AGCO Calls on Media Platforms to Stop Promoting Unregulated Gaming Sites
Posted on: May 14, 2025, 04:47h.
Last updated on: May 14, 2025, 04:47h.
The Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) is calling on media platforms promoting unregulated gambling platforms like Bodog to stop it, amid recent market channelization data that showed sizeable numbers of bettors in the province are still using those platforms.
Market Channelization Challenges
Grey market operators are those unlicensed in Ontario but may hold a license elsewhere, in places like Malta and Curacao, offering their services to Ontarians.
Before the regulated igaming market in Ontario went live in April 2022, 70% of online gambling in the province was on grey market sites.
AGCO set a deadline of Oct. 31, 2022, for grey market operators to either become fully compliant with Ontario’s igaming regulations or exit the market.
Grey Market Sites
In April, an IPSOS study covering market channelization in Ontario’s three-year-old regulated igaming market showed illegal gambling sites still have a sizeable hold on players in the province.
The new study, commissioned by AGCO and iGaming Ontario, found that 83.7% of Ontarians choose to play regulated sites.
In a statement today, AGCO said it has contacted more than a dozen “traditional and digital media platforms” asking them to stop promoting unregulated gambling and sports betting sites like Bodog to Ontario residents.
Illegal Gambling
The AGCO is committed to protecting Ontario players and ensuring they have the safest experience by playing on regulated igaming sites,” said Dr. Karin Schnarr, Chief Executive Officer and Registrar, AGCO.
“By refusing to carry advertising from unregulated and high-risk operators like Bodog, media organizations can exemplify social responsibility and play an important role in protecting Ontarians and supporting Ontario’s regulated market.”
Bodog is operated by Il Nido Inc., currently blocking players in Quebec and Nova Scotia from accessing their platform but “advertising heavily” on traditional and digital platforms in Ontario, attracting players there.
Bodog “Advertising Heavily”
By doing so, broadcasters and digital media companies will help reduce the risks these sites pose to Ontarians and support the long-term sustainability of Ontario’s regulated igaming market – all key objectives of the AGCO.
“The AGCO is committed to protecting Ontario players and ensuring they have the safest experience by playing on regulated igaming sites. By refusing to carry advertising from unregulated and high-risk operators like Bodog, media organizations can exemplify social responsibility and play an important role in protecting Ontarians and supporting Ontario’s regulated market.”
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