Report ONTARIO - CANADA
Ontario: Operator profile
THERE ARE 29 POTENTIAL
GAMING ZONES BEING
CONSIDERED
WHICH MEANS AN EXTRA FIVE ZONES.
facilities in an OLG defined geographic zone, acquire the capital assets (currently owned by OLG) that are related to gaming sites such as buildings and gaming equipment and also to assume the current operations of OLG’s facilities.
There are 29 potential gaming zones being considered which means an extra five zones. Each zone will be permitted to operate a single gaming site which will then have a maximum number of gaming positions and betting limits and list the type and number of games offered. There are eight zones in Central Ontario, 12 zones in Southwestern Ontario, four zones in Eastern Ontario and five zones in Northern Ontario. Although some of these cover existing gaming venues there are five new gaming sites which are:
C1 – GTA – Toronto area. C7 –Collingwood E2 – Belleville N4 –Kenora N5 –North Bay
Under the scheme the OLG predicts that:
• Ontario will see an additional $4bn in new private sector capital investment in the province with its projections
• Net profit will increase by $1.3bn annually
• Ontario will be able to offer more innovative and fun games
• Capital costs of expanding or maintaining gaming facilities will no longer be carried by taxpayers
• One new resort casino in the GTA could create 6,000 jobs.
• With the private sector responsible for the operations the OLG can continue its control and oversight work.
• The lottery distribution network can be expanded to accommodate a broader customer base.
The way lottery
tickets are sold no longer reflects
current shopping patterns and the
OLG is now looking at the feasibility of shifting the day to day operations of
its lottery network to a regulated private
sector operator and to expand its lottery distribution through new channels. This will include new retail outlets and
internet and mobile device sales.
Operator: Windsor Casino Ltd Ontario Casinos: Caesars Windsor Information: The casino was Ontario’s first Las Vegas style casino and is 100,000 sq.ft and has 2,300 slots and 91 tables plus World Series of Poker. Background: The casino initially opened in 1994 as an interim casino then permanently in 1998. It was revamped in 2008 when Harrah’s (one of the two equal shareholders) changed its company name to Caesars. The casino was then rebranded as Caesars Windsor. The site features a 5,000 seater theatre and 100,000 sq.ft convention centre. The casino sees around four million visitors annually. It is Canada’s largest casino convention resort and an all in one destination. Caesars Entertainment operates resorts under the Harrah’s, Caesars and Horseshoe brands names and also owns the London Clubs International family of casinos and World Series of Poker.
• As overall revenues increase so will funding to host municipalities, problem gambling programmes and Ontario’s First Nations.
THE SITUATION NOW The government is currently looking at ways to rationalise its gambling enterprise and maximise its net revenue from gambling and is now, via the OLG, looking to end the Slots at Racetrack Program which has been in existence since 1998.
Slot operations at Fort Erie Racetrack, Hiawatha Horse Park and Windsor Raceway ceased in April 2012.
The other 14 racetracks which have slots have been given notice to terminate their existing agreements as of March 2013.
The changes are expected to have a severe impact on the industry and much will now depend on whether the racetracks will continue to operate slots under different financial arrangements.
February 2013 PAGE 133
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92 |
Page 93 |
Page 94 |
Page 95 |
Page 96 |
Page 97 |
Page 98 |
Page 99 |
Page 100 |
Page 101 |
Page 102 |
Page 103 |
Page 104 |
Page 105 |
Page 106 |
Page 107 |
Page 108 |
Page 109 |
Page 110 |
Page 111 |
Page 112 |
Page 113 |
Page 114 |
Page 115 |
Page 116 |
Page 117 |
Page 118 |
Page 119 |
Page 120 |
Page 121 |
Page 122 |
Page 123 |
Page 124 |
Page 125 |
Page 126 |
Page 127 |
Page 128 |
Page 129 |
Page 130 |
Page 131 |
Page 132 |
Page 133 |
Page 134 |
Page 135 |
Page 136 |
Page 137 |
Page 138 |
Page 139 |
Page 140