The Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO) has issued CA$40,000 monetary penalties to both Relax Gaming Limited and Arrise Solutions Limited. According to the regulator, games created by the two companies were available on unregulated gambling websites accessible to Ontario players.
In Ontario, operators of gaming websites accessible within the province must be registered with the AGCO. The recent move by the regulator indicates that it is not just focusing on site owners but on content suppliers as well.
What the AGCO Found
Both Relax Gaming and Arrise Solutions have been registered by AGCO as suppliers. As such, they can create and distribute slot and casino games within Ontario’s iGaming sector, which is regulated.
However, the licensing entails certain restrictions. According to AGCO, companies operating in the regulated iGaming market are prohibited from offering their products to unregulated gaming sites accessible by Ontarians.
AGCO linked the case to the supply-chain issue. If regulated products can be easily found on illegal or offshore websites, those sites can look more familiar and credible for players.
Why Suppliers Are in the Frame
According to AGCO, unregulated sites cannot assure player protection, data security, game fairness, responsible gambling features, or dispute resolution. Furthermore, the potential risks are broader and can involve money laundering or match-fixing.
As far as suppliers go, Ontario registration is not limited to signing deals with licensed operators. Providers need measures that prevent their games from being distributed through unlicensed channels within the province. These measures may include:
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Geofencing;
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Partner checks;
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Monitoring third-party distribution;
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Quick response to unapproved appearances of their games.
For game studios and aggregators, compliance now becomes a technical task as well.
Both Companies Cooperated
Both Relax Gaming and Arrise Solutions cooperated fully following notification by the AGCO investigators. They quickly moved to prevent players in Ontario from accessing their games through unregulated websites.
The fines were issued nevertheless. This is what the decision hinges on. Cooperation can help smooth tensions during the investigation process, but it does not wipe out the initial infringement.
For established B2B suppliers, the fine amount is relatively small. However, its enforcement significance lies elsewhere. Ontario is sending out a message to registered companies that they remain responsible for where their content can be accessed.
A Growing Market Needs Cleaner Borders
The iGaming market of Ontario is already sufficiently large. According to iGaming Ontario, there were 2.6 million active player accounts during the 2024-25 fiscal year. The 2024-25 channelization figure stood at 83.7%, meaning that surveyed players reported using regulated sites at that rate.
This helps explain the emphasis of the regulator. Once a large share of activity becomes centralized, it creates another issue – leakage. If illegal sites can offer recognizable games by registered suppliers, the fight against them becomes much harder.
In this sense, Ontario’s latest actions are not focused on the amount of fines. The main thing is the compliance picture. Operators remain the most visible target in illegal gambling cases, but suppliers now also have to prove that their games do not continue to support sites outside Ontario’s regulated system.
