New Brunswick Next For IGaming? Bill To Establish Live Dealer Rules Offers Strong Hint
‘Live [dealer] casinos are growing in popularity,’ province’s public safety minister says
With no shortage of signs already pointing to New Brunswick looking to become the next Canadian province to regulated online gaming, this week may have delivered the clincher. The New Brunswick Department of Justice and Public Safety issued a release Tuesday announcing a bill had been introduced that would “establish regulation-making authority for live casino events that take place online.”
Translation: New Brunswick wants to get some rules for live dealer online casino down on paper.
And that’s probably not something a legislature bothers with if it isn’t serious about legalizing and regulating iGaming.
Online gaming is only regulated in two Canadian provinces — Ontario, with a population of approximately 16.2 million, and Alberta, with a population of some 5 million. New Brunswick represents much smaller potatoes, with a population under 900,000, but there is nevertheless tax revenue to be made through legalization and regulation.
In live dealer games, human dealers distribute physical cards and spin physical wheels on camera in a studio, while players make their wagers on the apps and websites, watch the dealers, and interact to an extent. It’s a more social version of online gaming, and some customers feel the games are more trustworthy when the cards and wheels aren’t mere animations.
The press release didn’t go into any detail on what the live dealer rules may entail, just noting “Regulations will be introduced at a later date.” In the U.S., states have established different guidelines regarding whether the live dealer studio must be located within that state.
Safer than unregulated
The release mostly talked in generalities about a bill intended to “modernize the Gaming Control Act and allow the government to adapt more quickly to evolving gaming activities.”
Robert Gauvin, the public safety minister of New Brunswick, said, “With a greater variety of online offerings, live [dealer] casinos are growing in popularity. Regulating these types of games will provide a safer alternative to unregulated offerings in the province.”
Added Finance and Treasury Board Minister René Legacy: “Modernizing the Gaming Control Act is about keeping up with how gaming is changing. These updates will ensure that new gaming options are developed responsibly and continue to meet the needs of players in a safe and regulated way.”
Eric has been a professional editor and writer for more than 25 years, including nearly 20 years of experience covering the gambling industry. He was editor-in-chief of the poker magazine All In from 2005-2015 and manag…
