Segev: Ramping Up for Alberta’s Market Launch

Posted on: May 2, 2025, 10:55h. 

Last updated on: May 2, 2025, 10:55h.

Mark Keast Read More

Expertise: Canadian Gaming, iGaming, Las Vegas, Sports Betting, NFL, Boxing, UFC.

Ron Segev, founder of Segev LLP and one of Canada’s prominent lawyers when it comes to the business of igaming, has a satellite office now set up in Alberta, ramping up for the launch of a new Ontario-style regulated igaming market there.

Alberta Closes in On Market Launch 

Alberta is plowing towards a market launch, likely early 2026. 

The Calgary office joins Segev LLP offices in Toronto and Vancouver. Segev told Casino.org they’ve hired a “qualified” lawyer who has a background in gaming for Calgary. Segev’s firm was front and centre during Ontario’s market launch in 2022 and expects to see a similarly robust rollout in Alberta.

In the meantime, we’ve been assisting some B-to-B companies, some vendors, with engaging with the AGLC [Albert Gaming, Liquor & Cannabis], just getting ready for the opening of the market, at least with preliminary introductions,” he said. “And where appropriate, assisting some of those clients with commencing a registration process of some kind. People are really excited about the market.”

Proposed Changes to Bill 48 Shot Down

The latest on Bill 48: the iGaming Alberta Act, the province’s new igaming legislation: After passing second reading in the provincial legislative assembly, the bill this week went before a Committee of all Members of the Legislative Assembly, to meet, discuss, debate clauses in the bill.

A member of the opposition NDP proposed amendments to the bill that would have baked more responsible gambling and player protection measures into law. Minister of Service Alberta and Red Tape Reduction Dale Nally from the governing United Conservative Party countered that, saying programs around RG should be under the control of a provincial regulator, as opposed to a legal issue. 

New Crown Corp Would Be Set Up

The proposed amendments from the NDP MLA were voted down.

Bill 48 would create the Alberta iGaming Corporation to oversee regulated online gambling operations in the province, prioritizing consumer protection and responsible play. The bill would designate AGLC as the regulator, while it still oversees PlayAlberta, currently the province’s only legal, regulated site for sports betting and online casino.

The corporation will be governed by a board of up to seven directors appointed by the Minister Nally.

“[The legislation] is finally moving along,” Segev said. “Some of the best-case scenarios that we’ve been getting from our intel is a Q1 or Q2 next year [market launch]. That sounds do-able.”

Canadian Gaming: 2026 Market Launch

But Segev also said he went on record last year saying the same thing about a market launch in 2025.

You’d think that with this whole tariff issue and the declining Canadian dollar against the US dollar and the Euro, perhaps it will reinvigorate the government in Alberta to speed this along and then realize on the expected tax revenue that they’re going to see from this new regime, instead of letting all that money go offshore,” he said.

“They are leaving a lot of money off the table. We just saw an extraordinary bump in government revenue in Ontario [CAD $82.7 billion in wagers and CAD $3.2 billion in gross gaming revenue for Fiscal Year 2024/25, 31% and 32% increases, respectively, over 2023-24].

Higher Player Values in Alberta 

“It’s not going to be the same exact numbers just because of the populations at hand, but in terms of the percentage growth, I think we can expect the same, possibly more. Data is showing us that Albertan players tend to have higher player values … more of them [bet] at higher amounts.”

The Ontario market has a tax rate of 20%.

“This could be a billion-dollar industry at the end of Year 1 if it’s managed properly, and it’s a truly open market with a regime that will allow the operators to advertise freely, although responsibly,” Segev said. “I suspect [the regulatory regime] will be very similar to Ontario.”

A Viable iGaming Regime Better Protects Players

In terms of the NDP MLA’s proposed amendments to the bill to toughen language around responsible gambling, brought up in committee this week, Segev was glad to see it voted down.

“If your understanding is that respecting RG issues runs contrary to economic success, and in that way, the two issues are in conflict, then you don’t understand the gaming industry,” he said. “If you want to have a sustainable gaming industry, you need to protect your player base. If you don’t protect your player base, it’s going to be a real problem. 

Leave RG in the Hands of Industry People

What does that mean? Does that mean that you can’t trust the industry or the regulator to do a good job of it, and it needs to be baked into the legislation in a granular way? No, it means the opposite,” he said. 

It means that the regulator, the Crown corporation operating igaming, and the private commercial enterprises who have entered into agreements with the crown corp, to further igaming in a province, they all understand that RG is a critical component of the sustainable success of the industry, he said. 

“Some will do a better job at it than others,” Segev added. “That’s where we need to be careful with it. And that’s why standards are required. You need to remain flexible around because a lot of RG solutions now are technically driven.

Next Up for Alberta Bill: Third Reading 

As the game types, game varieties, delivery mechanisms, game mechanics evolve, the RG solutions have to catch up. Different players, segments get exposed at different kinds of risks in different areas, and RG standards need to adapt to that. You should put that in the hands of the regulators that can move more nimbly, not in the hands of the lawmakers, regulators who have been to gaming shows, not in the hands of lawmakers who have never been to a gaming show.”

Next up for the bill is third reading in the full legislature, where it’s voted on. With the Conservatives holding a majority there, it’s likely to pass, where it would then become law.