Rush Street CEO: Ontario’s growth in igaming not sports betting
Richard Schwartz acknowledges “really smooth” Ontario market opening but suggests betting boon can be surpassed by igaming expansion
Rush Street Interactive (RSI) CEO Richard Schwartz has suggested Ontario stands to benefit more from igaming expansion in the longer term than from the rise of sports betting in the province.
In an interview with the GlobalNews website, Schwartz highlighted the example of US states including New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Michigan which have seen monthly revenues increase following the legalization of igaming.
“What’s important to note is in the US, in the states that legalized both online casino and sports betting, two-thirds of the taxes generated are from online casinos,” Schwartz said.
“Sportsbook for show, casino for dough.
“It’s true that a sportsbook is exciting and showcases a lot of exciting things, but I think ultimately the casino is the opportunity for the industry and this government to generate the most tax revenue.
“Ultimately that’s the one a lot of people are going to refocus on if they haven’t already,” he added.
Rush Street Interactive (RSI) was one of a number of operators to launch sports betting in Ontario on April 4, following the receipt of a license from the Alcohol and Gaming Commission of Ontario (AGCO).
The launch has seen a flurry of activity from operators, with PointsBet and Penn National Gaming’s theScore all leveraging heavily into the province and concluding sports betting-led deals.
Schwartz, however, suggested there was more long-term potential to be derived from igaming operations in terms of player acquisition and growth.
“You have a chance to innovate in the online casino category,” he said.
“In the sportsbook category, there’s a lot more similar capabilities because you’re basically a transactional engine reflecting what happened on the field or court and you’re not manufacturing fun.
“In the US, you saw the same trend where everything was sports, sports, sports, initially. Then many of the operators realized after a longer period of time that really, the opportunity is more so in casino and so they start to shift their focus,” he added.
The RSI CEO was also full of praise for AGCO and its conduct in the run up to the launch, suggesting other jurisdictions could learn from the example of Ontario’s regulator.
“It’s been a really smooth market opening,” Schwartz said.
“It’s really exciting that for the first-time players are fully protected with relegation and legalization is clear.
“There were some opening pains last week that have been resolved to the point where the user experience is even better already.”
Schwartz continued: “You only get one chance to do it (open) right and I think the Ontario regulator has done an excellent job of really focusing on things like responsible gaming and, most importantly, responsible marketing.
“I think it puts some very high standards on things beyond what we’ve seen in other jurisdictions in North America,” he added.