The Canadian province of Quebec took an important step towards opening its doors to online gambling after it was announced this week that a state run online gaming operation will be launched in September.
Loto Quebec, the state’s official online lottery monopoly, will run the new online poker and sports betting site, in collaboration with the British Columbia and Atlantic Lottery Corporations.
The new site will have a number of responsible gambling features, including self exclusion options, age verification, deposit limits and others. The Quebec government is convinced that since the province’s online gamblers are exposed to so many sites anyway, it is better for them to play at sites that are regulated.
In addition, the Quebec government will stand to make enormous amounts of money by allowing the operation of the site – some speculate in the region of $50 million in the first three years.
Quebec’s decision follows that of states across the border, including California, New Jersey and Florida, who are in the process of legalizing their own intrastate online casino sites.
The news has been met, as expected, with opposition from a number of fronts.