Critics cry foul at online proposal
A plan by Atlantic Lottery Corp. to beef up its online sports betting platform had some Nova Scotia gambling critics crying foul Saturday.
“This is all part of the plan to make the entire casino gambling experience available online in every household,” gambling critic Bernie Walsh said in an interview.
“The lottery corporation already has online sports betting available with Pro-Line. This is all about something very much bigger than sports.”
Mr. Walsh has campaigned for years against video lottery terminals and is in the process of seeking compensation from the province, through the courts, for losses resulting from his own VLT addiction.
“The lottery corporation will not be satisfied until there is a VLT in every home,” he said. “It wants people to visit the casino before getting dressed or even before having breakfast.”
Mr. Walsh criticized the lottery corporation for continuing to expand its gambling offerings without public consultation and without considering a significant body of evidence about the social problems associated with gambling, and sports betting in particular.
An announcement that the Atlantic Lottery Corp. is seeking a supplier of a new Internet player account-management and sports betting platform is posted on the corporation’s website.
The corporation has provided few details on the specifics of this new platform, citing competitive concerns, but the deadline for submitting proposals is May 6.
But it appears the system would either replace or embellish the current Pro-Line sports betting platform.
Some online gamblers have criticized Pro-Line as cumbersome when compared to some of the slick offshore sites. Pro-Line was designed to offer win-and-loss bets on a posted roster of games, and registered players operate under a $99 weekly spending limit.
“In order to remain relevant to our players, we must deliver what the player wants,” the corporation posted on its website.
Gambling opponent Terry Fulmer said revamping the online betting platform is an attempt by the corporation to widen its customer base.
“Rather than losing them to Internet gambling, the thinking is we should addict them ourselves,” Mr. Fulmer said.
“Here we go again with yet another assault on the pocketbooks of Atlantic Canadians.”
Mr. Fulmer, who campaigns against gambling at his GameOverVLTs.com website, said the push to get more gambling conducted in homes will result in reduced profits for a list of small businesses from pizza parlours to hardware stores.
“An addict will be able to drop $150 in a few moments without anybody knowing,” he said.
Several thousand Internet sites around the world offer 24-7 access to casino games, sports betting, lotteries and bingo.
