, included a provision to force Internet Service Providers (ISPs) to block international online casino operators.
Loto-Quebec, the provincial gambling body in Quebec, operates EspaceJeux.com, an online casino that requires all players to be residents of Quebec. More importantly, EspaceJeux’s profits are passed on to the provincial government just the same as lotteries and land-based casino profits, which are also regulated. As Simon Stern from toponlinecasinos.ca explains, up until 2016, Loto-Quebec has stated on the record that they were taking too much of a cut, meaning their Return to Player (RTP) was much lower than competing internationally based casinos. They were unable to grow rapidly enough to be sustainable due to players having easy options to play online where they had a better chance of winning. Since then, Espace Jeux has increased their RTP but are subsequently not meeting their profit goals as the margins tighten. Competition is fierce internationally and the largest online casinos have huge revenues to offer huge welcome bonuses and excellent RTPs. The answer for Quebec was to simply introduce legislation to eliminate the competition by forcing ISPs to block these websites. Bill 74 was passed with exactly that provision in 2016.
How is Quebec Bill 74 supposed to work? Loto-Quebec is to give a list of over 2000 gambling websites that ISPs in the province should block. They are also supposed to offer a tender to international online casinos to become partners with EspaceJeux where they will redirect registered players to these casinos through EspaceJeux but Loto-Quebec will maintain the customer information and take a cut of revenues. Some of the most visited sites from Quebec include PokerStars, Casino.com and LeoVegas and these parties may be candidates for approval. The law was given many months to set up the appropriate framework to accomplish this goal. All other online casinos will be blocked in the province and the responsibility to block them will be with the ISPs. The ISPs, which include some of the largest corporations in Canada, do not want to take on this burden and civil rights activists are concerned that this action leads the country down a slippery slope of allowing the government to restrict free speech and an open internet.
The consortium of ISPs, the Canadian Wireless Telecommunications Association (CWTA), formally filed complaint to the national body governing telecommunications, the CRTC, who is formally the only organisation who legally have jurisdiction in this case. The CRTC came back with a recommendation that the law was unconstitutional and that they alone, along with the Government of Canada, have jurisdiction but they will await the court’s decision. Thus, the law introduced by the provincial Government of Quebec should not be implemented. The CWTA immediately filed suit in Quebec Superior Court to block the law from being implemented, where it stands today. The court case was delayed until March 2018 where a ruling still awaits. The general consensus among legal scholars is that the law will be rejected on constitutional grounds but will likely head all the way to the Supreme Court of Canada.
What if the law is able to stand? A ruling in favour of Bill 74 would be the first such case that would allow provincial governments to restrict what their residents can view on the internet. The immediate result would be that Quebec residents would be unable to play at international online casinos and poker sites that are not licenced through EspaceJeux and Loto-Quebec. The implications are far-reaching in that it opens the door for similar laws to restrict other facets of a free internet and for other provinces to do the same. Canada will go from one of the most popular markets for online gambling to one of the most restrictive. More importantly, Canada could go from one of the most open societies in the world to one that restricts free speech and freedom of internet.
Source: cardplayer.com
Source: Latest News on European Gaming Media Network

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SOFTSWISS Wins Best Game Aggregator Award in Latin America
SOFTSWISS wins the CGS Recife Awards 2025 for its flagship Game Aggregator, confirming its industry leadership as the largest content hub in iGaming, operating with 99.999% uptime across 24 regulated jurisdictions. Recognition in Latin America, where SOFTSWISS has achieved full product certification, further proves the product’s global dominance and commitment to delivering trusted solutions across key regulated markets.
The award recognises the best game aggregation platform in the Latin American iGaming market, celebrating leadership, innovation, and operational excellence. This recognition is especially important as it comes from Brazil, where all SOFTSWISS products have recently been certified, led by the Game Aggregator. It is the 7th international award for the Game Aggregator, highlighting the product’s dedication to delivering unmatched scale and stability.
The Game Aggregator is recognised as the industry leader because of measurable advantages that no other platform can match. Operating in 24 jurisdictions, the solution provides direct access to 35,000+ active playing games from 300+ providers with new releases appearing immediately in operators’ portfolios enabled by streamlined integrations.
Engagement features deliver proven growth. Its Tournament Tool increases average daily bets by 22% across the player base. Players who join tournaments place twice as many bets and wager 3 times more than others. Jackpot Aggregator campaigns on the Game Aggregator drive a 50% increase in turnover per user, making engagement mechanics a direct source of revenue.
The platform’s infrastructure is designed for continuous, fail-safe operation. Uptime reaches 99.999–100%, guaranteed by strict SLAs and backed with proactive system notifications. The system processes 7,000 requests and up to 100,000 database queries per second, with 99% of responses returned in under 100 milliseconds. This ensures operators never lose a session, a bet, or their players’ trust.
Beyond scale and engagement, the platform offers features that raise industry standards: AI-driven localisation for any market, deep analytics through the Ultimate Report Builder, and customisable game metadata for client-facing flexibility.
“We are honoured to receive the Best Game Aggregator Platform award at CGS Recife. This recognition shows the value of our commitment: a constantly growing game portfolio, wide market coverage, and unwavering platform reliability. For almost ten years, our team has been building a platform that not only delivers scale and stability but also drives measurable results,” added Tatyana Kaminskaya, Head of SOFTSWISS Game Aggregator.
The SOFTSWISS team will be available at SBC Lisbon 2025, Stand B160, to discuss the possibilities of the Game Aggregator.
About SOFTSWISS
SOFTSWISS is an international technology company with over 15 years of experience in developing innovative solutions for the iGaming industry. SOFTSWISS holds a number of gaming licences and provides comprehensive software for managing iGaming projects. The company’s product portfolio includes the Online Casino Platform, the Game Aggregator with over 35,000 casino games, the Affilka Affiliate Platform, the Sportsbook Software and the Jackpot Aggregator. In 2013, SOFTSWISS revolutionised the industry by introducing the world’s first Bitcoin-optimised online casino solution. The expert team, based in Malta, Poland, and Georgia, counts over 2,000 employees.
The post SOFTSWISS Wins Best Game Aggregator Award in Latin America appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
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SBC Summit Tbilisi Conference Agenda Maps Path to Growth in Eastern Europe & Central Asia
This October, SBC Summit Tbilisi 2025 returns to Georgia with an enhanced conference agenda that connects the industry to the expertise and insights of local Eastern European and Central Asian leaders, helping delegates succeed in these markets.
Co-hosted with SMH Global, a Georgia-based company at the crossroads of sports, media, and iGaming, the summit will once again take place at the Sheraton Grand Tbilisi Metechi Palace on 15–16 October.
With over 50 speakers, the two-day agenda will cover local marketing, regulatory hurdles, and talent development, offering delegates the expertise needed to build stronger operations in Eastern Europe and Central Asia.
Commenting on this year’s conference agenda, Rasmus Sojmark, CEO and Founder of SBC, said: “We’ve worked closely with SMH and a group of local experts who really understand the region to shape this agenda. They know how to connect with Eastern European players, why crypto has taken off in gaming here, and how sports icons influence the way fans engage. It’s their stories and expertise that make the program in Tbilisi so valuable.”
Day One will dig into the realities of entering and growing in Eastern Europe and Central Asia. Panels will explore what it really takes to win over players from a marketing perspective, while others will examine how operators can navigate multi-jurisdictional compliance, balancing taxation, GDPR, and responsible gambling rules without losing efficiency.
Beyond regulation, discussions will look at how traditional casinos are reinventing themselves, from integrating digital products to keeping pace with changing player expectations. The day will conclude with a candid discussion on the rise of cryptocurrency in iGaming, asking whether it is truly a game-changer for payments and trust or a risk that requires careful management.
Day Two will turn the spotlight to sports and player engagement. Panels will unpack how athletes and sports icons influence fan communities, shape responsible play, and build brand trust, with case studies of successful collaborations between gaming brands and top stars. Discussions will then move into the rise of esports and fantasy sports, asking whether these interactive formats are the key to winning over younger, more skill-driven audiences.
Experts will also dig into gamification, from leaderboards and missions to loyalty programmes, and debate which mechanics truly keep players engaged long term. Later in the day, attention will shift to the region’s growing reputation as a talent hub, with speakers sharing how companies are recruiting and retaining top tech and product talent from Georgia, Armenia, Ukraine, and beyond. The program will close on the power of sport itself, exploring how major events like the World Cup and Olympics fuel massive betting activity, and how sponsorships are reshaping the global sports economy.
Looking ahead to this year’s summit, Sojmark added: “For me, the real value of this agenda is its practicality. Delegates will leave with ideas they can put into practice across Eastern Europe and Central Asia. Just as importantly, it’s about looking ahead, thinking about the region’s future role in the industry and how businesses can start preparing for it today.”
Get your tickets for SBC Summit Tbilisi now!
Take advantage of our Early Bird offer and secure a Full Event Pass for just $150 — a $50 saving. Your pass gives you access to every conference session, the exhibition floor, and all evening networking events across both days.
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The post SBC Summit Tbilisi Conference Agenda Maps Path to Growth in Eastern Europe & Central Asia appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
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DATA.BET Partners with Genius Sports
DATA.BET, a trusted sportsbook solution, incorporated official sports data into its comprehensive betting solution. The collaboration has already gone live, providing the company’s clients access to industry-leading in-play betting content via Genius Sports, delivered in official partnership with hundreds of sports leagues worldwide.
The partnership allows the integration of Genius Sports’ fast and reliable content into the recently presented sports portfolio. The company holds exclusive data rights agreements with major sports leagues and federations worldwide, including the English Premier League, EFL, NFL, and numerous others. This ensures the highest standards of accuracy, content quality, and availability of real-time data and streams, as well as minimizing bet delays – critical factors for betting operators in today’s market.
Through this collaboration, DATA.BET will deliver reliable and high-quality sports content with the lowest bet delay on the market to its clients. The integration spans major leagues in football, basketball, tennis, American football, and extends to niche competitions including Australian rules football, squash, and rugby. Beyond raw data, the partnership also includes the usage of advanced Widgets that display live match progress, on-field action updates, and comprehensive performance analytics. Сombined with integrated Video Streams, it creates an immersive betting experience that keeps users engaged throughout matches.
This partnership proves the company’s commitment to delivering a high-quality product powered by official data to serve clients requiring comprehensive coverage across all betting verticals.
“The integration with Genius Sports enables us to deliver premium sports content that significantly expands and strengthens our clients’ offerings,” said Otto Bonnig, Head of Sales at DATA.BET. “We’re ensuring the speed, reliability, and content quality that operators need to compete effectively. This partnership reinforces our commitment to providing comprehensive, best-in-class product solutions across all betting verticals”.
The post DATA.BET Partners with Genius Sports appeared first on European Gaming Industry News.
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