The online poker world was turned upside down last April, when three of the world’s biggest online poker sites were shutdown. While Absolute Poker and Poker Stars have resumed operations (aside from in the United States), Full Tilt Poker is still struggling to recover. The company recently lost its online gambling license and is having trouble repaying players. Most recently, the site was accused of being a Ponzi scheme, using player’s money for personal use.
Canadians have been paying close attention to the situation, as thousands of individuals across the country still have money on the website’s servers. Over 1000 players have already signed up to take part in a nation-wide class action lawsuit and more are likely to follow suit in the near future.
This flurry of activity has cause the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corporation to examine the situation, and it seems to have prompted the lottery to consider online gambling. The OLG has considered it for quite some time, but has yet to take any serious steps towards launching its own online gambling website. Now, after the Ponzi scheme accusations, the corporation has decided to voice its opinion on government-regulated online gambling.
According to a spokesperson for the OLG, a government-regulated online casino would provide Ontario players with a safe place to play online. They would not have to worry about having their money witheld from them or being involved in any sort of scandal. The OLG has yet to make a formal announcement about the launch of its own online gambling website, but we speculate that one will be coming soon.
