Exploring the Effects of Introducing a State Monopoly Operator to an Unregulated Online Gambling Market
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.4309/jgi.2018.37.6Abstract
Recent expansions in regulated offerings to include online forms of gambling have been undertaken amid animated debate on the potential impacts of this legalization. The objective of the present study is to examine changes in online gambling patterns before and after the opening of Espacejeux: the state-operated gambling website in Québec, Canada. Information on gambling habits was drawn from two repeated cross-sectional surveys conducted with samples representative of the general adult population of the province of Québec in 2009 (N = 11,888) and 2012 (N = 12,008). Behavioural data were retrieved from the Online Poker Database of the University of Hamburg (ODP-UHH) for 4,591,298 (2009/2010) and 2,909,562 (2013) unique real money poker identities; all Québec players were retained for analysis. Gambling patterns before and after legalization of online gambling were compared. The prevalence of Internet gambling remained stable: 1.5% of the population gambled online in 2012 compared to 1.4% in 2009. Of those surveyed, 82.5% continued to gamble on unregulated sites in 2012 and data from OPD-UHH confirmed that 90% of all real money online poker players still bet on unregulated sites in 2013. Results suggest that it may be prudent for government stakeholders to consider alternative approaches for managing online gambling offerings. Longitudinal analyses are needed to disentangle the effects of legalization of online gambling.
Résumé
L’augmentation récente d’offres réglementées, notamment des jeux en ligne, a fait l’objet de vifs débats sur les répercussions possibles de cette légalisation. Cette étude examine les changements dans les modèles de jeux en ligne avant et après l’ouverture d’Espacejeux, le site de jeux exploité par la province de Québec, au Canada. L’information sur les habitudes de jeu a été tirée de deux enquêtes transversales répétées, réalisées avec des échantillons représentatifs de la population générale adulte de la province de Québec en 2009 (N = 11 888) et 2012 (N = 12 008). Les données comportementales ont été tirées de la base de données de poker en ligne de l’Université de Hambourg (ODP-UHH) sur 4 591 298 (2009/2010) et 2 909 562 (2013) joueurs de poker avec argent réel. Tous les joueurs québécois ont été retenus pour l’analyse. On a comparé les modèles de jeu avant et après la légalisation de jeux en ligne. La prévalence de jeu sur Internet est restée stable : 1,5 % de la population a joué en ligne en 2012 contre 1,4 % en 2009. Parmi les personnes sondées, 82,5 % d’entre elles ont continué de jouer sur des sites non réglementés en 2012 et les données de l’Université de Hambourg ont permis de confirmer que 90 % des joueurs de poker en ligne avec argent réel misent toujours sur des sites non réglementés en 2013. Avec ces résultats, les parties prenantes du gouvernement seraient avisées d’envisager d’autres approches pour la gestion des offres de jeux en ligne. Il faut effectuer des analyses longitudinales pour distinguer clairement les effets de la légalisation du jeu en ligne.
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