Starting June 1, the fresh Crown corporation will be responsible for supervising all gaming-related activities with the purpose of implementing more cohesive and better-streamlined strategies.
While players themselves might not notice any immediate changes in regard to Lotteries and Gaming Saskatchewan’s (LGS) activity, the province’s minister of parks, culture, and sport Laura Ross believes the LGS is likely to make a difference in the industry.
She explained that the decision to bring together Lotteries and Gaming came as a result of online gaming triggering the need to strengthen and improve the gaming regulation and the gambling world as a whole in Saskatchewan.
The New Crown Corporation to Observe Gaming Policies & Management
According to the new changes, Lotteries will no longer be a part of the Ministry of Parks, Culture, and Sport. Officially, the Crown came to be by way of Orders in Council starting June 1, 2023. Ross explained the role of the fresh commercial corporation as overseeing “the gaming policy and management in the province”.
Saskatchewan Gaming Corporation will, therefore, no longer act as a designated subsidiary of Crown Corporation. At the same time, the LGS will be included as a designated subsidiary of Crown Corporation.
As an immediate effect, Saskatchewan Gaming Corporation will be replaced by Lotteries and Gaming Saskatchewan while fully complying with all securities and categories of securities according to the respective Order. Moreover, SaskGaming will turn into a wholly owned subsidiary of the Lotteries and Gaming of Saskatchewan.
PlayNow Is Saskatchewan’s Only Legal Online Betting Platform
The same minister also emphasized that British Columbia Lottery Corporation (BCLC)’s PlayNow was the sole online betting service acting legally in the province at the moment, further explaining that the rest of the currently operating betting services and sportsbooks were in a “gray” area in terms of regulations.
Ross added that it was mandatory to encourage people to opt for the PlayNow website, “the only legal site” in Saskatchewan since gambling was officially introduced in Canada. In January, BCLC announced it would benefit from an additional boost for the PlayNow.com brand via OpenBet in the same province.
In March, when the new legislation welcoming the new Crown was announced, the minister responsible for all major Crowns, Don Morgan, explained that the LGS would enable them to keep up with the fast-evolving gaming scene.
At the same time, Morgan explained that they would hold on to the unique character of enjoying a plethora of different operators in the region, with names like SaskGaming, Sask.Lotteries and SIGA mentioned by the minister.
The Crown’s maximum debt limit has been capped at $130 million while Regina will be the head office of the newly founded LGS.