by Mario Alfonsi | Published on Apr 9, 2012 | Updated on Apr 9, 2012Very recently, Manitoba announced that they plan to institute an online gaming site that could be ready as early as next year. In addition to online poker, the government of Manitoba also plans to open an online casino that will feature all of your typical casino games like slots and blackjack. In the first year of its operation, the site is estimated to bring in at least $1.5 million, and by the year 2018 they are hoping it will bring in upwards of $20 million annually.The good thing about this site is that 5% of its revenues will go straight to help struggling gambling addicts. This 5% number is up from the 2% of gambling funds that currently goes to suffering addicts. British Columbia government officials will be assisting Manitoba in setting up their online gaming site because BC has had a site in operation since 2010.Manitoba Lotteries Commission will be in charge of running the site and will be regulated by Manitoba Gaming Control Commission. The minister of lotteries in Manitoba offered a statement saying, “There are 2,000 sites currently (and) an estimated $37 million that goes into online gaming, much of it which goes out of the province, we view the new site as a way of keeping that in the province.”In addition to Manitoba and BC, Ontario is another Canadian province that is considering hopping into the online gaming industry. It will be interesting to see how, when the prospective sites are set up, how each province will interact with each other. Currently, Manitoba and BC are talking about possibly having players overlap, but these talks are still in their infancy. The hope is that Manitoba’s online poker and online casino are up and running within a year’s time, and we will keep you up to date on all of the latest developments.Of course this is good news for online poker players coming from Canada who live in Manitoba, but for now residents coming from Manitoba and the rest of Canada can play on any Canadian Poker site listed here and choose a reputable poker site to play on.
