The gambling monopolist in the province of Ontario – the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation (OLG) reported a 25% increase in its online gambling revenue in the last fiscal year. Its contribution to the province also rose to a record high.
The OLG only recently issued its annual report for the 12 months that ended on March 31st, 2018 saying that it contributed an amount of CA$2.8 billion to provincial coffers, with the majority of the take coming from casino and slot facilities. According to the most recent figures provided by the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation, the province’s take from gambling operations over the most recent fiscal year was a record one.
As revealed by OLG, the net profit brought to the province of Ontario in the 2017/2018 fiscal year amounted to CA$2.49 billion, representing an increase of more than 5% compared to the Corporation’s contribution to Provincial Government’s coffers in the 2016/2017 fiscal year. A total of CA$45 million were also directed by the company to the Ministry of Health and Long-Term Care for funding of problem gambling prevention, treatment and research.
The gambling operator shared that its casino, slots and online gaming operations all managed to generate higher profits. The take from lottery ticket sales slightly declined, according to the company’s report.
The gambling income of OLG was generated thanks to the 25 casino and slot facilities operated by the brand in the province of Ontario. The profit registered in these venues rose by 7.6% from the previous year to CA$1.8 billion in 2017/2018. The OLG further announced that almost 38 million visits were made in the province’s casinos last year, with the average visitor spending CA$101 there.
OLG Lottery Sales Dropped in 2017/2018 Year
The gambling monopolist in Ontario has remained focused on turning over the casino and slots operations to the private sector in a process designed under the local Liberal Government. According to the OLG, the amount of money paid by the gambling industry to the province’s coffers will grow by adding new casinos and expanding the already existing ones.
“Gaming is changing not only in Ontario but around the world. (…) OLG needs to keep up with that change and anticipate where that market is going.” – OLG 2017/2018 annual report says
As mentioned above, the company revealed that the proceeds generated from lotteries in 2017/2018 amounted to a total of CA$1.07 billion, with that figure representing a 1% decline from the result posted in 2016/2017. The OLG explained that its revenues from scratch card sales were higher, but the revenues from lotto games ticket sales declined and were the ones to blame for the smaller province’s takings.
According to the recently published report, there are two clear risk areas faced by the lottery business of the operator. The first one was the aging technology which is restrictive not only to the places where lottery tickets are sold but also to the customer experience. The other one, as pointed out by the OLG, was the company’s reliance on a shrinking player base.
