The eagerly awaited Canadian Gaming Summit is mere weeks away and kicking off Canada’s premier gaming and betting event is the exclusive pre-day “Player Protection Symposium” conference.

The 100 capacity Symposium will be taking place at the Metro Toronto Convention Centre, Toronto, on Tuesday 13th June 2023. The conference is focused around the ever-important issue of player protection and will equip attendees with the resources and knowledge to continue innovating in the industry whilst implementing greater and meaningful protection for their players.

Opening the pre-day event is “Leaders Panel – Walking the tight rope of player protection and growth”, which will explore the tense relation between the overwhelming commercial pressure to acquire market share and the need to implement responsible gaming practices to protect players.

The panel will consist of expert speakers Chrissy Thurmond (Senior Director Responsible Gaming, DraftKings), Jacob Coin (Executive Advisor to Chairman, San Manuel Band of Mission Indians), Janine Robinson (Principal, JR Consulting) and Bill Pascrell III (Principal, Princeton Public Affairs Group). Alongside Moderator Martin Lycka (SVP American Regulatory Affairs and Responsible Gambling, Entain), the panel will highlight the need for strong and visionary leadership to strike the optimal balance between competitive edge and player protection and how it’s previously been achieved.

Martin Lycka will continue his exploration of player protection with ‘Martin Lycka’s Safe Bet Show’, a podcast hosted live and in-person with special guest Glenn Healy (Director, National Hockey League Alumni Association), in front of a live conference audience. With this special episode’s focal point being safer gambling and its impact on gaming legislation in Ontario and beyond, this will make for essential viewing during the pre-day event.

Attendees will have the opportunity to learn more about technology’s role in identifying at-risk isolated players during the “Managing player risk through technology” panel. The panel will include Paul Foster (Chief Executive Office, Crucial Compliance), Dr Mary Donahue (Chief Executive Office, Digital Wellness Center) and Rasmus Kjaergaard (Chief Executive Officer, Mindway AI), with Bill Pascrell III (Principle, Princeton Public Affairs Group) moderating the panel. Experts will explore what technologies are available to monitor and identify player trends in real-time, whether problematic gaming is on the rise and the flaws in present and future technological solutions.

A key panel for the day will be the ‘Advertising responsible gambling’ panel, which will analyse educational programmes such as PlaySmart and GameSense and the ways they inform bettors. The panel will include esteemed speakers Tyjondah Kerr (Director, Program Development and Delivery, OLG), Ryan McCarthy (Director of Player Health, British Columbia Lottery Corporation (BCLC)) and Elaine McDougall (Vice President of Marketing & Communications, Responsible Gambling Council) and discuss how innovative advertisement aids in player education and how to keep player education in Canada meaningful and relevant as the industry continues to take strides.

Closing the day will be the panel, “The voice of the player – listening, learning and reforming”, which shifts perspective and gives a voice to those who have personally faced issues with problematic gambling and the groups that represent them. This will be an opportunity to shine a light on exactly where the industry needs to do more in order to best support vulnerable players and in turn better the industry as a whole.

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You must have a ticket to the Canadian Gaming Summit to attend the Player Protection Symposium. Tickets to the event start at $795 for groups of three or more people. Once you have a ticket you can register your interest here.